Have I Lost My Chance of Flight refund?

[NoshowJones]

I had a flight booked to the UK last Sept with Emirates by T.V.airbookings at their Central Chidlom Office. I went to Emirates head office in Bangkok and was told everything would be fine but it would take about six months.

I accepted this, then I got a phone call two days later confirming I would get my refund less 1000Bt, so that was fine, so last Feb I called the Emirates Chat line and the woman told me everything had to be done through T.V.airbookings, when I told her about my meeting with Emirates, and the phone call two days later, the woman was very rude to me and just cut me off.

I got in touch with T.V.airbookings, and they answered my emails and promised me everything would be fine, I have emailed them a few times and they always answered me with a positive reply when I asked them how much longer I would need to wait for my refund.

I was patient with them for about two months which brings me up to now, I then emailed them again and also tried phoning them but it just rang out. I take it they must have closed. Does that mean I have lost the chance of a refund now?

[gearbox]

Their Facebook page was updated just a few days ago, it doesn't looks like they are out of business. Why don't you go to one of their locations and sort out this in person?

[sandyf]

There was a form available on the Emirates website for applications for a refund but not sure if that could be used for tickets through an agent.

I know it is a bit difficult with agents as the airline has not received all that you paid. Some years ago I had a ticket with BA that had been obtained through an agent where the flight was cancelled. The agent refused to process a refund saying it was a reschedule not a cancellation. I took both BA and the agent to court and as soon as BA got the notice they stepped in and settled out of court. Due to the admin setup I got 3 payments, one from BA for what they got for the ticket, another from BA for their share of the compensation and one from the agent for their commission plus their share of the compensation.

Complicated and I know it doesn't help you a great deal but I would suggest that you get on to Emirates Customer Service and explain the situation and ask they confirm that the agent has in fact processed a refund request.

[madmen]

Try Facebook. I've had success in the past when emails ignored with 2 different airlines 

[sandyf]

Further to my previous post I do not think you have a problem time wise with Emirates, bigger risk of the agent doing a runner.

I got vouchers for my cancelled Emirates flights May last year, initially valid for 1 year. A couple of months ago I converted them to tickets and when I entered the voucher the expiry date had been extended to the 22nd of May 2022.

[robblok]

I would be worried that the agent might already have received the money from Emirates and not given to you. So that the agent pocketed the money. If emirates already paid the agent then all you can do is go to the agent.

 

So its important to know if emirates has paid the agent already.

[bunnydrops]

Similar problem with Cathy. Ticket bought though Vayama. Vayama told me  I would get a refund, its been a year. When I contact them they just keep sending the same message that they are working on it. Looking online, I see I have a lot of company. Many think they are pocketing the money.

[millymoopoo]

Not sure if this will help but I will post it anyway.

If you paid by card it may be possible to do a chargeback.!

If the agent has gone bust, done a runner, or refuses to reply, talk to your card people.!

It would come under the 'goods or services paid for but not received' provisions.

[NoshowJones]

16 hours ago, gearbox said:

Their Facebook page was updated just a few days ago, it doesn't looks like they are out of business. Why don't you go to one of their locations and sort out this in person?

Their offices are in Bangkok and I'm upcountry, and Bangkok is not a place to be at the moment, though I'll check out what you have said. Thanks.

[NoshowJones]

15 hours ago, sandyf said:

There was a form available on the Emirates website for applications for a refund but not sure if that could be used for tickets through an agent.

I know it is a bit difficult with agents as the airline has not received all that you paid. Some years ago I had a ticket with BA that had been obtained through an agent where the flight was cancelled. The agent refused to process a refund saying it was a reschedule not a cancellation. I took both BA and the agent to court and as soon as BA got the notice they stepped in and settled out of court. Due to the admin setup I got 3 payments, one from BA for what they got for the ticket, another from BA for their share of the compensation and one from the agent for their commission plus their share of the compensation.

Complicated and I know it doesn't help you a great deal but I would suggest that you get on to Emirates Customer Service and explain the situation and ask they confirm that the agent has in fact processed a refund request.

Good idea, thanks.

[NoshowJones]

15 minutes ago, millymoopoo said:

Not sure if this will help but I will post it anyway.

If you paid by card it may be possible to do a chargeback.!

If the agent has gone bust, done a runner, or refuses to reply, talk to your card people.!

It would come under the 'goods or services paid for but not received' provisions.

I paid by debit card, as far as I know that doesn't count.

[recom273]

I just feel all airlines are taking the <deleted> at this time. Good luck with your quest. 

[Andre0720]

My return flight with Korean Air was not used.

I never thought of asking for a refund.

I thought that my chances were better if KA took responsibility to bring me back home sometime.

Not likely to happen, but I always thought less likely that I would get a refund, at a time when these airlines are just struggling to survive...

[ChrisKC]

It's called being "fobbed off"

[Poet]

Never really understood why people buy air tickets via agents. Is it really that much cheaper?

When using the flight search aggregators, I often notice that some online agent site will offer the flight slightly cheaper but, in my experience, they seem to add an additional fee after you have already wasted time and are about to pay.

