'My family were booted out of our Parkdean holiday because this one thing made people think we were fraudsters'

Claire Williams and her family were excited to stay at Sandford Holiday Park in Poole, Dorset, for a week in place of a friend who could no longer make it.

The mum-of-three says she contacted the resort and forked out a £40 amendment fee to change the name on the booking and thought nothing more of it.

Claire, 38, was shocked after making the seven-hour drive there and checking in, only for the manager to allegedly suggest that having the friend book and pay for the £809 holiday was 'fraudulent and money laundering'.

Despite her 39-year-old husband Mark Williams offering to show proof of the email exchange and even ring his pal, they were 'disgusted' to be given just one hour to leave the site. She says her kids were 'devastated' and that it was a 'heartbreaking' journey back home.

After complaining to the CEO, Claire received an apology from the manager who offered them a full refund and £200 compensation but said it didn't make up for the 'disappointment' of the holiday.

Now she wants to share her ordeal from July as a warning to others and vows never to return to the holiday park. Sandford Holiday Park apologised that it was 'not to their usual high standards'.

Claire, from Lancashire, said: "I was so shocked to basically be treated like a criminal. We contacted Parkdean and asked if it was possible to change the name and go in our friend's place and they said 'that's absolutely fine, you've just got to pay a £40 booking fee'.

"After paying that £40 they sent us confirmation of the booking. From our point of view, we were going to go on this holiday. I didn't even think that something would go wrong. I was excited to have some time away with my family and we had to travel a long way to get there.

"[After checking in] we got a phone call from the reception area saying 'can we come back to talk to them about the booking?' it was to do with the changing name.

"I just thought we'd go in and it'd just be a simple explanation that could just be fixed there but it wasn't like that at all. [The manager] started saying 'you've not paid for this holiday' and then she started saying 'that's fraud'. I thought it was ridiculous and we explained about our friend. Technically we hadn't paid for the holiday but we paid £40.

"We had given our friends some money so that they weren't completely out of pocket. That's when she started saying 'it's money laundering and it's fraud'.

"They kept saying 'we don't need to see the emails'. We said 'you can phone our friend and he can tell you' but they were so adamant it was fraud. I stood away and had a panic attack in public, which was horrible because I had people walking past. It was humiliating.

"I thought my husband would just sort it out but he said 'we've got an hour to leave the site'. I didn't know what to think. I was so shocked."

Following the 'horrible' drive back home Claire says she spent the whole of the next day making complaints to the holiday park.

She says after emailing Parkdean Resorts CEO, the manager eventually apologised and they were offered a full refund and £200 compensation.

Claire said: "It was heartbreaking. My kids were devastated and we were all upset. It was a disgusting treatment. We were looking forward to having a full week and then just to be sent home. The drive back was horrible. I was just in so much shock to be called a liar, it was just so unbelievable. I personally think that would've been something that could be easily resolved on the day had they been willing to sit and discuss it properly. The whole situation was so preventable.

"[The refund] doesn't make up for what we lost. The compensation they offered us was an insult. They said they'd give us £100 for the petrol but that didn't cover the amount of fuel and food and disappointment. I did have to say in my email back 'I don't think £100 is acceptable'. They did come back and said they'd give us £200 but they weren't willing to negotiate a higher offer.

"At that point I just took it because it's been stressful and draining and I just wanted it over. I'm never going back there and I'd warn other people away from this park too."

A Sandford Holiday Park spokesman said: "We're sorry for Ms Williams's experience. We have high standards for customer service, and what Ms Williams experienced certainly isn't to our standards. When Ms Williams reached out to us to share what had happened, we fully refunded the cost of her holiday, including the booking amendment fee, and offered compensation towards her travel costs, which she accepted. With that being the case, we consider the matter closed."