‘Travel firm put our lives at risk in Jamaica hurricane’

A couple whose Caribbean holiday was ruined by Hurricane Melissa have called on a travel firm to “do the right thing” and give them a refund.

Stephen Ramsden paid £4,285 to stay at the five-star Hotel Riu Reggae in Jamaica through TUI, only to find three days into their two-week break, the resort was put into lockdown as Hurricane Melissa devastated the island.

“I feel like TUI has put our lives in danger by letting us go there knowing there was a storm,” Mr Ramsden said.

The BBC put their grievances to TUI but the travel company declined to comment.

In emails seen by the BBC, TUI told the couple the situation they faced was “beyond our control” and they should make an insurance claim to recover their costs.

Mr Ramsden said: “They’re just passing the buck, they don’t want to know. We feel that’s not right.”

The couple arrived in Montego Bay on October 22 and claim they were not told about the hurricane.

The hotel was locked down on 25 October, three days before Melissa made landfall.

“They started boarding the place up. It was quite scary,” Mr Ramsden said.

As the pool and bars were closed, food was rationed and drink limited to one bottle of water.

They were advised to sleep in their bathroom to stay safe.

“It wasn’t handled very well. We did not get what we paid for from TUI,” said Mr Ramsden, adding that he felt the customer service was “appalling”.

“The TUI rep said ‘don’t worry about it, it’ll pass over and we’ll all be back to normal’.”

He says they should have been offered a flight home or moved to a safe location to continue their holiday.

TUI flew the couple back to the UK but five days early on 31 October.

The couple said they did not eat for 13 hours in their 25-hour journey home which included a repatriation flight from Kingston to London Gatwick then a coach to Manchester.

In emails, TUI told the couple they were ‘deeply sorry’ their holiday was impacted but the situation, a natural disaster, was ‘beyond their control’.

They acknowledged the ‘disruption and distress’ caused and explained the decision to lockdown the hotel early was based on the latest “guidance” from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office.

TUI offered the couple support in getting their money back through their travel insurance provider.

After contacting their provider, Allianz Partners, Mr and Mrs Ramsden have been paid £1.5k.

Allianz told the BBC: “We are very sorry that the Ramsdens’ holiday in Jamaica was cut short by Hurricane Melissa, and we sympathise with the difficult circumstances they faced.

“After a full review, we have processed their insurance claim and paid them the maximum available under the terms of their policy.”