Peter is answering your emails with travel questions during the coronavirus pandemic. Email peter@petergreenberg.com if you don’t see your email answered in one of the rounds.
EMAIL: Michele Mihm
Hi Peter
I purchased a ticket from Expedia and I’m flying on May 18 2020 and the airline is Air Canada. I received a cancellation email on April 10 2020 from Expedia saying the flight was cancelled. For the last month I was unable to talk to a live person until today, Expedia said that I can’t get a refund that I have to take the credit voucher. Is this correct because the airline is a Canadian airline. I purchased the tickets back on July 27 2019. I did see the response on round 8 about the Canadian department of transportation argued in court, how can I find out if there is verdict on this issue.
Michele Mihm
P.S.
I’m having trouble with Air Asia also, I booked through their website on July 25 2019. Our flight on May 10 2020 was cancelled by them on April 21 2020 and they said I had to take a credit voucher or reschedule. Is this right? I can’t speak to a live person only through email. I told them I want a refund to my credit card with which I paid.
Peter Says: Air Canada is arguing that it should only be governed by Canadian laws and rules, when in fact the US Department of Transportation rules clearly state that if you are an airline flying into the U.S. then you have to refund in full to passengers if the airline cancels a flight. As for Air Asia, different rules apply, and they may succeed in only offering you a voucher, since they do not fly to the U.S. You can certainly try to dispute these charges on your credit card statement, because you contracted for a service that you did not receive.
EMAIL: Alan Anderson
Hello Peter,
I hope you are well, We purchased tickets through ASAP Travel for travel to Amsterdam May 1-10 of this year. I waited until Delta cancelled the flight and I contacted ASAP multiple times for a refund, and I am getting the run around on getting refunded do you have any suggestions? I will attach the latest email I received.
Thank you very much.
Peter Says: Here’s the problem, Delta canceled. And under U.S. DOT rules, they must give you a full refund, even if it was a nonrefundable ticket! Be sure to write a complaint letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, office of consumer affairs, copy Delta and….copy me!
EMAIL: Nancy R. Whelchel
Hello, Peter,
Thank you for taking my email.
I have 2 clients booked on a Viking river cruise – Waterways of the Tsars’ for mid-August, 2020. Aside from that they were booked on 2 hotel packages – one pre-cruise in Helsinki and the other post-cruise in Oslo – both packages for 2 nights each with sightseeing and transfers through Nordic Destinations. A 50% deposit was applied in early Feb. 2020 with final payment being due mid-June. I called Nordic Destinations to ask some questions last week – none of the phone numbers worked. I then looked online to their website and got the message – ‘Due to the Covid-19 virus, we have closed the business’ – what a shock.
There was no date on the internet as to when Nordic Destinations closed their business. It had to have been after their deposit was applied on their credit cards. The clients have cancellation insurance to cover the Viking trip but not (yet) on the hotel packages. They had wanted that insurance applied at the time of final payment. Since the deposits were paid on their respective credit cards, I asked them to check with each credit card company to see if they could dispute the charges now – even though the deposit payments were made back in February. The credit card companies said that they would have to wait until the actual travel date to begin the dispute and that it has to be done online. This seems like a strange reply to me to have to wait until the departure date to dispute. Why could they not dispute the charge right now? And do you think (or know) if they would have satisfaction from their credit card companies that the funds could be credited (in the amounts of $ 871 per person on both Mastercard and Visa), due to the fact that Nordic Destinations had ceased operations?
Nancy
Peter Says: Nancy, you must dispute these charges immediately with your credit card issuing bank. And there should be no waiting period for you. When writing them, be sure to copy me. And make sure you first call them and speak to a supervisor so that you can address your letter directly to that person with the correct title.
EMAIL: Cheryl Everly
I Posted this on Facebook BOOKIT SCAM FEED. Thank you so much for your concern over this issue. I paid Bookit in January 2020 for a vacation in August 2020 to Costa Rica.
Just a FYI When I received an email from BookIt that they canceled everything I immediately sent (by mail because they are taking no disputes over the phone) my info to Barclays Aviator Red World Elite MasterCard. They sent me a letter on April 10 stating they would check it out. Today May 8, I received a call and they asked for more information. Did I try to contact BookIt. I stated I have tried to email and call the number but no one responds. Barclays stated they will continue investigation.
And through the help of this web feed I have filed a complaint with Florida police department, Florida Attorney General and Arizona Attorney General.
Thank you moderators for starting this feed.
Thank you Mr. Greenberg.
Cheryl Everly
Peter Says: Cheryl, get someone at Barclays on the phone and get their full name and title. Aim for a supervisor here. There should be no confusion here. Bookit.com failed and never delivered the service for which you contracted. And there should be no delay in getting you that credit either. Then follow up with a letter to Barclays (you might want to also include any corroborating documents confirming their permanent closure) and then…copy me.
EMAIL: Raline Paper
Hi Peter,
I may have missed this but I travel on the airlines seasonally with my cat. I had cancelled my Delta flight for May 6 and have no date set to return north. What I am curious about is when I make a reservation for hopefully sometime this summer, will I be able to take my pet with me? (I am one of the very few who pays full fare for my pet, even though he is clearly MY emotional support pet!) Thanks for any information you have can share.
Raline Paper
Florida and Minnesota
Peter Says: Raline, the rules for taking a pet on the plane have evolved (especially in the area of “emotional support animals,”) but as long as your cat can be in (and stay in) its own container and fit under the seat in front of you, you’ll be fine. Remember you have to make a reservation for the animal as well, because airlines limit the number of pets in any one cabin at any one time.
