Hotel Voucher Shop goes bust leaving thousands out of pocket: here’s how to claim your money back

Hotel Voucher Shop has gone into voluntary liquidation leaving thousands of customers out of pocket. The company allowed customers to buy vouchers of up to £1,000, which would be put towards the cost of a holiday. Hotel Voucher Shop claimed to have contracts with 150,000 hotels around the world. What happened? Owner Chris Orrell made the decision to put his company into voluntary liquidation - this occurs when shareholders and owners agree to dissolve a business. It happens when the company either cannot pay its debts or has more liabilities than it does assets. Leonard Curtis Ltd were appointed as joint liquidators of Hotel Voucher Shop according to their website. The HSV website states: “The company has ceased trading activities and no further voucher redemption's are now possible.” Some unlucky customers only found out that their gift vouchers were void after travelling to their hotels. Voided bookings Speaking to The Mirror, holiday goers recalled the nasty surprises that lay in store for them. Using a £275 wedding gift card, Emma and Dana from Aberdeen jetted off to Majorica only to be told they did not have a room. Emma said: “When we turned up the hotel had never heard of Hotel Voucher Shop.” Hotel Voucher Shop proved unhelpful following the shock. “We paid 280 euros ourselves and since then no one from Hotel Voucher Shop has answered our phone calls, emails or Facebook messages.” “The company director must have known it was in trouble,” Emma added. Faye and husband Charles had booked a three-night getaway at a five-star hotel in Berlin using their £500 gift voucher. They experienced a similar fate, with the hotel being unaware of their booking. Faye said: “We were told: ‘No, you haven’t got a room’. We felt very cheesed off.” Can I get my money back? All hope may not be lost, however, and there are steps you can take to try and get your money back. The Hotel Voucher Shop website states: “Any unredeemed voucher balances will form unsecured claims in the Liquidation.” To formally register your claim, you can contact hotelstay@leonardcurtis.co.uk. You’ll then be added to a list of creditors who are owed money by the company. You can also try and claim your money back via your bank provider. If you paid using your debit card, ask your card provider to submit a chargeback and they’ll request your money back from Hotel Voucher Shop. You must do this within 120 days of the purchase. If you paid over £100 on a credit card for your voucher, you’re protected under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This act states that the credit card company is jointly responsible when there has been a breach of contract or you’ve been misrepresented by a retailer or trader. You can make a claim under Section 75 through the Which? website. This article originally appeared on our sister site The Scotsman