Sunday, December 28, 2008
A season of goodwill
If just a very small percentage of the 800 plus visitors to this site have taken the warnings about Robin Larkins and The Real World Rental Company's fraudulent activities, then I am glad to have done you a favour, and saved your money from their clutches. I am also pleased to have prevented Larkins getting an average of GBP1,000 per head in illegally obtained funds.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
When is a complaint not a complaint?
I'm glad to note that Holiday-Rentals have published the review I wrote for the property we rented in Harcourt Terrace:
Reviews For London Vacation apartment - Property 86556
Holiday Rental Location: World, Europe, United Kingdom, England, London
A 2 Double bedroom patio garden flat in the heart of Chelsea
Rating: 1/5
Beware of this Agent
wefs Bangkok, Thailand.Date Submitted: December 12, 2008 Date of Stay: October 2008
From the beginning to the end (and it's not yet over), our experience with the Agent and his company has been utterly appalling. The inadequacies of the flat, (including inaccurate claims about what is on offer: uncleaned, stained carpets, lightbulbs not working in every room), to the incompetent service, (unreturned phone calls, unanswered emails, late arrival for our check in), pale into insignificance compared to the dealings with the Agent and his staff in trying to have the fully refundable deposit returned 2 months since leaving, and despite assurances given by them a number of times that the monies were to be transferred. I cannot stress enough to future prospective clients - do not rent this property.
Did you find this review helpful? Yes No
Reviews are the subjective opinions of Holiday-Rentals.co.uk travellers and not of Holiday-Rentals.co.uk Limited.
As they seem to be in some doubt about what constitutes a complaint, please be clear Holiday-Rentals: this IS a complaint. The terms and conditions for writing a review prevent anyone from being more explicit about their rental experience, but even following those to the letter, I think it's obvious to all that this is a bad review. This also highlights the problem of not getting back my deposit from The Real World Rental Company, and Robin Larkins.
Similarly, another review of another property, (the second negative one for the same property), would appear to me to be a "complaint":
Property 93739
2/5
Good if U dont like to shower!
Showerboy australia.Date Submitted: November 02, 2008 Date of Stay: October 2008
A poor start to our stay with the agent leaving us waiting on the street for 45 minutes after arriving late without so much as an apology. Just what we needed after a 13 hour flight! The unit itself is in a great location, noisy though as previously mentioned, but is poorly maintained. The unit was in a state of disrepair on our arrival with the following defects: two broken shower screen doors which were unusable with the only way to shower being to lift and hold each door in place whilst showering. The inner bathroom door handle was broken off and had been placed on the kitchen bench. The front door main lock was also broken and was beside the door handle in the kitchen. The television was unusable on any channel but came good after my husbands rewired and reprogrammed it! The kettle constantly tripped the electrical circuit breaker and we were forced to boil water for coffee on the stove for fear of being electrocuted! For a holiday let apartment there were minimal kitchen implements available (ie. no tea towels, plastic cutlery left by previous renter, no dishwashing liquid etc). As we didnt want to flood the bathroom whilst showering or be held responsible for the doors falling off completely, not to mention the safety of our children, we contacted the agent with our concerns. Someone did come and assess the situation but we were told that maintenance and the owner were already aware of these problems but as the unit is on the market the owner does not want to spend any money on it. The maintenance staff assured us it was a safe neighbourhood and we didnt need that lock and promised to return with a plastic shower curtain and extra towels so that we could shower. These items never turned up. The debacle continued as we tried to organise the return of our security deposit. Despite mulitple phone calls to the agent and his staff we couldnt pin anyone down to confirm the return of the deposit. After 7 phone calls the agent finally confirmed a time but was more interested in his upcoming holiday to eurodisney. Having stayed in numerous letted apartments throughout the world, we were disappointed by the agents incompetence and the fact that the unit continued to be rented out whilst there were known maintenance issues. Either the unit should have been repaired before being rented out or if the owner is unwilling to do this it should be removed from the rental pool.
I'm not clear why Holiday-Rentals think these are not "complaints", and therefore didn't merit investigation when they were written previously. Had they been properly investigated it is possible that many others like myself would not have become further victims of Larkins and The Real World Rental Company's activities.
I'm not clear how serious the complaint has to be for Holiday-Rentals to consider taking action against Larkins, but the reassurance from them that their team leader is "OK" with this company is very worrying indeed.
Reviews For London Vacation apartment - Property 86556
Holiday Rental Location: World, Europe, United Kingdom, England, London
A 2 Double bedroom patio garden flat in the heart of Chelsea
Rating: 1/5
Beware of this Agent
wefs Bangkok, Thailand.Date Submitted: December 12, 2008 Date of Stay: October 2008
From the beginning to the end (and it's not yet over), our experience with the Agent and his company has been utterly appalling. The inadequacies of the flat, (including inaccurate claims about what is on offer: uncleaned, stained carpets, lightbulbs not working in every room), to the incompetent service, (unreturned phone calls, unanswered emails, late arrival for our check in), pale into insignificance compared to the dealings with the Agent and his staff in trying to have the fully refundable deposit returned 2 months since leaving, and despite assurances given by them a number of times that the monies were to be transferred. I cannot stress enough to future prospective clients - do not rent this property.
