Prepaid individual accommodation after illness: refund or rebooking

Illness does not automatically create a right to a refund or free rebooking of a prepaid individual accommodation booking. The decisive points are the tariff, an express illness or rebooking term, the time of notice and a clear record of the request.

For an individual accommodation booking, the concrete contract comes first. The general distance-selling withdrawal right usually does not help with accommodation at a fixed date: section 18(1)(10) FAGG excludes such services where a specific time or period is agreed. Illness may still matter under the tariff, a goodwill arrangement or separate insurance.

The booking confirmation may set out the accommodation, period, room, price, deposit, balance and rules for changes. What matters is the version accessible when the contract was made. Save the booking flow, tariff name and all later messages.

A prepayment is initially payment for the agreed service. Whether it must be refunded in case of illness depends on the contract and an effectively incorporated term. Calling a tariff non-refundable does not by itself answer how a specific change or cancellation clause applies.

The guidance on handling accommodation cancellation requests shows how the operator and guest can document a request. The contractual structure may also require a separate look at the accommodation model. Package travel remains outside this article.

Illness usually concerns the guest’s personal ability to use the booking. It does not automatically make the accommodation provider’s performance impossible. The illness alone therefore generally does not create a general right to cancel without cost.

The contract may provide travel cancellation insurance, rebooking, a credit or evidence requirements. Those rules must be assessed by their wording and the booked tariff. Medical evidence may fulfil an agreed condition, but without a matching rule it does not create a refund right by itself.

The assessment differs where the operator fails to provide the service. Section 918 ABGB addresses defective performance of a paid contract. Illness of the guest initially concerns a requested change or cancellation of the guest’s own booking.

An online booking may initially suggest the distance-selling withdrawal right. Section 18(1)(10) FAGG, however, lists accommodation services other than housing where a specific time or period is agreed. A hotel or holiday accommodation booking for a fixed period therefore generally falls within the exception.

The exception answers only the statutory FAGG withdrawal question. The booked tariff, a voluntary rebooking promise or cancellation insurance must still be reviewed. It also does not allow an operator to interpret an unclear term without a comprehensible contractual basis.

For consumer contracts, section 6(3) KSchG may matter where a term is unclear or insufficiently transparent. The specific clause must be read together with the offer, tariff, payment page and confirmation. A general assertion about a cancellation fee is not enough.

Report the illness and requested step as soon as possible through the agreed channel. State whether you request a refund, rebooking, credit or another solution. The operator must be able to identify the booking and period concerned.

Preserve the sending time and receipt. Keep the confirmation, payment records, response and requested evidence. Health data should be provided only to the extent necessary and through a secure channel.

Medical evidence proves a medical circumstance. It does not by itself prove the tariff rule or the amount of a refund. The contract, payment and the operator’s response must be assessed together.

A rebooking changes the original service period. Have the new date, price, room, additional services and expiry or binding rules confirmed in writing. Record whether the prepayment is fully credited and whether further payment is due.

A credit is different from a refund. Check amount, purpose, validity and transferability. An oral promise leaves open whether the original contract was ended, changed or supplemented by a voluntary solution.

If a change is offered under time pressure, state in writing whether you accept it or need to review it. Clear documentation prevents a practical solution from later being treated unintentionally as a waiver of further claims. The specific agreement remains decisive.

For a refund, first determine the contractual amount. Deduct only services actually provided or validly agreed in a different form. Retaining the entire prepayment requires a comprehensible contractual basis.

Further personal costs require a separate assessment. Section 1295 ABGB requires caused loss and the other legal conditions for damages. Illness alone does not turn every private expense into loss caused by the accommodation provider.

Mitigation may also matter. Section 1304 ABGB requires consideration of whether reasonable steps could have limited the loss. This does not justify a blanket reduction, but it calls for a clear account of notice, response, alternatives and costs.

Prepare a short chronology: booking, prepayment, illness, notice, response, offered rebooking or credit and outstanding amount. Link each step to the relevant email, message, invoice or payment record.

Mark the tariff rule on changes, refunds, evidence and timing. Do not present a self-calculated period as a statutory deadline unless there is a secure basis. Ask the operator for a written calculation and explanation.

Where accommodation is offered through a special rental model, the contractual structure may raise additional questions. The article on assessing the rental model for holiday homes addresses that issue separately. This article remains focused on individual prepaid accommodation after illness.

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