Am I being unreasonable?

Hi Moulsey

I don't think you're being unreasonable.  Whilst I doubt you will cancel without good reason and the site is protecting it's income, that is a huge deposit.   We've booked a lovely site for 10 nights next August and we didn't pay a deposit at all, however I would have been happy to pay one night fee if needed as it was a longer booking.  

I suspect it will soon be the way that all sites, CMC, CCC and CL/CS's join the commercial world and ask for a deposit on booking.  

In the meantime, I would probably avoid anywhere that wanted such a large deposit. 

Perhaps the CL owner has been let down too many times , and as a small business myself I can understand why they ask for a deposit , I have ordered items in for a customer (not taken a deposit) and they don't come back 

personally ,if it was a site I wanted I would pay it, but were all different 

P.S.... where was it ???????

The decision of any cl owners to ask for a deposit ...is their choice  .

Indeed we have stayed on cl's where no deposit as been requested  that's fine , but those who require a deposit is just their way of handling their bookings in case of no shows or members cancelling at a later date .

If you don't accept the cl's booking requirements , you simply go elsewhere.👍

£60 might sound a lot as a deposit M. However I have used sites that have charged £50 for my 5 night stay which is a not dissimilar ratio and so I would have paid it. 

Just to add, that, of course, I accept that CL owners have every right to run their business in whichever way they like, but this was so in variance with any other CL we've used over the years that it just came as a bit of a shock. And it wasn't even for a bank holiday period. The site is in a popular holiday area and there are plenty of alternatives so we'll find something to suit. 

I wouldn’t have paid that large a deposit without having the terms in black and white. That is, in what circumstances and time scale would it be refundable or non-refundable. 

I’ve no objection to paying a deposit but the terms should be set out especially if it’s a substantial sum. 

It does seem rather an excessive amount, just wonder if they have been 'stung' in the past. Surely, as we are all members using such sites anyone found abusing CLs could be 'addressed' in several ways. 

Difficult one. We used to send a deposit of a third for our 28 night stay on a very popular CL in Cornwall, but it was super busy, and we had to book a year in advance to get the dates we needed. I used to send full amount sometimes, so we had nothing to pay on arrival, but we did know the site and owners very well.

If it was a new to us CL, I would waver at £60 to be honest, but check it out when next in area, and if as expected book it next time with a deposit if it suited. They could have been badly let down, it does happen, so perhaps super cautious with new visitors. Nowadays, because of caring duties, we book nothing more than a couple of days in advance, other than the occasional Club Site for a special date.

Is the deposit refundable with good notice, or can be transferred to other dates M? We could do this with Cornish CL.

Have to admit, I didn't think to ask any further about terms & conditions,  refunds or transferability, maybe I should have done. Anyway, have been in touch with a couple of others in the same area and just waiting to hear back! 

personally ,if it was a site I wanted I would pay it, but were all different

So would I, in fact I have already paid in full for a 4 night future booking.

peedee