Top holiday hassles revealed by Which? research

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The most common issues are flight delays or cancellations, accommodation being different to the description, and rude or unhelpful staff.

Almost a quarter (21%) of survey respondents thought that their holiday was so bad that they felt like they needed another one.

As a result the consumer rights arm of Which? has published a selection of guides, infographics and complaint letter templates to help empower consumers when they do face challenging holiday circumstances.

The initiative is part of a new ‘Stop the Holiday Hassles’ campaign designed to uncover shoddy practices and offer advice to travellers.

Nearly two thirds (64%) who have taken a holiday in the last two years said that if something goes wrong they will usually make a complaint. Yet only half (54%) said they feel confident that they know their rights if something goes wrong.

Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said: “People don’t deserve to come back from holiday as stressed out as when they left. This summer, we’re asking travellers to share their getaway gripes so we can expose the dodgy deals and shoddy service to stop the holiday hassles.”

Top five problems experienced with a holiday in the UK or abroad in the last two years:

1. Flights delays or cancellations (30%)
2. Long waits to reclaim baggage (25%)
3. Accommodation being different to what was described (24%) = Unhelpful or rude staff (24%)
4. Delays or cancellations of other forms of transport e.g. train, ship or taxi (20%) = Accommodation being unclean (20%)
5. Lack of information regarding delays, cancellations or other problems by staff (17%)