Holidaymaker Advice

Tips to help with your experience on Simply Owners.

You will find exactly the same properties on other web sites but Simply Owners can be up to 60% cheaper because we do not charge any fees, surcharges or commissions. By booking via Simply Owners you can make significant savings in your holiday.

Simply Owners guarantees payment protection, for those holidaymakers who meticulously follow our method of payment, detailed below.
Don’t allow scammers to phish or hack your emails to redirect your payments to their accounts. Only ever use emails to send general enquiries and receive general information and always check they are from Simply Owners or the homeowner, you should never communicate with anyone else.

• Choose your holiday-home
• Contact owner by phone or email
• Discuss all matters except bank / payment details
• Phone the owner, using the unique phone number provided by Simply Owners to acquire payment details
• Make a direct payment (by credit card, debit card, Paypal or bank transfer) to the details acquired from the call you made directly to the holiday homeowner on the unique phone number provided by Simply Owners
• Make a note of the date of the phone calls and payments
• Do not discuss any payments with anyone other than the owner via the trusted number on the Simply Owners website
• Retain all documentation and copies of correspondence such as rental agreement terms etc
• After any booking has been made via Simply Owners, request your payment protection certificate to be emailed to you
• You must be in possession of a valid Payment Protection Certificate to be considered for a claim
• Retain all documentation and correspondence related to your booking which can include emails, phone records rental agreement terms etc

Some countries have legislation that requires owners of holiday rental properties to buy licences enabling them to officially rent out their properties. It is important that you check this out with the owners directly as Simply Owners is not a 'renter' and only provides space on its web-site for owners to advertise their properties. Properties requiring licenses will often state their licence number in their property description.

Under the data protection act we are not allowed to store personal details for homeowners. We advise therefore that holidaymakers make a note of the owner’s residential address in the event they need to serve any court notice upon them for whatever reason later. The owners address would normally be included in any booking forms you sign for the holiday accommodation.

Simply Owners does not have the resources, in terms of time or legal expertise, to investigate disputes between owners and holidaymakers. We are unable to collect all the information, assess the legitimacy of it and make judgments as to who is right or wrong. If disputes cannot be resolved amicably between both parties, then the ultimate place for a ruling on matters is in the courts. Simply Owners will support both parties as best we can with any information we have but will have very little weight to bear on legal matters as we are not party to the contract.

If Simply Owners becomes aware that criminal proceedings are being issued against an owner then we would suspend that owner’s listing as a neutral act until the case had been ruled upon. It would be remiss of us to allow future holidaymakers to follow in the footsteps of a situation that was found to be illegal.

Only receive instructions on making payments during a phone call that you make to the holiday homeowner on the unique phone number that you have received from Simply Owners

NEVER ACCEPT a call or email from the holiday homeowner or anyone else giving you instructions on how to make a payment. Unlike emails, which are easy to hack, a phone number is unique to an accountable individual and the above payment method protects both you (the holidaymaker) and the holiday homeowner.

Never pay by cash or send wired cash through companies like western union. Only ever pay a deposit, unless it is just a couple of weeks before you travel. Always pay using a credit or debit card, bank transfer or an organization such as Paypal. Be sure you have considered all the terms and conditions of the holiday homeowner before you make any payments. Insist on a letting contract, that includes all the details you need such as deposits, security bonds, check in / out arrangements etc. Also be sure to acquire the owners residential address in the event you ever need to make a claim against them for any reason. Check out your holiday-home on google maps, review sites, etc, to be sure you are getting the best property for your needs. Check out your holiday-home owner via reviews, social media such as Facebook etc to be sure you are getting the best service. Take time to think about what you want from your holiday home and use the specific filters when constructing your search, to reduce the number of properties you have to choose from. You should not have to compromise on what you need or want, as there are thousands of properties on our web site, all offering that little bit of something different. Make a list of questions you need to ask the holiday-home owner and prepare yourself well before you make the call about the holiday-home.

View Payment Protection Information

Simply Owners, verifies homeowners identities and that the property exists, so that holidaymakers can then connect directly with homeowners and their advertised properties.
Be aware, homeowners can edit and update the content of their advert at any time, so Simply Owners is unable to verify the accuracy of all content and descriptions of all properties. Please check any points made in property adverts that are important to you before you book with a homeowner.