| Vacation Rental Complaints [Tag : Luxury] |
| 1. |
Apartment fraud in Chelsea, London, UK
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On 20 February 2009 I forwarded a 600 pound deposit to a person purporting to be Mrs Sussan Knight to secure a week's rental on an apartment in Chelsea, UK during October 2009. Despite several emails to Knight since, including one from the website I found the advertisement on, Knight has failed to advise me of any receipt details and has in fact failed to communicate me in any other way. The phone number listed on her advertisement has also been answered as not in service.
I have conducted enquiries with my local Police here in Western Australia and am in the process of initiating a criminal fraud offence into Knight's activities with the UK Police.
I have searched the internet and found Knight's advertisement, using exactly the same photos and blurb, on at east 6 websites now, including this one. I will, in turn, be notifying every website I find this person's details on. Some of the advertisements have been placed since 20 February 2009, so Knight is obviously still soliciting unsuspecting victims.
It would appear Knight has duplicated an advertisement from a genuine apartment nearby and I have contacted that advertiser of this possibility.
The original website I made my booking through has now cancelled Knight's account with them, als has another website already contacted. It is my fervent hope that you do the same so as to ensure no other unsuspecting clients lose their hard earned money as I have apparently done.
Date Added: Mar 20, 2009
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| 2. |
Rundown villa in Runaway Bay
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Our expectations were not met; the villa did not come up to the high standard as described and shown in photographs and videos on its main and numerous websites.
Although the villa was in a beautiful location with stunning views, we were extremely disappointed to find it rather shabby and rundown. We were not expecting 5-star by UK standards but a well-maintained and clean villa. The staff did their best to look after our needs but they were hampered by a) not having the right equipment and b) it appears they did not have resources to make even small purchases such as the battery for the golf cart.
There was no guest fridge for our use, the pool was pretty grubby as were the inflatables around it, the parasol was broken and rusty. The pool furniture has seen better days, it is all very grubby.
We do not consider our complaints unreasonable. Given that our holiday mood was marred from the beginning by the villa being shabby and unkempt, particularly the kitchen. There was no ambient lighting, only an overhead light.
The fixtures and fittings are all very grubby, in need of replacement and/or fixing. The air-conditioning is limited to the central room only, the bedrooms only have ceiling fans and broke air condition units that are very old and falling to pieces.
The tennis court is in need of serious attention, it is falling to pieces, the surface is filthy, cracked and dangerous. It is beyond belief it is being advertised on tennis websites!
The gardens could be delightful if it were not for the dog mess all over the place.
We realised the service we received was limited by petty and irritable excuses from the Caretaker/Supervisor.
Caretaker/Supervisor M and Housekeeper J. In our view they are too young and inexperienced to look after a house the size of Villa Maroon. They were always pleasant and friendly but unfortunately we found them both unprofessional and incompetent. They clearly have little idea how to clean or look after a big house, garden and pool, let alone a few guests.
One good thing was our rooms were always tidied and our beds made up each day but still the house was a grubby mess.
Neither the Housekeeper nor the Caretaker were around some mornings during the first few days of our stay, which was a pain because there was no one to open the gates to the pool, make coffee, open the house up and make it presentable for us.
One other good thing: The Chef. Given he did not have ideal conditions to work in, his presentation skills were faultless and his food was pretty good. We would recommend him to anyone.
It is not a pleasure to complain like this but in the circumstances we believe the owner should be aware of our disappointment. Her run down villa that looks so beautiful on the net really needs to be totally refurbished.
The clever use of photography and false descriptions to sell a non-existent environment which by any stretch of the imagination could not be achieved in the current conditions that exist in the villa.
It was above the means of the staff to rectify any of the problems we mention. We paid the owner a large sum of money for a poor standard villa without proper service. It is beyond us to recommend the villa to anyone within our professional circles or amongst our friends.
Date Added: Apr 13, 2011
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