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Thread: What assurances?

  1. #21
    Florida Junior
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Posts
    52
    I am not saying that the way to go is through a tour operator, we have been travelling to Florida for 20 years and have not booked through a tour operator for at least 15 years. In reply to the original post I was just pointing out that repossession of a villa is not the only problem you may encounter!
    We stay on Anna Maria Island, I am not aware of any villas on this forum being available in this area, hence the booking was made elsewhere, there was a management company, however the guy in question who lived in England had bypassed them and put it down as an owner booking, so no help was offered by them.

    Sue


  2. #22
    Florida Chatterbox
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Gourock UK
    Posts
    257
    OP ....
    We are now looking about for our second visit in 2013 and I was wondering if we book a villa direct with a vendor, what assurances do we have? For example (and god forbid it ever happens) if a villa is repossessed? It's just we had the same situation with our last holiday company where the owner had lost their villa as they hadn't kept up with their payments so the holiday company found us another villa.

    I think that we have all missed the point from the OP and have gone off topic a bit.

    He is not debating the issues of quality / location etc of picking a villa as opposed to AOA from a Tour Op. It's about the "risk" of heaven forbid a private owner having financial difficulties and the the "risk / guarantee" you will have with a bonded ATOL operator.

    I have made my feelings known in the past and each individual makes their own choice. I have looked through the properties offered through the sister sites and in my opinion the standard is very high and are presented well. So in that respect I would have no difficulty in picking one of these. It comes down to balancing the amount of deposit you have to put up front, the distance out from when you are actually staying against being able to take the loss if a good, well meaning private owner falls on hard times.


  3. #23
    Gold 5 Star Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    Manchester, England
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    5,396
    Quote Originally Posted by DLB-GOUROCK View Post
    I have made my feelings known in the past and each individual makes their own choice. I have looked through the properties offered through the sister sites and in my opinion the standard is very high and are presented well. So in that respect I would have no difficulty in picking one of these. It comes down to balancing the amount of deposit you have to put up front, the distance out from when you are actually staying against being able to take the loss if a good, well meaning private owner falls on hard times.
    I don't think that a guest booking a privately rented villa will ever have to take a loss. There should always be a rental contract between a guest and an owner (usually a set of Ts&Cs) and if the owner does not make good on that contract, as a minimum they would have to return any monies paid. If they choose not to, a court would rule otherwise.
    Steve



  4. #24
    Moderator
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Hants
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    8,137
    Quote Originally Posted by Suzy View Post
    We stay on Anna Maria Island, I am not aware of any villas on this forum being available in this area, hence the booking was made elsewhere, there was a management company, however the guy in question who lived in England had bypassed them and put it down as an owner booking, so no help was offered by them.

    Sue
    Sue, I am shocked that the Management Company of the villa you rented was unwilling to give you any help. That is unbelievable.

    I do all my own rentals - would not let a Management Company or Tour Operator booking anywhere near my home, but my Management Company take care of my home AND my guests regardless. I can see absolutely no reason why this Management Company should have declined to give you any help. That is scandalous, and certainly not something I have heard of before. I hope that you informed the owner of the problem you had, as, had it been me, that Management Company would have very rapidly been my EX Management Company!
    ellie


  5. #25
    Florida Newbie
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Posts
    1
    I am just about to send off payment for my first booking through this excellent site and was having similar thoughts to the OP.

    But more specifically, does paying via Paypal confer the same level of legal protection as paying directly by credit card, given that they are only acting as middle men?

    The owner does not appear to post on these pages which leaves me slightly unsure, but it probably just means they have enough things to do rather than post in the forums!


  6. #26
    Florida Chatterbox Sandra M's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Romford, UK & Highgate Park, Davenport, Florida
    Posts
    572
    Quote Originally Posted by Khrest View Post
    I am just about to send off payment for my first booking through this excellent site and was having similar thoughts to the OP.

    But more specifically, does paying via Paypal confer the same level of legal protection as paying directly by credit card, given that they are only acting as middle men?

    The owner does not appear to post on these pages which leaves me slightly unsure, but it probably just means they have enough things to do rather than post in the forums!
    You could use your credit card to pay through PayPal [msnsmile]

    Sandra
    Sandra



  7. #27
    Site Owner and Admin floridadreamvilla.co.uk's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
    Location
    Bolas Heath, Shropshire, UK and Crescent Lakes, Kissimmee, USA.
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    21,327
    Feel free to email me at john@orlandovillas.com with the owner's name or villa ref number and I can re-assure you if that helps .
    Quote Originally Posted by Khrest View Post
    The owner does not appear to post on these pages which leaves me slightly unsure, but it probably just means they have enough things to do rather than post in the forums!


  8. #28
    Florida Chatterbox
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    281
    I agree with most of the comments above. This is a reputable site and I think it is unlikely anyone booking through if will be short-changed.

    I must confess to one doubt though, if a villa is for sale, I think any potential renter should be made aware of this.


  9. #29
    Florida Newbie
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    2
    Do I understand that is it practice to pay in full 8 weeks in advance of trip?? With no proof of house's existence.. Makes me very nervous. A lot of money. How do you protect against fraud?


  10. #30
    Gold 5 Star Member ShirleyCottam's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Derbyshire
    Posts
    2,771
    Do not be worried that owners do not post a lot on the forum, all the villas are verified regularly. Some owners have full time jobs and families and not a lot of time left for posting on the forum, that doesnt mean there is a problem with the villa.

    If you are worried about proof of the villas existance then contact the owner and they will be able to provide you with proof of ownership of their villa.
    Shirley



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