The direct prices listed in the aggregators generally turn out to be their total price, so, I feel that the agents are engaging in sleight-of-hand to funnel people to their sites.

Even if an agent did work out, say, 10% cheaper overall, I still feel it is better to deal directly with the airline, especially if you have a return flight that you might possibly need to change. So many variables affect travel, I always suspect it will work out more expensive to deal with any problem or change through an agent.

Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to find a way to get cheaper flights, I certainly waste enough time searching for the best dates to fly, but I've never really found a way to come out ahead by going through a third party.

 

Edited May 28, 2021 by Poet

[sandyf]

9 minutes ago, Poet said:

Never really understood why people buy air tickets via agents. Is it really that much cheaper?

When using some of the flight search aggregators, I often notice that some online agent site will offer the flight slightly cheaper but, in my experience, they seem to add on additional after you have already wasted time and are about to pay.

Even if an agent did work out, say, 10% cheaper overall, I still feel it is better to deal directly with the airline, especially if you have a return that you might possibly need to change. So many variables affect travel, I suspect it will always work out more expensive to deal with any problem through an agent.

Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to find a way to get cheaper flights, I certainly waste enough time searching for the best dates to fly, but I've never really found a way to come out ahead by going through a third party.

 

You are right, I used to use agents and that is ok as long as nothing goes wrong. I found out the hard way how difficult it can be when there is a problem as you are trying to recover funds from 2 sources.

Now I only buy direct from the airline.

[madmen]

Even worse than agents are those 3rd party flight apps that much to the disappointed of bargain hunters ends up being registered to a head office in Romania staffed by one person with broken English. 

[new2here]

1 hour ago, Poet said:

Never really understood why people buy air tickets via agents. Is it really that much cheaper?

When using the flight search aggregators, I often notice that some online agent site will offer the flight slightly cheaper but, in my experience, they seem to add an additional fee after you have already wasted time and are about to pay.

The direct prices listed in the aggregators generally turn out to be their total price, so, I feel that the agents are engaging in sleight-of-hand to funnel people to their sites.

Even if an agent did work out, say, 10% cheaper overall, I still feel it is better to deal directly with the airline, especially if you have a return flight that you might possibly need to change. So many variables affect travel, I always suspect it will work out more expensive to deal with any problem or change through an agent.

Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to find a way to get cheaper flights, I certainly waste enough time searching for the best dates to fly, but I've never really found a way to come out ahead by going through a third party.

 

I think for some it’s just a process they are simply more familiar with and understand… also, in some limited cases, a good agent may be able to construct a more difficult/complex booking (ie interline but across different networks, triple connections, etc) that a normal person might not be able to readily do so on any one carriers own platform…  

So i do think there’s still a space for agents to exist, but i agree that for the majority of booking today, they can be made just as easily with the carrier direct - which then mean you deal solely with the carrier itself - should any issues arise. 

[mrmicbkktxl]

You booked your flight with an agency so you deal with the agency.Emirates has nothing to do with you,they will not help you they will not pay you 1 baht or a voucher.Go to your travel agency and talk face to face maybe bullsh.. them and tell them Emirates told you they refunded already.I had similar problem with another travel agent in BKK,they told us for 2 months they need to wait until airline pays.After that my wife called them every 2nd day.Finally after 3 months they paid us back -1000bt.In the future never again with travel agency.I'm pretty sure emirates refunded them already it normally takes 2-4 months

[Chongalulu]

2 hours ago, possum1931 said:

I paid by debit card, as far as I know that doesn't count.

Chargeback is what you use having paid by debit card and if a credit card ,section 75 of the consumer credit act. But yes you do have a reasonable chance via the first option if not as strong as credit card ,so you should definitely try. There are some complications having paid an intermediary (travel agent). For full details moneysavingexpert.com is a great site for guidance on this and how to go about it. Use search function under cards when on the site

[CharlieH]

1.Talk with Emirates, ascertain if the agent has processed a refund.Ask them to confirm in email whatever they tell you.

 

2. Tell the agent what you know and learned from Emirates.

 

3. Inform the Agent that if they dont process your refund in a reasonable time (state a time period) that you will have no choice but to begin legal proceedings and in doing so they will incurr any and all further costs.

 

Do it on their facebook page/by email and in writing by EMS recorded delivery.

 

[richard_smith237]

I used an agent back in July 2020 (for the first time in over 10 years, and for the last time!). 

 

The Flight was cancelled, it took 5 months to get a refund from the travel agent. 

 

 

 

 

I contacted the airline (Qatar Airways) and was informed that they will refund the travel agent. 

The travel agent informed me that the refund would take 3 months. 

Under EU Law any flight departing or arriving in Europe and is cancelled must be refunded within 7 days. Airlines claimed ‘force majeure’ to get out of this (and ‘hold on to money to maintain cashflow). 

 

After 3 months I contact ABTA and filed a case that the travel agent was not refunding my money.

ABTA took a couple of weeks to respond. ABTA took on the case and contacted the travel agent on my behalf. 

