Thank you to everyone who has written me with your questions and problems regarding travel and the coronavirus pandemic. If you have a question and don’t see it answered in one of my rounds, e-mail me at peter@petergreenberg.com.
EMAIL: Jim Holden
Dear Peter,
Thank-you for the excellent webinar today facilitated by SKAL international.
I have two follow up points to today’s webinar for you to consider:
The first regards your comments on refunds from Tour Operators. I’m a Tour Operator specializing in safaris to Africa, based in Newport Beach, Orange County, California.
When discussing refunds for cancelled trips, please make a distinction between refunding the initial non-refundable deposit, used to confirm the booking and in our case, setting up the safari. Clients confirm their safari knowing they are paying a non-refundable deposit to set up the safari. Setting up a safari requires many hours of work on phones and email, coordinating the itinerary with other lodges and safari companies. In other words, that money is spent! It is usually around 25% of the total cost of a safari.
The balance payment for a safari, the remaining 75%, has clear cancellation terms setting out a refund policy. With the pandemic, many safari companies have waived the balance payment cancellation terms and refunded the total balance payment.
I have clients who have expected to also be refunded their initial non-refundable deposit. I have had to explain that confirming and setting up a safari is much more involved than simply booking a room at an hotel in London. Hence the non-refundable deposit that is used for this purpose.
My second point is I would like to quote something you said on today’s webinar. In response to a question I asked on the webinar, you agreed that a safari is one of the safest places to be right now because, and I quote, “no-one is going to get closer to a lion than the mandated six foot social distancing!” and all we have to figure out is how to get to Africa.
Of course we’ll credit you with the quote and mention the SKAL webinar. So I hope that’s OK.
Thank-you again for a most insightful webinar and please keep up the good work you do on behalf of all of us in the Travel Industry.
All the best,
Jim
Peter Says: Jim, happy to have you use my quote! and hang in there.
EMAIL: Martha and Gordon Iverson
Hello Peter,
We have an issue with the Mamaison Hotel Andrássy in Budapest. We paid 407.16 Euros for a non-refundable rated stay at this hotel for a reservation on June 6 and 7, 2020 (checking out on the 8th of June). I have sent multiple emails to the hotel. We were booked on a VBT bike/river trip, and the trip ended in Budapest. VBT’s block of rooms was full, so we had to make our own room reservations for this portion of the trip down the Danube. We do not plan on rebooking this trip, and we won’t be visiting Budapest this year.
These are two responses from them on March 19 and 21, 2020:
“However our hotel’s management absolutely understands and respects your decision to cancelling the reservation in these unpredictable days, we would like to offer you the possibility of postponing the booking to an other date of the year. You will be able to use the amount of deposit deducted from the total price of accommodation on the new dates. As an additional value, we provide free upgrade for You to a higher category of room as well as a welcome drink at our La Perle Noire Restaurant.”
“However our hotel’s management absolutely understands and respects your decision to cancelling the reservation in these unpredictable days, we would like to offer you the possibility of postponing the booking to an other date of the year. As an additional value, we provide free upgrade for You to a higher category of room as well as a welcome drink at our La Perle Noire Restaurant. Last but not least, we guarantee the same price you booked on, even if the daily room rates are higher on the reselected date.”
I have sent two additional emails since March 21st asking for a refund. I haven’t heard any more from the hotel.
Can you help us receive a refund?
Martha and Gordon Iverson
Peter Says: You need to go on record with them making it clear that you need and require a full refund now. You need to also dispute the credit card charges with your credit card company. Also copy the credit card company when sending your letter to the hotel and tour company and copy me!
EMAIL: Audry Pallas
Hi Peter!
I saw in one of your emails, that someone had submitted their passport for renewal, and I’m aware that passport offices are currently shutdown. I’m also aware you can renew by mail. I work in international education, need a renewal, and will need to go abroad again in the next 8 weeks — so you think it’s smarter to wait until they open and go directly there versus sending it off to the offices that I’m sure just have piles of them right now?
Any insight you have is very much appreciated.
Best,
Audry
Peter Says: Since you are in a time crunch, there are a number of independent passport agencies that can process your new passport for you. One caution: they are not inexpensive, but they are fast and in cases where you need a quick turnaround, they make it happen. One such service is in New York, called “It’s easy,” and they can do all of the work online and then FedEx to get you your passport. There are a number of other similar firms in major U.S. cities like Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami.
EMAIL: Linda Akins
Hi Peter,
I booked a trip to Ireland with a travel group/company that I have traveled with
many times. The trip is to Sligo, Ireland on September 1st, 2020.
Do you have any insight on overseas travel by September?
The balance of the
trip is coming due in a week or so. I contacted the owner and she feels there
is no real reason to be concerned at this time. She is not planning to cancel
but stated all monies would be refunded if it did cancel. I have not
purchased an airline ticket yet.
I am from the Chicago area where Covid numbers are currently quite high,
hence my concern.
Thoughts? Thank you!
Linda Akins
Peter Says: Actually, there is EVERY reason to be concerned at this time. (But not…worried!). best course of action for you is to wait until closer to September. but to protect yourself, I’d create a paper trail and write the owner confirming your conversation that you will take her advice and wait, but confirming that all monies will be refunded it you cancel the trip.
EMAIL: Terysa Rojas
Mr. Greenberg
I had booked a direct round trip flight to Maui on January 27, 2020. This was before this crisis began. On April 9, 2020, I received an email that advised my flight had been cancelled.
