Sunday Times Readers' rants
Stories and Songs on today's free French CD, with The Times

We were on a flight from Gran Canaria to Bournemouth recently, which was due to land at about 11pm. As we live in Bolton, we had arranged to stay at the Bournemouth Travelodge. Due to fog, we were diverted to Luton and didn’t land until after midnight. We had to wait until about 2am for a coach to Bournemouth, where we collected the car and drove to the Travelodge. We arrived at about 4am, to be told that, because we did not ring before midnight to say that we would be late, we had lost our booking. The only way we could stay was to pay a walk-in rate.
Reluctantly, we did this, but asked if we could have a refund of the initial booking, due to the circumstances and the difficulty of ringing a hotel from a circling charter flight. We were told to write to head office, which helpfully pointed out the terms and conditions, stating you must ring if you are going to be late. Beware. Brent Marshall, Bolton
Travelodge replies: “We are sorry for the unfortunate experience the Marshalls had to go through. Staff should have been more sympathetic. We would like to offer either a refund or a complimentary stay to the couple, and we are also reviewing our policy regarding late-shows.”
Search our Travel Directory
How the new breed of location based mobile services can find your nearest cashpoint, restaurant or wi-fi hotspot
Enjoy screenings of all the classic films you love, plus take advantage of two-for-one tickets
We explore leisure activities that are safe and suitable for all of the family
Times Online's new TV show helps you make the right decisions for your pet
Are you California dreaming? Explore the wonders of the Golden State. Also enter our fantastic competition
See the best entries in this year's competition
I am always amazed at people who book budget hotels or airlines and then whine about poor service - not everything is you get what you pay for but it's a pretty good guide - just think of all the expensive things we all have to pay for and get lousy service
Robert, Brighton,
We booked 2 rooms at Travelodge, and knowing we would be after midnight, checked with the Travelodge we were staying at this would be OK. We were assured that there was no problem checking - in late. As it happened we did not arrive until 04:10 as the vehicle we were in broke down and we had to wait to be rescued. The staff were very sympathetic but there was noting they could do other than charge another fee, an extra £94. They gave us the email address to claim a refund and have chased it up for us since, but with no response from head office. I first emailed with regard to this on 16th Feb but the only reponse I have had is 3 emails in return thanking me for my email. The invoices and confirmations received only note that checkin has to be after 3pm. No mention of any other times. Really poor service not responding and not allowing for unavoidable difficulties. BEWARE!!
Anne Tufnell, Winchester,