 

After 4 months the travel agent offered me an 80% refund claiming they’d used an intermediary agent to book the flight. I refused the refund, claiming that their use of an intermediary was not my problem - the flight was cancelled and I was entitled to a full refund. 

 

I received a 100% refund after 5 months. 

 

The travel agent is UK based and has to comply with ABTA regulations (if its a member of ABTA). 

 

I’m not sure if there is any such body in Thailand, or if there is the equivalent of small claims court. 

 

As Robblok wrote earlier on in the thread - a key piece of information is finding out if the Airline has refunded the travel agency already. 

If they have, then the Travel Agent is pulling a fast one. 

 

 

[Thomas J]

If you booked using a credit card I would check with the credit card company and see whether you can still dispute the charge.  Otherwise try and see what regulatory agency governs that flight.  I had problems with a refund from Vueling.  After a few months I both filed with my credit card company and the agency governing flights in Spain.  Shortly thereafter I got my refund.  I don't know which turned the trick but one of the two did. 

[NoshowJones]

1 hour ago, mrmicbkktxl said:

You booked your flight with an agency so you deal with the agency.Emirates has nothing to do with you,they will not help you they will not pay you 1 baht or a voucher.Go to your travel agency and talk face to face maybe bullsh.. them and tell them Emirates told you they refunded already.I had similar problem with another travel agent in BKK,they told us for 2 months they need to wait until airline pays.After that my wife called them every 2nd day.Finally after 3 months they paid us back -1000bt.In the future never again with travel agency.I'm pretty sure emirates refunded them already it normally takes 2-4 months

I may just try that, but now is not the time to go to Bangkok where the travel agency is situated, they won't answer the phone or return my emails, they may even be closed.

[Poet]

7 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

I may just try that, but now is not the time to go to Bangkok where the travel agency is situated, they won't answer the phone or return my emails, they may even be closed.

Be careful. Bring a friend if possible. Secretly record everything on your phone.

 

[NoshowJones]

1 hour ago, CharlieH said:

1.Talk with Emirates, ascertain if the agent has processed a refund.Ask them to confirm in email whatever they tell you.

 

2. Tell the agent what you know and learned from Emirates.

 

3. Inform the Agent that if they dont process your refund in a reasonable time (state a time period) that you will have no choice but to begin legal proceedings and in doing so they will incurr any and all further costs.

 

Do it on their facebook page/by email and in writing by EMS recorded delivery.

 

I have just received an email from TVairbookings just now as I was reading this post.

They are saying there is a cash flow problem, but 80% of customers have now been paid back.

Here is part of their email to me.

 

"So we write to you for a survey if we can ask for your permission to reduce the fund to 75% of money received from the airlines".

 

"If allowed, it is expected to gradually pay more or some back at the beginning or mid of next month and will continue to find solution for the rest."

 

Can you tell me what I should do Charlie? I would be prepared to accept the 75% as it would be better than maybe losing it all. 

 

Should I email them back and say I will accept the 75%, but only if I get it in the next three weeks?

[Harveyboy]

same problem with LH ..not march gone but 15 months ago .. tried to call .. Vivaldi.. Beethoven.. Mozart  ar my expense..sent dozens of mails  one as recently as yesterday same thing ..your mail has been forwarded to our customer services who will be in touch shortly Yep 15 months and still nothing German efficiency at its best   tks LH

[CharlieH]

53 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

I have just received an email from TVairbookings just now as I was reading this post.

They are saying there is a cash flow problem, but 80% of customers have now been paid back.

Here is part of their email to me.

 

"So we write to you for a survey if we can ask for your permission to reduce the fund to 75% of money received from the airlines".

 

"If allowed, it is expected to gradually pay more or some back at the beginning or mid of next month and will continue to find solution for the rest."

 

Can you tell me what I should do Charlie? I would be prepared to accept the 75% as it would be better than maybe losing it all. 

 

Should I email them back and say I will accept the 75%, but only if I get it in the next three weeks?

Well, if 80% have already been paid back WHY were you pushed to the back 20% ? Why have they left it until now ?

 

Their cashflow is not your problem, BUT if you are willing to take the hit and accept less then state it must be paid within 28 days or the deal is off, if this is just another delay tactic you will proceed with a lawyer and they can pay for that too and you will also post their actions on Social Media.

[Upnotover]

1 hour ago, possum1931 said:

"So we write to you for a survey if we can ask for your permission to reduce the fund to 75% of money received from the airlines".

Of course the "money received from the airlines* is not necessarily the same thing as the money you paid to the agent.  Mind you, they don't write English well so maybe don't mean what they say.

[NoshowJones]

15 minutes ago, CharlieH said:

Well, if 80% have already been paid back WHY were you pushed to the back 20% ? Why have they left it until now ?

 

Their cashflow is not your problem, BUT if you are willing to take the hit and accept less then state it must be paid within 28 days or the deal is off, if this is just another delay tactic you will proceed with a lawyer and they can pay for that too and you will also post their actions on Social Media.

Thanks Charlie, I will get in touch with them and see what happens next.