On April April 28, 2020, three days before my flight I received another email stating that there was a schedule change to my reservation. This change was a layover in San Francisco on the return flight home.
A portion of the email stated, ‘We’re sorry for the inconvenience. Your reservation is still valid and if you don’t want to make additional changes, there’s nothing you need to do.’
Now thoroughly confused, and believing my flight WAS NOT in fact cancelled, I called United and told them I had received an email advising my flight had been canceled on April 9, 2020. The call taker checked the flight status, I could hear the computer keys in the background, and came back and confirmed my flight had been canceled. I then asked for a refund at which time she stated that it was a non-refundable ticket which did not qualify for a refund. She proceeded to tell me that I had 24 months from the date of ticket purchase (February 27, 2020) to rebook using the same confirmation number.
After I hung up, I received an email stating:
You’ve successfully canceled your reservation…
I never canceled my reservation, I called to confirmed UNITED had canceled it on April 9, 2020.
At the time of my phone call, I was unaware of the US DOT rules. It wasn’t until I saw your Twitter post and subsequent YouTube video that I was made aware.
Passengers
Terysa Rojas
ElVia Robles
Did not get name of person I talked to
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Terysa Rojas
Peter Says: Airlines seem to be doing everything they can to re-interpret or redefine the word “cancel.” First, the minute an airline changes your flight and puts you on another flight, they have, in effect, CANCELED your flight, and under U.S. DOT rules, you are entitled to a full refund of everything you paid for that ticket. and that EVEN includes so-called non-refundable tickets. So you need to reach back out to United and remind them that THEY canceled the flight, they confirmed the cancellation, and then tried to tell you — mistakenly — that because you bought a nonrefundable ticket you didn’t qualify. WRONG! and when you write them (including all details, of course), please copy me.
EMAIL: Evelyn Laxgang
Peter,
We listen to you on WGN and love your newsletters. I need help. I received my refund for a flight to New York on April 3 but my husband did not–$486.00. See below. We requested the refund from the American Airline site. American canceled our flight and then we cancelled. Now I am being told the below.
How do we get our money back? I appreciate any help you can offer as we want our cash.
Evelyn Laxgang
Peter Says: Evelyn, I will assume you and your husband were on the same flight. The rules that qualified you for the full refund also apply to your husband. So write American with your detailed information, then your husband’s information and…copy me!
EMAIL: Pat Heinlen
Hi Peter,
We just requested a refund for a river cruise scheduled for May 2020. We were told there are no refunds per executive decision.
Two options were a voucher for postponed trip to be taken within a year of original trip with no extra fees or a certificate through Dec 31 2022 with possible added fees.
Only recourse was to directly email Harriet Lewis. Go figure.
What do you advise? Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
Pat
Peter Says: Pat, I need more details — name of cruise company, confirmation/reservation numbers and name of the travel agency as well as your method of payment.
EMAIL: Ann Christiansen
Hello Peter,
If my husband and I are renting a place in Arizona and another in Texas next year and want to purchase insurance (it is not through any service but direct from owners), do we need to get it in both our names? The reason I ask is because as soon as I add his age to it, the price goes way up because he is older than me. Doesn’t the insurance cover you if family members get sick? Thanks for what you do.
Sincerely,
Ann Christiansen
Peter Says: Ann, this is a complicated issue. First I need to know the kind of insurance you want to purchase. Trip cancellation and interruption insurance? CFAR (cancel for any reason) insurance? Medical evacuation and repatriation insurance? Please be advised that many insurance companies either limit, or deny coverage to folks either over 75 years of age.
EMAIL: Cheryl Freeman
Hello Peter,
I attend your presentations at the LA/Long Beach Travel shows. I always buy a book and say hello. Here is an example of blatant disregard for the DOT rules. Even my fellow travel agents are shocked.
My client paid $4696.83 to fly round-trip first class from LAX-Toronto-Milan in June to attend a baptism. There were no nonstop flights to Milan from LAX. She is 84 and has lymphedema so needs the lie flat seats and assistance through the airport between connections.
Milan is now on full suspension of flights. None going in or out. The baptism has been canceled.
Air Canada has canceled the outbound flights and put forward a change with no outbound flight and a return flight from Munich-YYZ-LAX and says since there is one original flight they are honoring the original manifest. It is their policy now because of COVID-19 to give future travel credit. No refunds. Air Canada suggested the passenger make their own way on a third party or partner airline from Milan to Munich to comply. I did not accept the changes in my GDS.
This is unacceptable and multiple calls to Martine, Louise and Gonzalo at Air Canada have been fruitless. They have offered to refund with a $1200 penalty.
This is the worst case I have dealt with from an airline since this epidemic started. Before I recommend my client contact her credit card company, I think Air Canada should do the right thing. Any suggestions?
Cheryl Freeman
Newport Beach, CA
Peter Says: Cheryl, I feel your pain, but Air Canada flights operating from/to the U.S. are still governed by the U.S. Department of Transportation rule that specifies if the airline cancels the flight (not you) you are then entitled to a full refund back to your original. form of payment. You need to establish a paper trail with your refund demand (including all the details), copy the U.S. DOT office of consumer affairs and copy me as well. Remember, their “policy” can certainly be enforced in Canada for flights within Canada under Canadian law but not in the U.S. (This applies to all foreign airlines operating to/from the U.S.). Let me know what happens.
