Flood of questions over obligations of travel agencies as COVID continues to wreak havoc with people’s holiday plans
Hundreds of disappointed holidaymakers whose package tours were cancelled due to COVID-19 have reached out to the Consumers’ Association to complain that travel agencies are not granting them the full refund they feel they are entitled to.
Association president Benny Borg Bonello said that over the past few months the number of such reports had increased.
After the pandemic struck globally in March 2020, people whose tours were cancelled were offered vouchers that could be used for future holidays.
A lot of them accepted, thinking they would be travelling this summer.
But as summer approached – and overseas travel remains an unpredictable, complex venture involving pre-travel swab tests, country-specific restrictions and potential quarantine – many changed their minds. They are now asking for refunds.
Unfortunately, most travel agents do not inform consumers of their rights
“We did receive hundreds of complaints and telephone calls seeking advice regarding package tours. Unfortunately, most travel agents do not inform consumers of their rights,” said Borg Bonello.
He said many travel agencies issued vouchers without informing customers that, in line with EU regulations, if they do not use them within a certain period they would still be eligible to a refund.
“Some of the large travel agencies are giving refunds after the association put pressure on them but they are not abiding by the law that says they must give a full refund. Other travel agents acted correctly but these have been in the minority,” he said.
One woman, Helen Agius, booked a holiday with a travel agency from July 16 to 23, 2020. She paid €666 for three flights to Lithuania.
These were cancelled due to the pandemic and she kept being offered vouchers but has insisted on getting a refund. “I just want to get the money I paid back. I want the full amount,” she said.
Reacting to Borg Bonello’s comments, Iain Tonna, president of the Federated Association of Travel and Tourism Agents, said that as with all industries there were those who complied and those who did not. Generalisation was not fair on the industry.
He said the federation always insisted that consumer rights, as enshrined in the EU’s Package Travel Regulations, should be observed. It always advised members to be transparent with consumers and explain their rights in the context of the situation being faced by the agencies themselves.
“What people don’t realise is that we are not sitting on their money. When a consumer books a flight, we pay the airline. So travel agents need to recuperate the money from their suppliers before they can refund the clients,” he said.
Tonna explained that consumers whose holiday was cancelled due to the pandemic had a right to a full refund under the EU’s travel regulations.
However, when the regulations were drafted, a pandemic of this scale was not envisaged. In light of the magnitude of the situation, the EU had recommended encouraging consumers to opt for a delay rather than a refund.
The delay could be in the form of the postponement of the holiday to a stipulated future date, or a travel voucher valid for a set period of time. If the voucher is not used within that timeframe, the consumer would then be entitled to a refund.
However, in the case of a postponement, the client would have entered into a new contract, Tonna further explained.
If the holiday was cancelled once again due to the pandemic, the client had the right to a refund. But if the client cancelled because she or he did not feel safe travelling, or thought it was not worth the hassle, then normal cancellation policies applied.