# Package Holiday Cancelled? 14-Day Refund Letter

> A cancelled package must be refunded within 14 days of termination — regulation 14 (UK) and Article 12(4) (EU). Vouchers only if you agree. Letter inside.

- Canonical: https://flightclaimletters.pages.dev/guides/package-holiday-refund-letter/
- Section: Refunds & expenses (https://flightclaimletters.pages.dev/guides/#refund)
- Published: 21 Aug 2026 · Updated: 6 Sept 2026 · Figures checked: 6 Sept 2026 · 4 min read
- Source site: flightclaimletters — https://flightclaimletters.pages.dev/ · General information, not legal advice.

A cancelled package must be refunded within 14 days of the contract being terminated: regulation 14 of the Package Travel Regulations 2018 in the UK, Article 12(4) of Directive (EU) 2015/2302 across the EU. A full refund with no deduction applies when the organiser cancels, or when you terminate because of unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances at the destination.

```text
[Your full name]
[Your address]
[Email]
[Phone]

[Today's date]

[Tour operator name]
[Tour operator address or complaints email]

Re: Refund of a cancelled package
Regulation 14, Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements
Regulations 2018
Booking reference [Booking reference]
Package [Package description]

Dear Sir or Madam,

I booked the flight-inclusive package above, reference
[Booking reference]. The contract was terminated on [Cancellation date],
[because you cancelled the package / because I terminated it].
I terminated it on account of unavoidable and extraordinary
circumstances at the destination.

Under regulation 14, you must reimburse all payments made by or on behalf
of the traveller, without undue delay and in any event not later than 14
days after the package travel contract is terminated. In the
circumstances above no termination fee is deductible.

The total I paid is [Currency] [Total paid]. Please refund that sum in
full within 14 days of the date of this letter, to the payment method I
used. I do not accept a credit note or voucher in place of a cash refund.
If you propose any deduction, please state the regulation you rely on.

Yours faithfully,

[Signature]
[Your full name]
```

**How to use it**

1. Check it really is a package: a flight combined with accommodation, car hire or another service, sold together by one company.
2. Pin the termination date. The 14 days run from the end of the contract, not from your first email.
3. Delete the sentence about unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances if it was the organiser who cancelled.
4. Attach the booking confirmation, the ATOL Certificate if you have one, and proof of what you paid.
5. Diarise day 14. If it passes, escalate and open a card dispute in parallel.

> **The 14 days run from termination, not from your complaint.** Organisers often restart the clock at the date they finally "process" the cancellation. The regulation does not work that way: the deadline is 14 days after the contract was terminated, whichever side ended it. Put that date in the first line of your letter and count from it.

## Is a credit note ever acceptable?

Only if you choose it. The regulation gives you a refund of all payments made; a voucher is an alternative you may accept, not a substitute the organiser can impose. If you already accepted one under pressure and want cash instead, say the offer was presented as the only option and ask for the refund under regulation 14.

## What if only the flight was disrupted?

Then you may have two claims. The package rules deal with the holiday contract; EU261 or UK261 deals with the flight, and Article 8(2) of Regulation 261/2004 preserves the flight rights alongside package rights. Look up the flight sums in the [amounts table](/guides/eu261-uk261-amounts/) and use the [cancellation letter](/guides/cancellation-compensation-letter/) for that half.

## What if the organiser has gone out of business?

Then regulation 14 has nobody to enforce it against, and you switch to insolvency protection: ATOL if the company issued you an ATOL Certificate, otherwise your card. The routes and their order are in the [insolvency guide](/guides/airline-insolvency-refund/), and the wording for your bank is in the [chargeback and Section 75 letter](/guides/chargeback-refund-letter/).

If the organiser simply refuses, [escalate](/guides/escalate-to-regulator/) — for a package the route is trading standards or the relevant national body rather than the aviation regulator, so ask which applies before you file. A card dispute runs in parallel and does not stop the regulation 14 claim: the two recover the same money by different routes, and whichever pays first ends the other. Tell each of them what the other is doing, and withdraw the dispute the moment the refund lands.