Would It Work ? – Open for sensible debate.

The only sensible system with minimum of complications for the Club is a non refundable deposit sytem and let those who have to cancel claim on holiday insurance. The Club could even offer that insurance. Isn't that what most holiday companies do?

peedee

Even that would not be sure to alter anything, unless you are advocating that the deposit is lost whatever the circumstances. If the CAMC did that it would put them at odds with firms like Morris leisure. Although at peak times they charge up to £10 a night non returnable deposit, this is not lost as long as you give 48 hours notice. A few years ago when the OH ended up in hospital I had to cancel. The £100 deposit was deferred for 12 months and could be used at any of their sites. So if the CAMC introduced total loss deposits what would be my incentive to use them, as against those with policies like ML. We book and almost always take up over 100 site nights a year mainly off peak, do they really want to risk loosing those sorts of bookings.

The other point about holiday insurance, is that it will not cover a lot of things. Death yes, but very elderly mother taken into hospital, not so clear cut.

I strongly suspect, despite the Club claiming to the contrary, that there are a good proportion of bookings made on frenzy day which are speculative. 

'We'll get the booking in, just in case, we can always change our mind nearer to the time' This is especially true for Bank Holiday weekends and holiday periods such as Christmas and New Year

This attitude is unfair for those that 100% want to make future holiday plans and are committed to taking the bookings they place.

As I've posted on another thread, the number of nights I've booked for this year and next at sites requiring a deposit, be that C&CC or commercial sites, dramatically outweigh the nights I've booked with this club. As some may know, I enter sporting events up and down the UK, some are very popular so get booked up as soon as entries become available. At the same time I look to book a pitch at the local campsite.

Because of the booking system roughly £1300 of my cash is going to the other club and commercial sites this year, as opposed to around £50 going to the CAMC

For next year, I've already committed to spending approx £1200 to the C&CC which is likely to rise as further plans are made. I've no intention of getting involved in frenzy day to secure sites, if I book a CAMC site next year, it'll be purely on an ad hoc basis.

I hope the club read this 

Not been to Bath or Oxford for many years so we decided to have a week between the two in August.

Thankfully there are no CC sites close to either city so simple to book none CC sites with reasonable choice of dates.

PS. Nigel the club don't really care what you do and it's doubtful that anyone will deem to visit their own embarrassingly inadequate forum.

No doubt about it EJB, I've never really complained in the past about the booking system, I just do what is best for me and as a result, the Club receive a very small proportion of the money I spend on site fees. Of course, it's not the same for everyone, there are those that prefer the non-commital nature of the current way of booking with this Club, it just doesn't work so well for me and therefore the majority of money I spend, goes to the club and sites that require deposits. 

I think from the clubs point of view they are not worried about cancellation of bookings at popular times, and or popular sites, as these will almost always be taken up. So no loss of revenue. What they cannot afford is to put off the large number of folk, like us, who holiday off peak. Introducing non returnable deposits could well do this. Even if you take up all your bookings,  for some it would be a large outlay at a time of year they cannot afford it. So it is purely a commercial decision, as long as they sell the pitches they are not really bothered how. 

Also unless you make it a total loss, I am not sure what affect, say £10 a night would have on weekenders at Chatsworth. Who could be paying almost £100 for a two night stay, plus of course fuel to get there. 

David, as I pointed out in my OP I don't have the problem of work's holiday dates anymore but there are other things in life that can dictate when things can or can't be done which then affects that date at which planning can be done with some certainty of not having to cancel. For various reasons many of us, I am sure, cannot book that far in advance. Caravanning was once a spontaneous affair but with sites booked speculatively those days are, regretfully, long since gone.

Knowing that once the initial 50% of the pitches had been booked one couldn't book until 2 months before the planned trip is, to me, simple enough. I would just stick it in my diary to book at a later date. What is so difficult to understand about that?

Booking on spec and then cancelling is exactly what causes the problem for many members. Doing so, in my mind, is a selfish attitude if bookings are made with cancelling nearer the date already in mind.

As you rightly state," If you want to change something the weight of the argument in favour of that change must be overwhelming and I am not convinced it is. Often proposed changes don't have the advantages that the proposer thinks they do." for this read  changes to CC name and logo.

Before anyone suggests it, we do now use CLs far more than main sites mainly because a full week can usually be booked and not just Monday to Friday.

You make a valid point and I completely understand your reasoning.

So... introduce a deposit requirement just for Bank Holiday weekends and school holiday peak time periods? 

many complaints arise on this subject and views/suggestions are posted/debated, trying to 'resolve the situation' (deposits, rolling calendars etc, etc) of speculative bookings made on frenzy day, where many feel they have a raw deal.

this is closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

the real issue (and one that comes up on CT time and time again) is that the date/time the Club selects for its Booking Openings is unfair to many, especially those who work 'normal hours'.....and, incredibly, there are still many who do this.

these are the folk that have to attempt to agree/arrange holidays at work, yet have no chance to actually book these with CC as the popular weeks/weekends at the popular sites will have been booked (speculatively or not....) while they are at work.

while i agree that which ever day CC chooses wont satisfy everyone, it shouldnt be beyond its capability to have a rotating release day, incorporating weekends to give as much opportunity to ALL members, irrespective of their working status or their hours.

a fixed mid week morning 'opening' suits its core membership just fine for booking that (10 years in a row now, we never have a problem getting in) peak week at Chatsworth, Baltic Wharf or York.

with the club attempting to encourage more (working) families to join the club, this is a particular area where a small admin change could show that the club actually understands a bit about the lives of those they seek to become 'the next generation.....'

yes completely agree with you. And of course if you have paid a deposit and not taking up your booking what incentive have you (or one) to let anyone know? At least at present someone else will get that booking.

Also is there really a problem? How many sites are actually booked up on booking day? I don't have the club's statistic on this but they show that apart from one, two, perhaps three sites there is plenty of pitches left. And these sites will book up no matter what system is in place. I seem to remember that the club did look at this speculative booking idea and found that it didn't really happen as only very few people actually did this. (statement in club magazine round about Christmas last year?)  

again I've paid my 10 pounds deposit for a weekend costing £100+ petrol, decide to cancel, what incentive have I to let the club/site know?

The present system with it's sanctions works better than deposits ever did as shown by the fact when deposits were removed the number of no shows went down.