Am I being unreasonable?

About half the sites we have used during this year have required a deposit, and a couple payment in full at the time of booking. We judge each it its merits.

Possibly charging a deposit keeps no shows to a minimum and therefore helps the owner to keep their pitch fee to a minimum. 

There are a lot more CLs being run on a business footing nowadays, so it doesn’t surprise me that more are requiring deposits. My only concern would be getting somewhere and something not suiting us. It might be something particular to us, but not bother anyone else. Road noise is our hang up. Don’t mind background drone, but constant roar drives us mad. We live somewhere quite quiet, so not used to traffic noise close by all the time.

Moulesy, Iwouldn't dream of calling you unreasonable - that would be rude - but I would simply say the site owner is being businesslike and sensible. 

A willingness to pay any sort of deposit or even pay in full I suppose depends on how badly you want to be in that place. If it was a top priority to stay there I am sure you would have paid but as there are alternatives I could understand being reluctant to pay such a large deposit. 

BTW did the CL make any comment when you told them you were not continuing with the booking?

David

This year we had to pay the full amount for a CL in advance, we accepted this because we wanted to go to that particular CL. It was on their booking details and we decided it was worth it. We enjoyed our stay there too, all was ok as I did my research beforehand and knew what to expect.

 Thanks for all your replies. To answer a couple of specific points, there is no mention on the CL's website entry of a deposit being required and I have heard nothing back since explaining why we'd decided to look elsewhere.

Just to reiterate that I've no objections to paying a (reasonable) deposit and if it was a site we'd visited before or if there were no alternatives we'd be more likely to pay.

I have no problem with any CL owner deciding their own terms and conditions; if it suits them and they have plenty of takers good luck to them. 

Here's ours Moulesy by the Gt Ouse, in Cambs, the owners also had a small van site close by and I think it was a sensible business practice as it was obviously all very popular with a reasonable amount of security added in. Entry codes were given out after payment.

Hi, M.

Unreasonable? Toi? Mmmm.

No, I don't think you are. We have booked 6 different places for a round robin tour from end May to early July. On 2 sites I was asked to send a deposit, both for 1 nights stay. Happy to do so. However, I know from personal experience that life does tend to get in the way of enjoyment sometimes and we have had to change our plans at short notice. 4 nights is a lot to lose and I wouldn't pay it, but to each his own.

Having been bitten in the past, I don't think you're being unreasonable at all. I don't mind paying a small deposit - as a gesture of good will / good faith - but the amount they're asking makes me suspicious that they've got something to hide. 

The level of deposit requested by a CL owner might reasonably reflect the potential downside. That could be influenced by the ability to relet the pitch in the event of a cancellation. This is also influenced by the probability factor of being able to do so, the general level of occupancy etc. Having said all that, I would be rather surprised if I was asked for more than say £25 as a deposit for what is generally a space in a field.