HD FERRIES is in hot water again. Guernsey’s harbour authority stopped HD1 leaving St Peter Port with passengers following a string of incidents.

Its Jersey ramp permit has also been suspended following advice from the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

HD Ferries chief executive officer Chris Howe-Davies has condemned the actions and apologised to customers whose travel plans have been disrupted.

Guernsey harbour master Captain Peter Gill said the ban was due to incidents including HD1 experiencing difficulty berthing in St Helier on Saturday morning.

But Mr Howe-Davies denied there had been a problem.

‘HD Ferries wishes to make everyone aware that as far as the company, the ship managers, the HD1 officers and the Jersey harbour pilots who were on board at the time of the berthing were concerned, there was no incident,’ he said.

‘We apologise to all affected customers for the disruption to their travel plans which have been caused by events completely out of our control.’

A meeting has been set up today between Jersey Harbours, the MCA, Northern Marine and HD Ferries to discuss the situation and decide a way forward.

Saturday’s berthing fiasco is the latest in a string of incidents for HD1.

The fast ferry to Guernsey had to turn back after leaving Jersey on Friday amid speculation its engine room was taking in water.

And on Wednesday the vessel sustained damage while manoeuvring in St Malo.

Capt. Gill said the decision to stop HD1 leaving St Peter Port was ‘in line with the advice of the MCA and the action taken earlier by the Jersey authorities’.

He added that passengers should contact HD Ferries directly for all

travel enquiries.

Customers whose plans were disrupted at the weekend said they felt ‘let down’ and ‘disappointed’ by the way they had been treated.

Jodie Cole, from East Anglia, had been travelling from Jersey to Guernsey on Friday when HD1 turned back.

‘They told us the ferry had broken down and took us back to Jersey,’ she said.

‘They didn’t give us an explanation of what happened and just told us we wouldn’t be able to travel again until Saturday. We had to pay for a hotel for the extra night and HD Ferries wouldn’t even give us a refund.

‘In Guernsey on Saturday we checked in for our journey and HD gave us the boarding tickets. But afterwards they came into arrivals and told everyone it was cancelled, again, with no explanation.

‘The staff just walked out and left us – we don’t know anything at all. We’ve had to pay out a lot more money just to get home. It’s a disgrace.’