VANCOUVER -- It was supposed to be a surprise birthday present but it turned into a disappointment.

Last January, Margaret Nelson of North Saanich bought a $517 entertainment package at the River Rock Casino and Resort to see Boz Scaggs in concert, which included an overnight stay in the resort.

“We love Boz Scaggs,” Nelson said.

Despite having most of Scaggs albums, she and her husband Peter had never seen Scaggs perform live.

“So I thought, you know what? He’s close by, let’s go see him,” she added.

COVID-19 hit and the May concert was initially postponed to May 2021. Eventually, the entire Canadian tour was cancelled.

The River Rock Casino and Resort is now being used as vaccination clinic and the only people waiting in lines to get in are there for a shot. In the meantime, Nelson has been struggling to get her money back.

“I’ve been trying to get a refund now for six months probably,” she said.

River Rock Casino, as part of Great Canadian Gaming Corp., has been approved for sale to Apollo Global Management out of New York and she wanted her money back before the transfer happened.

That is when she reached out to McLaughlin on Your Side for help. We contacted Great Canadian Gaming Corp., which owns the River Rock Casino and Resort. Within hours, Chuck Keeling, executive vice-president of stakeholder relations and responsible gaming for the corporation responded, stating, “thanks again for bringing this to our attention, as we have been issuing refunds for similar requests since the suspension of our operations at River Rock Casino Resort in March, 2020.”

He couldn’t find a record of Nelson’s request for the refund but promised to contact her immediately to arrange it. Problem solved.

“Thank you,” she said. “They can’t just not refund people for stuff they haven’t done.”