Bruce and Anne* were just three short weeks away from their once-in-a-lifetime trip to Africa. The couple purchased their vacation through a licensed BC travel agent. A few weeks before their trip, Bruce received an unexpected email from his travel agent. The business had gone bankrupt. Bruce and Anne were not going to Africa.
“I was in shock, but I felt I should do whatever I could to protect myself,” says Bruce. The travel agent sent a link to Consumer Protection BC’s website, noting that some clients may be able to get help there.
Bruce called Consumer Protection BC right away. “I honestly wasn’t expecting anything from the organization, and certainly not expecting to talk to someone so quickly.” Bruce spent the next day and a half getting his paperwork together. Speaking to the process of the claim procedure, Bruce recalls “I was able to phone in, more than once, and speak with the same person. I also faxed my paperwork attention to that person. I always felt like someone was there for me.”
After some hard work and quick planning, Bruce and his wife were able to get to Africa, spending three extraordinary weeks meeting new people and soaking up the culture. Shortly after their return, Bruce received a cheque from Consumer Protection BC’s Travel Assurance Fund, covering the majority of money he had paid to the licensed travel agent for services not received. “I feel very lucky to live in British Columbia, and it’s a wonderful thing to have this assurance.”
*Names changed to protect the privacy of the individuals involved.
Interested in more information?
This is a real story of consumers who came to us for help. Consumer Protection BC is responsible for regulating aspects of the travel industry in the province, including the licensing of all travel agencies and travel wholesalers based in BC. The Travel Assurance Fund (TAF) provides a possible source of compensation when consumers do not receive the travel services they purchased through a BC licensed travel agent. As Bruce and Anne purchased their vacation package through a BC licensed travel agent, they were able to receive compensation.
For more information including the eligibility requirements of the TAF, please visit our Consumer Help page. If you are interested in reading more consumer stories, please read our 2015 Annual Report.
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My wife& I planned a trip to Africa.Made arrangements with the travel agent.We are elderly ages 79 & 75. Booked the tour prior to checking on vaccinations. Yellow fever vaccination was required. When we saw the possible side effects we thought the risk was too high because of our age. But the tour was already booked. The travel agent said that we could get 50% back from the cost of the trip. But we are out around $ 10,000. We are trying to get money back from our insurances Mastercard & a private insurance. We feel trapped. A doctor in 2016 refused to give us yellow fever vaccination stating The high risk outweighs the benefit because of our advanced age. We consented to the tour before checking out the high risk of yellow fever vaccination at our age. The travel agent at the time said that I cannot hold the booking any longer even though we could not see the doctor immediately we had to wait a few days. for the appointment. Yes I agreed to put the tour on my credit. With our insurance they seem to feel that we don’t have a claim. We cancelled because of the high risk to our age.
Hi Ken, sorry to hear about your situation. We do administer the Travel Assurance Fund (TAF) and the fund is a possible source of compensation if you don’t get the travel services you bought. However, if you cancel the tour due to health or other issues, you would not be eligible for the TAF claim. Sounds like you are doing everything you can though, by contacting the credit card provider and the insurance company. You could try to take the matter to Civil Resolution Tribunal and this is all done online. The claim is up to $5,000 so I’m not sure if you would be eligible for what you’re not able to retrieve, but it may be worth exploring. The website is very user-friendly, here’s the link – https://civilresolutionbc.ca/. Best of luck to you and your wife!
In October 2019 myself and two friends booked and paid for a house for 47 nights through VRBO. On arrival Dec 30 there was no one there to greet us. After some difficulty we contacted the housekeeper that was to meet us. We were not expected. Homeowner in California was contacted on housekeeper’s phone. He said he would give us a full refund if we didn’t take it, but to go in and take a look. We contacted him the next day to say we wouldn’t take it. After much discussion with homeowner and VRBO, we still do not have a refund. VRBO has told us our dispute is with the owner who denies he offered a refund. The credit card company lodged a dispute January 3 and have had no progress with VRBO. Are there any other avenues to address this issue?
Hi Noreen, thanks so much for reaching out to us here. Have you had an opportunity to review the terms and conditions (the fine print) on VRBO’s website? You may be able to find some information in there that addresses cancellations. This sounds like a bit of a tricky situation, because you and your friend were the ones who cancelled. It sounds like you made the right call to contact your credit card provider. Outside of that, I’m not sure where I can direct you to. If you’re unable to work it out directly with the owner or through your credit card provider, you only recourse may be through the courts. The Civil Resolution Tribunal can resolve disputes under $5,000 so you may want to start there. I imagine this wasn’t the answer you were looking for but I hope it’s helpful to you. Best of luck
We are nearing the point of paying for a 2021 with a licensed BC travel agency for a cruise with a major cruise line. We can insure health and our cancellation, but cannot insure against financial failure of the cruise line. Given extended Covid shutdowns of this industry, such is a possibility regardless of how large the company. So our question is: If the cruise line fails, would we be able to make a claim under the TAF? (assuming we have tried all other sources)
Hi Ian, thank you for posting your question here, and sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Our Travel Assurance Fund is a fund of last resort and each claim is assessed on a case by case basis so we would not be able to guarantee that your potential claim would be approved without all the facts. Having said that, you’re dealing with a licensed BC travel so the TAF is a possible source of compensation in the event that the travel services you book are not supplied. We have a lot of information on this page on our website about the TAF so please take a look. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us by phone, toll-free at 1.888.564.9963.