Whilst checking on caravan parks along our WA route I came across the following and have to ask "Are park operators fair dinkum re their cancellation policy
I would have to question . How does one know/proove if they are not talking porkies re site being re booked
Cancellation Clause:
Full refund less $25 for cancellations received up to 28 days prior to booking date. 50% of deposit refunded for cancellations received 14 days prior to booking date unless the accommodation is re-booked in which case a full refund less $25 will be given. No refund for cancellations received up to 13 days prior to booking date unless the accommodation is re-booked in which case a full refund less $25 will be given.
Hi Geoff. CP operators do this to discourage you from cancelling a booking. Also if you look at it from their point of view, they may well have been able to book that site with someone else who would not cancel. Remember theyre in the business of filling all their sites to make a profit, and their overheads don't drop when theyre empty - they still have to pay rates, any commercial loans they might have owning the property etc.
Ive seen CP's who don't offer any refund - including Big4 and the other big national operators.
I think some CP's are a rip-off on what they charge - often $55-60 a night. You can rent a house for that much !!
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Cheers Bruce
The amazing things you see when nomading Australia
Caravan parks seem to be a law into themselves re- their cancellation & return policies
Also- you have no way of ever checking on whether 'your' site was rebooked by someone else and therefore your 100% could be returned - less a small admin fee for "a fair amount of their time"
Today at happy hour I heard a story from other campers re- their time at a Karumba Qld CP. 3 vans had booked & paid for 3 sites many months ago, Upon arrival they were told that they only had 2 adjacent sites available so the 3 vans would need to share the 2 sites. There was no offer of any refund of the money the 3rd van had paid
They also responded that the place was so cramped that they departed the CP early anyway, and in total disgust at their treatment
And CPs wonder why they are losing more & more travellers
CPs are businesses and many do what they can get away with in order to keep their heads above water, and make a quid if there's one to be made. Some are good at it, others are hopeless.
Anyway, despite the costs, they do provide a useful alternative to free camping, and many of us don't free camp ALL the time.
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There are three types of people: Those who can count, and those who can't.
I see nothing wrong with a Caravan Park keeping your deposit. Same works for any other business. You pay a deposit and if you do not honour your part of the deal you lose your deposit.
The parks I have dealt with usually require the first night as a deposit. If I book for 4 days, the park will then turn away potential customers for my site for this period. They have the right to keep my money if I do not honour my side of the deal.
Last year we had booked a popular coastal park site for 2 weeks - on the morning of departure to the park, my wife slipped over on the wet driveway and broke her arm just five minutes before I was to couple up the van and drive off. We spent the whole day in Accident & Emergency at our local hospital and we got home at 8:30 PM, to find the phone ringing. It was the park operator wondering where we were.
I explained what had happened - after a short discussion the operator allowed us to slide our booking for FOUR MONTHS until my wife's arm healed. He had already lost one day's site fees and probably had no chance of filling the next day. He held our pre-paid deposit for when we were able to re-commence our trip, WITHOUT charging us a penalty rate. His parks cancellation policy allowed him to apply penalty rates, but he decided not too. On arrival the full fee for our rescheduled trip was just as it was for the original booking. What a great guy, thank you Jeff - so much so, that we've been back there again since and it will be one of our regular parks. So, not all park owners rip you off, some are fair dinkum.
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Wondering about ShortNorth ? - Short North is the railwayman's nickname for the NSWGR main line between Sydney and Newcastle
Real Estate Agents are notorious for not trying too hard to find another tenant if you break a Lease and have to pay until they do....so GeoffC you would never really know if they found another booking or not, having to rely on their individual business compassion........and I suggest business goodwill these days is about as rare as finding a Politician who is not renting his own home from himself/own entity in Canberra....
-- Edited by goldfinger on Wednesday 25th of May 2016 11:04:18 PM
-- Edited by Webmaster on Thursday 26th of May 2016 01:28:07 PM
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'The secret of happiness is not in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less'.Socrates BC399.
'Be a Cheerful Nomad, not a Grumpy Gromad, it's the Surly Bird who catches the Germ'!
Last year we had booked a popular coastal park site for 2 weeks - on the morning of departure to the park, my wife slipped over on the wet driveway and broke her arm just five minutes before I was to couple up the van and drive off. We spent the whole day in Accident & Emergency at our local hospital and we got home at 8:30 PM, to find the phone ringing. It was the park operator wondering where we were.
I explained what had happened - after a short discussion the operator allowed us to slide our booking for FOUR MONTHS until my wife's arm healed. He had already lost one day's site fees and probably had no chance of filling the next day. He held our pre-paid deposit for when we were able to re-commence our trip, WITHOUT charging us a penalty rate. His parks cancellation policy allowed him to apply penalty rates, but he decided not too. On arrival the full fee for our rescheduled trip was just as it was for the original booking. What a great guy, thank you Jeff - so much so, that we've been back there again since and it will be one of our regular parks. So, not all park owners rip you off, some are fair dinkum.
A litigious claim for public liability would have been a very distinct possibility......cheaper and smarter to shower you with gifts and offerings.
Last year we had booked a popular coastal park site for 2 weeks - on the morning of departure to the park, my wife slipped over on the wet driveway and broke her arm just five minutes before I was to couple up the van and drive off. We spent the whole day in Accident & Emergency at our local hospital and we got home at 8:30 PM, to find the phone ringing. It was the park operator wondering where we were.
I explained what had happened - after a short discussion the operator allowed us to slide our booking for FOUR MONTHS until my wife's arm healed. He had already lost one day's site fees and probably had no chance of filling the next day. He held our pre-paid deposit for when we were able to re-commence our trip, WITHOUT charging us a penalty rate. His parks cancellation policy allowed him to apply penalty rates, but he decided not too. On arrival the full fee for our rescheduled trip was just as it was for the original booking. What a great guy, thank you Jeff - so much so, that we've been back there again since and it will be one of our regular parks. So, not all park owners rip you off, some are fair dinkum.
A litigious claim for public liability would have been a very distinct possibility......cheaper and smarter to shower you with gifts and offerings.
I think you will find that the accident happened in the persons own driveway. Maybe they were going to sue themselves.
What ever is written on this subject,I have to say we have never booked ahead for a caravan Park site. That is just us.
This sort of practice by C.Parks verify the decision we make to bush camp.
We only used C.Parks if and when we have to.
The lessor the better for us.
