Four hot drink vouchers were offered to an Isle of Wight ferry passenger whose midnight ferry was cancelled, with less than two hours notice, forcing her to shell out £150 on a hotel.

Victoria Hobbs was due to get on Wightlink's midnight sailing last night but she was notified, at 10.30pm, that it had been cancelled.

She told the Isle of Wight County Press: "I'm lucky I could find £150 at short notice.

"Others had to wait in a freezing cold car, where it was icy outside.

"Finally home, got the 9am boat instead".

Another customer said her children, 10 and 11, her partner and her sister were also booked on the 11.59pm ferry, from Portsmouth to Fishbourne.

The family was informed the next available vehicle ferry was at 5am.

The other option was to get a on a FastCat to Ryde, after midnight, leaving their car or a family member behind, and to arrange onward transport.

She said: "My partner phoned the Wightlink helpline at 11.35pm, which was a direct line provided on their website.

"The contact centre was closed.

"We searched for nearby hotels. They drove to two, both of which were closed after 10.30pm.

"We eventually found one, which cost just under £100. What else could we do? the temperatures had dropped considerably on Saturday night." 

Isle of Wight County Press: Wightlink's St Faith, the oldest ship in the fleetWightlink's St Faith, the oldest ship in the fleet (Image: IWCP)

Wightlink says a technical issue on St Faith led to the cancellation of four crossings.

It said: "Extra sailings from Portsmouth Harbour were laid on for foot passengers and refreshments were provided for customers who decided to wait for the next car ferry sailing.

"All affected passengers were contacted and advised of their options, and how to claim the compensation to which they are entitled."

The cross-Solent operator has apologised for the delays and inconvenience.

When asked, it did not provide details of how many customers were affected and did not explain why a different ferry could not have been crewed by staff on St Faith.

Wightlink said: "We have an excellent reliability record. Over the last three months, we have  operated more than 99 per cent of scheduled sailings". 

The problems came at a time when passengers with mobility challenges are being told not to use the FastCat, due to maintenance on the gangway.

Until March 5, Wightlink says customers travelling to the Isle of Wight are boarding from the Portsmouth Harbour South End berth, which includes a steep slope and a small number of steps.

Customers with wheelchairs, mobility scooters, prams and heavy luggage are being pointed to the car ferry service instead.

This time last year, St Faith was out of action due to prow damage, after a collision with the berth at Fishbourne, and a revised timetable was in operation.

Wightlink describes St Faith as its third-largest ferry.

The vessel entered service in July 1990, making her the oldest member of the fleet.

MV St Faith was launched in February 1990, Cochrane Shipbuilders, Selby, Yorkshire, by Jacky Field, wife of the Island’s then MP.

Isle of Wight MP, Bob Seely, called Saturday's cancellations unacceptable and said the existing compensation scheme for late or cancelled ferries does not include the cost of an overnight hotel. 

He said: "When Wightlink fails to run the last service of the day, I don’t think it’s acceptable to ask Islanders to pay out of their own pocket.

“I will be letting them know how angry I am that they have let people down."

He said he plans to produce a policy about ferry travel in the next three weeks and will seek Islanders' thoughts before putting it to the Isle of Wight Council.