EMAIL: Mary Z. Robins
Hi Peter,
My husband and I have a flight from Detroit to Salt Lake, planning to visit the Mighty Five national parks, but obviously they are closed.
I used 42,000 miles and paid for my husband’s flight using my credit card. Some are saying to wait, they will cancel the flight and we will get my miles back and his money back.
When I log in, I see “There has been a change or cancellation affecting your trip. If you are not satisfied with this updated itinerary, you may be eligible to change your flight (s) at no extra charge. If you choose to cancel, you may be eligible to receive an e-credit to be redeemed at a future date. Click “modify flight to view your options or cancel.” Conditions apply.
It looks like it’s still confirmed and not canceled at this time.
We just want to get our miles and money back.
Thanks for your help. Love your page!
Mary Z. Robins
Peter Says: Mary, you neglected to tell me WHEN your trip is scheduled. That’s important information. However, it appears that the airline already canceled your original flight when they changed your itinerary, and as such, you qualify for a full refund, or in your case, the miles redeposited back to your account without any redeposit fee.
EMAIL: Robert Oleson
Been following you closely so understand airline must cancel first. We booked through Justfly.com in January for a high school graduation gift June 9 – 17, 2020 to take two grandchildren on a trip to Italy. Justfly in turn assigned us to Air Canada. Our outbound afternoon flight was changed to morning which is not convenient for us. Does this qualify as a cancellation? Justfly said we need to contact Air Canada directly and upon doing so, you guessed it, Air Canada response was since we did not make the reservations directly with Air Canada we needed to deal with Justfly. Of course if we cancel they want to give vouchers, which we are not interested in PLUS to add insult to injury they would charge a $25 per passenger handling fee! Our credit card statement shows that the charges were billed directly to Air Canada. How should we proceed? Thank you.
Robert Oleson
Peter Says: Unfortunately, Air Canada is not behaving well. They are claiming that they are governed by Canadian law, which allows them to only issue a credit voucher, when in fact, by operating flights to and from the U.S. they are clearly governed by U.S. Department of Transportation rules, which require any airline flying to or within the U.S. (foreign airlines as well) has to refund in full if the airline cancels. So, whether you contact Air Canada or Justfly, the airline will still refuse to issue that refund. It’s time to dispute the charge directly with your credit card company.
EMAIL: Wendy Hyman
We have a daughter in Ohio and we live in CT.
We want to visit her.
Is it safer to drive, staying mid way at a hotel in Pennsylvania or fly, departing from Laguardia Airport landing in Cleveland?
Regards,
Wendy Hyman
Peter Says: Personally, I would have no trouble flying from LGA to CLE, as long as you practice the required hygiene and health protocols. But this is your decision. Driving is also a viable option, especially since the roads are uncrowded as well. I wish I could give you a more specific direction here, especially since I have no problem either flying or driving.
EMAIL: Monica Varanakis
Hi Peter! Thanks so much for answering all these questions. We have a trip planned to Puerto Vallarta from SLC, Utah on June 6th. Delta hasn’t cancelled the flight yet and our 4 seats together are still intact even though Delta said they would be assigning seats that are distanced. I checked with RCI, who we booked the room through, and they are not cancelling either. The resort is Marival Emotions resort and they are opening the resort again June 1st . I just don’t know if it’s worth the risk to travel that soon or if we’ll be able to get our money refunded. What do you suggest?
Monica Varanakis
Peter Says: Monica, Mexico appears to be opening very soon, and if they stick to that schedule, then there’s a good chance Delta will operate the flight. My suggestion is to do nothing yet…Wait until the end of May, and keep your options open.But if Delta cancels before then, then go for your refund. On the other hand, if everything stays on schedule and Mexico opens, you’re probably in the enviable position of going to Mexico and having no problems with social distancing — it won’t be crowded!
EMAIL: Judith Glasser
Thank you, Peter Greenberg for (at the risk of sounding trite) being you. I am a solo traveler of the world and have learned much from you.
I planned on spending time in Lebanon in June but cancelled my trip except for two flights with foreign airlines – Middle East Airlines and Transav. Both flights are to and from Europe to Lebanon. To date, I have not heard from either airline about flight cancellations. What is their refund policy if they cancel my flight? How far in advance are theses kinds of flights cancelled?
I thank you and eagerly and a bit anxiously await your reply.
Stay well,
Judy Glasser
Peter Says: If these two airlines cancel, then they are bound by a European Union rule to refund your money. But they are under no U.S. rules, since the flights to not depart from or return to the the U.S. Recent experience indicates these airlines — if they are going to cancel — will wait until about 48 hours before the trip to do so, although if air space is closed or airports closed, they may do so earlier.
EMAIL: Joyce Williamson
Hi Peter,
Do you think flying in the beginning of June is safe from the virus?
I’m considering a non-stop with Alaska airline for San to MCO.
Would you travel this trip? I value your opinion.
Thanks, Joyce
Peter Says: Safety these days is a relative term, and so your health. I would travel, but that’s just my personal decision and I can’t make that one for you. But as long as you don’t have a serious pre-existing condition and you practice the basic (and required) public health protocols, you can look at this flight as a calculated risk.
EMAIL: Danielle Ranta
Hi there! I got your name from a Facebook page I am on for people that Book-It.com didn’t refund their money after they cancelled our vacation. Citi has denied helping us. Where do i go from here?
Thank you,
Danielle Ranta
Peter Says: Under U.S. credit laws, Citi is not right here. You contracted for a service you didn’t receive, and under those credit laws you can dispute the charge and your issuing bank must investigate and then issue a credit.
