Donna Nevill, from Norfolk, decided to take her family on a trip to Slough, Berkshire, so they could see the nearby sights of London. The mother booked their accommodation through the Nottinghamshire-based company, Onpoint Apartments.
However, the family chose to leave the day before on July 1, as they were not satisfied with the condition they were in.
It wasn’t until they got home that they realized their daughter Summer had left her teddy bear behind. reports Nottinghamshire Live.
Summer, age nine, is autistic and reliant on the duvet, which she struggles to sleep without.
When the family contacted the company to let them know what had happened, they said they would have to pay a one-time fee of £20 to return it.
Onpoint Apartments, based in Kimberley, Nottinghamshire, said they are not making a profit from the £20 fee and that as a small business they cannot bear such costs.
Ms Nevill, 34, said: “We put Summer to bed and realized we didn’t have her duvet with us – she sleeps with it every night.
“I emailed the apartments saying they would send the cleaners in. The cleaners found it and I was told if I paid the postage they would send it back.
“I told them they should really send it back for free as a goodwill gesture as the apartment was shocking – we complained straight away and nothing was done about it.
“It took me over a week to call them every day and ask ‘what are you going to do about it?’ I had an autistic, sad child who cried all the time because of it.
“They finally sent me the invoice and it was £20. It’s just a teddy bear – it won’t cost that much to return it.
“I’m willing to pay a fiver, maybe a tenner, but not twenty pounds.
“We are going abroad next week and so we need it back, just like my daughter needs it for the plane.
“The attitude was just ‘we don’t care, you don’t get it back unless you pay’. It’s absolutely shocking.”
She added that she would struggle to pay even £20 for the return as the family is hit by the ongoing cost of living.
Donna and Summer had been on vacation with Summer’s father Richard Nevill, 35, along with her six-year-old sister Lilly and four-year-old brother Aarlo.
In an email that Nottinghamshire saw Live, the company informed the family that it will not take responsibility for personal belongings left behind and that returning such items will incur a fee. They also state that they have to pay the cleaners to go to the post office to return it by mail.
In a statement, the company said: “We are aware of this matter and would like to emphasize that we appreciate the situation and the importance of the item.
“We state in our terms of stay that any items left after check-out are the sole responsibility of the guest.
“With this particular issue, the guest contacted us to inform us that she had abandoned her child’s teddy bear and needed this item back.
“We worked with the guest, found the teddy bear and picked up the item, this was rejected because the guest lived too far from the property.
“We then offered to ship the item for a total cost of £20, payable by the guest.
“We want to emphasize that we are not making any profit from this scenario under any circumstances.
“As a small business, we employ individuals who charge call-out charges; this includes packing the item, labeling the item, traveling to and from the post office, and the cost of shipping the item (first class, registered delivery). for tracking purposes) Being a small business, this is not something we can absorb.
“We have offered these guest solutions to ensure they receive the item, but neither option was accepted.
“We would clearly prefer this matter to be resolved and the item returned to its owner.
“We hope with the explanation above we can understand why a £20 fee has been requested as there is more to it than just posting an item.
“The item was left by the guest and this is their responsibility.
“Because the item is of great importance to her daughter, along with the understanding that this is the guest’s fault and the factors involved in determining the £20 cost, we had hoped for a resolution from the guest in instead of the need to approach us a newspaper.
“We’re still waiting for the guest to accept the postage so we can send it back to her first class, by registered post.”