Did you find this review helpful? Yes No
Reviews are the subjective opinions of Holiday-Rentals.co.uk travellers and not of Holiday-Rentals.co.uk Limited.
As they seem to be in some doubt about what constitutes a complaint, please be clear Holiday-Rentals: this IS a complaint. The terms and conditions for writing a review prevent anyone from being more explicit about their rental experience, but even following those to the letter, I think it's obvious to all that this is a bad review. This also highlights the problem of not getting back my deposit from The Real World Rental Company, and Robin Larkins.
Similarly, another review of another property, (the second negative one for the same property), would appear to me to be a "complaint":
Property 93739
2/5
Good if U dont like to shower!
Showerboy australia.Date Submitted: November 02, 2008 Date of Stay: October 2008
A poor start to our stay with the agent leaving us waiting on the street for 45 minutes after arriving late without so much as an apology. Just what we needed after a 13 hour flight! The unit itself is in a great location, noisy though as previously mentioned, but is poorly maintained. The unit was in a state of disrepair on our arrival with the following defects: two broken shower screen doors which were unusable with the only way to shower being to lift and hold each door in place whilst showering. The inner bathroom door handle was broken off and had been placed on the kitchen bench. The front door main lock was also broken and was beside the door handle in the kitchen. The television was unusable on any channel but came good after my husbands rewired and reprogrammed it! The kettle constantly tripped the electrical circuit breaker and we were forced to boil water for coffee on the stove for fear of being electrocuted! For a holiday let apartment there were minimal kitchen implements available (ie. no tea towels, plastic cutlery left by previous renter, no dishwashing liquid etc). As we didnt want to flood the bathroom whilst showering or be held responsible for the doors falling off completely, not to mention the safety of our children, we contacted the agent with our concerns. Someone did come and assess the situation but we were told that maintenance and the owner were already aware of these problems but as the unit is on the market the owner does not want to spend any money on it. The maintenance staff assured us it was a safe neighbourhood and we didnt need that lock and promised to return with a plastic shower curtain and extra towels so that we could shower. These items never turned up. The debacle continued as we tried to organise the return of our security deposit. Despite mulitple phone calls to the agent and his staff we couldnt pin anyone down to confirm the return of the deposit. After 7 phone calls the agent finally confirmed a time but was more interested in his upcoming holiday to eurodisney. Having stayed in numerous letted apartments throughout the world, we were disappointed by the agents incompetence and the fact that the unit continued to be rented out whilst there were known maintenance issues. Either the unit should have been repaired before being rented out or if the owner is unwilling to do this it should be removed from the rental pool.
I'm not clear why Holiday-Rentals think these are not "complaints", and therefore didn't merit investigation when they were written previously. Had they been properly investigated it is possible that many others like myself would not have become further victims of Larkins and The Real World Rental Company's activities.
I'm not clear how serious the complaint has to be for Holiday-Rentals to consider taking action against Larkins, but the reassurance from them that their team leader is "OK" with this company is very worrying indeed.
Friday, December 19, 2008
What planet are they on?
When my troubles first began with Robin Larkins and The Real World Rental Company, I thought at least I might be able to find some assistance from Holiday-Rentals, whose website I used to find Larkins and his company.
In the first instance, and after feeling somewhat worried by their unprofessional behaviour, I tried to seek reassurance from Holiday-Rentals that The Real World Rental Company was bona fide. I had completed the Rental Guarantee service offered by Holiday-Rentals, but I wanted some reassurance about what this actually meant, and so - as suggested from their "Rent with Confidence" registration email, I made further inquiries. This guarantee promises that they will respond within 24 hours. 24 hours on which planet? It's now over 3 months, and there has been no response.
Subsequently, after my rental had completed and my several requests to Robin Larkins and The Real World Rental Company for the return of my deposit amounted to nothing, I contacted Holiday-Rentals again.
I had a conversation with Sonia Diadhiou and explained the problems I had been having. She asked me to send her an email with all the details of my complaint, which I immediately did. She then rang Robin Larkins and based on a "reassurance" from him, replied to me that he would be repaying my deposit that week, (herewith the reply, dated 8 November:)
Thank you for your email.
I contacted Robin Larkins and he has been arranging your deposit with the owner. He is Ok as from my team leader because Holiday-rentals has used him before to rent out his properties.
He will be in touch next week.
In turn I wrote immediately back to Holiday-Rentals:
Thank you for your reply.
