A REGULAR visitor to Taunton has vowed never to stay in a hotel he and his teenage daughter regularly use after a section of ceiling collapsed in their room.

Dominic Toogood says it is fortunate that he and Molly, aged 13, were out of the Royal Ashton Hotel at the time.

An angry Mr Toogood claims bosses of the Station Road hotel have failed to respond to him after he complained in an email about the incident on the night of Saturday, October 29.

He said: "The ceiling in our room collapsed, causing damage which obviously could have been much worse had my 13-year-old daughter been in the room at the time, or indeed myself.

"I live in Essex, on the outskirts of London, but have stayed in the Royal Ashton on occasion when I visit my daughter every two or three weeks.

"I am divorced and she lives with her mother in Ilminster."

Mr Toogood says Molly was "very upset when it sunk in" what had happened.

"She was worried about what could have happened and was afraid she could have been badly injured or even worse.

"She refused to stay there that night, which meant her mother had to drive over from Ilminster to pick her up.

"Fortunately, Molly is OK now."

The duty manager at the Royal Ashton agreed to move Mr Toogood to a different room for the night.

"That's all very well, but I've not received an official apology or any offer of recompense," said Mr Toogood.

"I've stayed at the Royal Ashton on numerous occasions, but obviously we will never stay there again,

"But it would be nice to have some recognition over what happened."

The County Gazette has contacted the Royal Ashton Hotel this week and was told someone from the parent company Host RHM would ring back the same day. We have not yet received a response.