Refund requests for COVID-19 travel cancellations dismissed by B.C. tribunal
Multiple travellers seeking refunds for trips cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic recently had their complaints dismissed by a B.C. tribunal.
The decisions, posted Friday by the province's Civil Resolution Tribunal, stemmed from complaints claiming refunds should have been received, but weren't.
In one complaint, two travellers from Prince George booked a week-long trip to the Sunshine Coast costing more than $6,000. The pair was scheduled to leave on May 30, and public health orders preventing travel between designated regions in the province were scheduled to lift on May 25.
However, those travel rules were extended through mid-June as B.C. rolled out its restart plan.
Travellers Warner Adam and Sandra Isaac argued they should be entitled to a full refund, but asked for $5,000, which is the tribunal's limit for small claims cases.
Holiday Homes Rental International, which rented out the property through VRBO, "said their cancellation policy clearly addressed the COVID-19 pandemic and said there were no refunds unless a specified exception applied." Those two exceptions were if the property was rebooked during the scheduled stay and if "a government order prevented travel from the Lower Mainland to the Sunshine Coast."
But the health orders in place at the time technically permitted trips between the Sunshine Coast and the Lower Mainland, because they were in the same designated travel area. As a result, the accommodation's exception didn't apply to restrictions prohibiting travel from Prince George to the Sunshine Coast, and tribunal member Shelley Lopez wrote in her decision Adam inquired about and knew the refund policy.
Adam, not knowing the travel restrictions would be extended, signed a contract with Holiday Homes Rental International, acknowledging the refund policy.
"While I accept the applicants could not travel from Prince George given the (public health order), that does not mean HHRI must provide a refund," Lopez wrote.
"Their contract and HHRI’s later offer expressly addressed the COVID-19 pandemic and the limited circumstances under which it would provide a refund."
Their complaint was dismissed.
AIR CANADA REFUND REQUEST DENIED
Another refund request that was recently dismissed by the CRT included return tickets for a flight from Vancouver to Auckland, New Zealand for March 2020. Simon Knight bought the tickets in January of that year, the tribunal heard.
On Feb. 12, Knight cancelled the trip because of the pandemic and ultimately received travel credit. However, Air Canada's COVID-19 refund policy changed on June 10, so he requested a full refund instead.
According to tribunal member Eric Regehr's decision, Air Canada "confirmed in an email the same day that he was entitled to the refund, which would be 'credited to the original form of payment.'"
The problem, Knight claimed, is that Air Canada issued the refund to an expired credit card and he never received the money. As a result, he requested just over $2,800 for the cost of the flight.
"Mr. Knight's primary argument is that he has no way to obtain the refund from his old credit card provider because at the end of every calendar year he shreds 'anything not needed,' including all credit card statements," Regehr wrote in his decision.
"He says he does not know the full card number, has no statements, and has no way of even finding out the credit card provider’s telephone number."
Regehr determined, however, that Air Canada "undisputedly refunded the money to an account to Mr. Knight's credit" and dismissed his claim.
"I am not persuaded that the refund is lost to Mr. Knight simply because he cancelled the credit card. I find it more likely than not that Mr. Knight either remembers or has some way of finding out what institution issued the (credit card)," Regehr wrote.
"I find it would be relatively easy for Mr. Knight to obtain copies of his records (including statements) and determine how to access the refunded funds … I find that with reasonable diligence, he could obtain those records."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.