Complications arising from Covid-19 in the travel industry has prompted Consumer Champion Adam Glezer to call for a greater level of consumer protection for cancellations made by providers due to reasons outside of their control.
It comes as Cranbourne woman Grace Brown has experienced difficulty with travel agency TripADeal, after an unsuccessful chargeback application left her $8000 out of pocket following a cancelled holiday booked via the agency for her and a friend to Asia in 2020.
Her holiday was due to depart in June 2020, but was cancelled a month out from departure due to the Federal Government’s indefinite travel ban at the time, in response to the outbreak of Covid-19.
“The events surrounding the coronavirus are now beyond our control,” TripADeal told Ms Brown at the time.
“Our suppliers have indicated they are not in a position to proceed with your trip due to Covid-19 travel restrictions.”
She was offered and accepted a credit voucher as compensation for her cancelled trip, which was the “best option” they could present to her.
She accepted the voucher but progressed with her push for a refund and applied for a chargeback, which was unsuccessful.
“I accepted the fact I won’t get a refund, and all we want to do is to use our credit voucher and go on a holiday,” Ms Brown said.
When she tried to use the credit voucher in May to book another trip, she was told it did not exist.
TripADeal’s terms and conditions states customers who initiate a credit card dispute or chargeback for the return of funds will be ineligible for a ‘Credit Note’.
“TripADeal reserves the right to refuse, void, cancel, reject or hold for review your Credit Note if we believe that you have initiated a chargeback for your travel booking and also elected to receive a Credit Note despite the chargeback,” their website says.
Mr Glezer said experiences like Ms Brown’s have become common as a result of the pandemic.
“One of the main issues that has come to light is consumers do not legally have the right to a refund for cancellations outside of human control,” Mr Glezer said.
“That’s one thing people weren’t aware of.
“Very few people read through all their terms and conditions, and a lot of companies, I believe, take advantage of that, and put things in that customer may not see that will benefit them if an issue arises.”
His advice to would-be travellers is to make sure of their rights as a consumer before making a transaction.
“If something goes wrong, know what level of recourse you have, whether booking direct or through an agency. You don’t want to find yourself in a situation where you’re battling for years on end to get money back or get a credit.
“There has to be lessons learnt from this pandemic to ensure consumers have a level of protection going forward.”
Consumer Affairs Victoria encourages customers to choose a travel agent who “explains any terms and conditions” and to carefully read the terms and conditions of their transaction, “so they know their options if they have to change or cancel a booking”.
