Positive suggestions for Booking Day.
Comments
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Tinwheeler I seemed to have caused offence, never implied that you or anyone else have said anything just said there had been nothing written that would convince me that deposits aren't a possibility worth considering, however if this had been taken wrongly I apologise to you and any others who feel the same.
No problem, Furball.
If you have used the C&CC system which involves paying deposits you'll know that it can be a performance. For instance, to amend a booking you have to telephone head office when they're open, cancel the booking, get the deposit refunded, make a new booking and pay another deposit.
C&CC, along with most providers, gives a cut off date when deposits can be refunded. This is akin to our 72 hour deadline (although it's longer) so what will be gained if cancellations are made just before the deadline and the deposits refunded? The concept of non-returnable deposits is authoritarian and restrictive and would likely cost CC dearly.
CC used to take deposits but dropped it and claim that no shows have reduced as a result. If you think about it, what incentive is there for someone to do the right thing in notifying a late cancellation if they've lost their deposit anyway?
Does that help rationalise my stance on the issue?
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Like I said in my earlier post, I can think of a couple of reasons that make a deposit system not ideal, for instance a family or pensioners on a tight income would then possibly be put at a disadvantage if they had to wait til pay day to make a booking,
they may miss the opportunity to book a site they really wanted. If they ever change the system it should be in the interest to make it fairer to all and be careful not to accidentally marginalize groups of the membership.0 -
I actually think it is fair to all now and probably the best compromise available.
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Tinwheeler I seemed to have caused offence, never implied that you or anyone else have said anything just said there had been nothing written that would convince me that deposits aren't a possibility worth considering, however if this had been taken wrongly
I apologise to you and any others who feel the same.No problem, Furball.
If you have used the C&CC system which involves paying deposits you'll know that it can be a performance. For instance, to amend a booking you have to telephone head office when they're open, cancel the booking, get the deposit refunded, make a new booking
and pay another deposit.C&CC, along with most providers, gives a cut off date when deposits can be refunded. This is akin to our 72 hour deadline (although it's longer) so what will be gained if cancellations are made just before the deadline and the deposits refunded? The concept
of non-returnable deposits is authoritarian and restrictive and would likely cost CC dearly.CC used to take deposits but dropped it and claim that no shows have reduced as a result. If you think about it, what incentive is there for someone to do the right thing in notifying a late cancellation if they've lost their deposit anyway?
Does that help rationalise my stance on the issue?
Totally accept what your saying, I use the other club probably more than the cc but only because I can book a year in advance which suits me, however there system is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, I think somewhere in the middle of the two
is possibly the starting point of a solution.0 -
As I have already pointed out the Club already operates a non refundable system for events like the National so what is against putting a non refundable deposit on bookings for hot spot sites? These are the ones that cause all the complaints and create the frenzy on "B" day.
The C&CC system works because members don't book until they are sure they can go and what is more the C&CC are nearly 5 times more profitable than the CC. I cannot imagine their costs for running an identical business are any less than the CC
peedee
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And I can't imagine that having deposits for Rowntree would make it any easier to find a Golden Ticket ...... pitch there at a weekend.
It is worth a try to avoid the grumbles and cut down on speculative weekend booking. A lot of weekends have to be speculative when they are booked so far in advance, if they weren't there wouldn't be any last minute bookings to pick up.
peedee
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There have been a number of complaints over time that it is no longer possible to "tour on a whim". How about scrapping the present booking system entirely and replacing it with a non-refundable "reservation fee" of £50 per booking. This would be in addition to the present pitch fees. Anyone who was so desperate for certainty would pay a premium. That would certainly slow down any 'book every weekend' types. I do wonder, however, at the length of queues that might ensue at the honeypot sites.
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There will still be grumbles from a handful that miss out although most will take it on good part. We do the lottery. No expectations of winning and don't know what I we would do with it at our age as we have more than enough to see us out.
Our bookings are not speculative as such. I can only recall one 'speculative' booking on my part the year before CC lost the site at Bowness - Braitwaite fold; another honey pot site. That was probably 7 years ago ad the last year where we booked a month
or two before travel I reckon. In february that year I noticed 5 days available there at the end August/early September and booked on spec as we had not sorted a tour route for September. The intent was to see if it would form part of a tour for us and release
by March if not. We sorted a route out and used it happily.0 -
There have been a number of complaints over time that it is no longer possible to "tour on a whim". How about scrapping the present booking system entirely and replacing it with a "reservation fee" of £50 per booking. This would be in addition to the present
pitch fees. Anyone who was so desperate for certainty would pay a premium. That would certainly slow down any 'book every weekend' types. I do wonder, however, at the length of queues that might ensue at the honeypot sites.It seems a great way to loose membership. And of course it is still possible to tour and book ahead a day before. If I wished to do so in School hols though I would book some weekends and have an idea of the route that I wanted. But that is me.
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