I am somewhat unclear what "he has been arranging your deposit with the owner" actually means. I have been told by both him (on 28 October) and his wife on 4 November that the money was being paid on those dates. It has not been. I was advised by Emma (their staff) that Rachel Larkins is the owner; She also said at our check out that the deposit would be refunded within 7-10 days. We left on 13 October. Their Licence Agreement states that the deposit will be refunded usually within 10 days. These deadlines have long passed
You will note from the websites I forwarded to you that others have been waiting more than 6 months for the return of their deposit, so I am eager to learn why his reassurances to you should mean anything. Can you advise?
Also, you state that your team leader is OK with Larkins because Holiday-Rentals has used his company before. Does this mean that Holiday-Rentals is "OK" with Larkins defrauding customers? Please advise, as obviously this is important in the likely legal proceedings that I will have to take, because unfortunately I have no faith in any assurances given by Larkins or his staff.
I look forward to hearing from you soonest.
Unfortunately Holiday-Rentals declined to respond. So on 12 December I obtained the name and contact details of the head of customer services, Sandy Kirk and asked him to please follow up. After no reply, I followed up again on 18 December and he has replied as follows:
...we are looking into your concerns, this agent has been with us for nearly 3 years without any complaints so far, and we are looking into yours. We have an internal company policy on complaints and will deal with this situation according to those policies.
I responded with this:
I note your comments regarding Larkins and The Real World Rental Company. I am truly surprised that the incidences that I highlighted to your colleague over one month ago produced no response whatsoever from Holiday-Rentals. It's not just my own complaint, (of non refund of my deposit), but there are many other customers who have been similarly defrauded, the details of which I have provided to you. Whether or not you have had a three year relationship with Larkins, you need to seriously question your vetting procedures for companies that advertise through your portal. It may be that I am the first customer to report these issues to you, but I doubt it.
I then went on to (again) provide them with the details of a customer who rented through their website, and who has waited 9 months to receive her deposit back.
So I ask you - what planet are they on?
In the first instance, and after feeling somewhat worried by their unprofessional behaviour, I tried to seek reassurance from Holiday-Rentals that The Real World Rental Company was bona fide. I had completed the Rental Guarantee service offered by Holiday-Rentals, but I wanted some reassurance about what this actually meant, and so - as suggested from their "Rent with Confidence" registration email, I made further inquiries. This guarantee promises that they will respond within 24 hours. 24 hours on which planet? It's now over 3 months, and there has been no response.
Subsequently, after my rental had completed and my several requests to Robin Larkins and The Real World Rental Company for the return of my deposit amounted to nothing, I contacted Holiday-Rentals again.
I had a conversation with Sonia Diadhiou and explained the problems I had been having. She asked me to send her an email with all the details of my complaint, which I immediately did. She then rang Robin Larkins and based on a "reassurance" from him, replied to me that he would be repaying my deposit that week, (herewith the reply, dated 8 November:)
Thank you for your email.
I contacted Robin Larkins and he has been arranging your deposit with the owner. He is Ok as from my team leader because Holiday-rentals has used him before to rent out his properties.
He will be in touch next week.
In turn I wrote immediately back to Holiday-Rentals:
Thank you for your reply.
I am somewhat unclear what "he has been arranging your deposit with the owner" actually means. I have been told by both him (on 28 October) and his wife on 4 November that the money was being paid on those dates. It has not been. I was advised by Emma (their staff) that Rachel Larkins is the owner; She also said at our check out that the deposit would be refunded within 7-10 days. We left on 13 October. Their Licence Agreement states that the deposit will be refunded usually within 10 days. These deadlines have long passed
You will note from the websites I forwarded to you that others have been waiting more than 6 months for the return of their deposit, so I am eager to learn why his reassurances to you should mean anything. Can you advise?
Also, you state that your team leader is OK with Larkins because Holiday-Rentals has used his company before. Does this mean that Holiday-Rentals is "OK" with Larkins defrauding customers? Please advise, as obviously this is important in the likely legal proceedings that I will have to take, because unfortunately I have no faith in any assurances given by Larkins or his staff.
I look forward to hearing from you soonest.
Unfortunately Holiday-Rentals declined to respond. So on 12 December I obtained the name and contact details of the head of customer services, Sandy Kirk and asked him to please follow up. After no reply, I followed up again on 18 December and he has replied as follows:
...we are looking into your concerns, this agent has been with us for nearly 3 years without any complaints so far, and we are looking into yours. We have an internal company policy on complaints and will deal with this situation according to those policies.
I responded with this:
I note your comments regarding Larkins and The Real World Rental Company. I am truly surprised that the incidences that I highlighted to your colleague over one month ago produced no response whatsoever from Holiday-Rentals. It's not just my own complaint, (of non refund of my deposit), but there are many other customers who have been similarly defrauded, the details of which I have provided to you. Whether or not you have had a three year relationship with Larkins, you need to seriously question your vetting procedures for companies that advertise through your portal. It may be that I am the first customer to report these issues to you, but I doubt it.
I then went on to (again) provide them with the details of a customer who rented through their website, and who has waited 9 months to receive her deposit back.
So I ask you - what planet are they on?
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