Michael Maze July 18 Email: [email protected]
On May 5, my wife and I joined Trafalgar Tours %u2019 Ireland and Scotland tour.
Upon preparing to depart the hotel in Dublin for our first travel day, May 7, Trafalgar staff did not properly follow their loading protocol and, as a result, were unaware that they had failed ensure that our main luggage was on board the coach prior to its departure at around 9:00 AM.
It was not until we arrived at Waterford that it became apparent to us that our luggage was missing, and it took several hours for Trafalgar staff to eventually ascertain, with the help of the Dublin hotel%u2019s security cameras, that our bags had been stolen approximately three hours after the coach had left.
The tour director and I subsequently made a police report in Waterford and I must say that then, both he and the coach driver made every effort to assist us in our attempt to deal with this situation. However, we had to immediately begin the inconvenience and expense of replacing medicine, clothing, suitcases, etc., as a result of losing most of our belongings. Needless to say, this took considerable time and effort, which significantly detracted from our ability to enjoy the rest of the tour, especially as my wife is handicapped.
After returning to Canada, We fully expected to hear from Trafalgar regarding this incident, especially when we were asked to forward our comments to their London office at the end of the tour. Several months went by, and it became apparent that we were not going to hear from the company.in fact it took several requests by both us, and our travel agent to finally elicit a response from them, which basically stated that the loss was unfortunate, but they bore no responsibility regarding the theft.
There followed an increasingly frustrating exchange of correspondence with Trafalgar%u2019s Guest relations Department in Switzerland where, in each of my letters, I asked the question, in one form or another, as follows: %u201CIf Trafalgar staff were following their procedure properly, why was it not determined prior to the coach%u2019s departure that our luggage, and only our luggage, was not on board? %u201D This query still has not been answered to our satisfaction, despite the company advising that they have investigated the incident. Although they have suggested various scenarios, none of them address this question directly.indeed, I am increasingly of the opinion that my letters were not read very carefully, especially when they even had the wrong date when the theft occurred in one of their recent letters.
At this point it seems obvious that we are not going to receive a satisfactory explanation or even an apology from Trafalgar, which is ironic, as had they initially contacted us regarding the situation, we would most likely have been satisfied, and even would have considered booking another tour with them. However, after all our efforts, we are just frustrated and consequently now very annoyed at their initial negligence which resulted in the theft, and Trafalgar%u2019s continuing avoidance at acknowledging their culpability in this matter.
Copies of all correspondence, the police report or any further information will be provided on request.
Yours truly,
Michel Maze
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