Travel Company Will Not Issue Correct Account

LMTAB on 23/12/2020 - 01:02

Greetings Oz B’ers

Long time lurker; first time poster. Hoping for some advice. (All currency references are in AUD).

Paid for Canadian Tour $7511.85 through Gate1 Travel in September 2019, including United Airlines (UA) tickets.
Gate1 Travel cancelled tour and refunded $6979.92 in November 2020.
The shortfall was $531.93 due to Gate1 having paid UA $3897.92 and me being refunded $3366.00.
The ‘final’ Gate1 account shows I paid Gate1 UA $3897.92 and being refunded UA $3897.92 and thus ‘have been refunded in full’.
Both UA and my credit card records clearly show I received $3366.00 back from UA.

I have had multiple emails with Gate!1 requesting that they issue me with a correct account. I have assured Gate1 and UA that I am not after either of them giving me the $531.93 I lost as I understand there may be currency fluctuations, cancellation charges, etc involved. I needed a correct account so that I could see if my insurance would cover some of the loss.

Gate1 steadfastly refused to issue a correct account and UA, whilst confirming the amount they had refunded, indicated any dispute must be taken up through the travel agent (Gate1) which had booked the flights. My correspondence has been polite and reasonable and both UA and Gate1 have always responded promptly.

Do you have any suggestions as to where I can go from here to try and get a correct account? The issue is complicated a little by the fact that my purchase and ‘refund’ was through Gate Travel Australia but in November 2020 the Australian office was closed permanently and all subsequent communications is with Gate1 Travel USA
What organisations, if any, in Australia and/or USA should I approach to get to assert my consumer rights to a correct account?

Thanks in advance for any and all (polite) suggestions.

Travel

Comments

  • Nutrino on 23/12/2020 - 01:08
    +4

    Account? Or amount?. Confused.

    • MTAB on 24/12/2020 - 09:46

      Sorry about the confusion. It is an account I need.

  • brokenglish on 23/12/2020 - 01:30
    +13

    There's no problem. They refunded you the correct amount (USD). You're losing money (AUD) because of the difference in exchange rate.
    30th Sep 2019: 1 USD = 1.4802 AUD
    30th Nov 2020: 1 USD = 1.3562 AUD

    You paid AUD 7,511.85 in Sep 2019, which was about USD 5,074.89
    USD 5,074.89 in Nov 2020 was AUD 6,882.56.
    They actually gave you more AUD using these dates.
    Convert them to USD and wait for the AUD to rise if it helps you sleep at night.

    • MTAB on 24/12/2020 - 09:50

      I understand and accept that I have less money than I paid (I actually worked that out for myself). However all I have is an account from Gate1 Travel which shows I paid $7511.85 and was refunded $7511.85. The latter amount is not correct. If I have a correct account I can use this with my travel insurer.

    • MTAB on 24/12/2020 - 12:39

      Sorry, I did not want to overly complicate my convoluted story. My payments (and ‘refunds’) comprised two components. On September 3 2019 (all through Gate1 Travel) $3897.92 went to United Airlines and $3613.93 went to Gate1 for the tour. On 6 March 2020 I received the full refund ($3613.93) for the tour and, on 10 November 2020, only received $3366.00 for the air tickets.

      The actual difference with exchange rates (which I had previously calculated using xe.com) was a loss of $229.35; not the $531.92 experienced.[All currency references are in AUD].

      Anyway the critical thing is that Gate1 Travel’s account/invoice states I was repaid $3897.92 and not the $3366.00 that both United Airlines and my Visa card show.

      Thanks for your response though.

  • contrafibularities on 23/12/2020 - 07:00
    -5

    You are entitled to an account in the correct aud amount and you should follow up with office of fair trading in your State or territory. They are currently focussed on travel related issues so they may take up your case. The problem is the location of the company is now the US and with no Australian office they may not engage with the regulator. The US fair trading agencies won’t help because it’s outside their jurisdiction - your an Australian consumer and the conduct happened here.
    Good luck.

  • holdenmg on 23/12/2020 - 08:06
    -2

    GATE 1 AUSTRALIA PTY LTD ABN 74 169 034 575 was an ATAS Participant but https://www.afta.com.au/atas/scheme-governance/cancelled-ata… "Voluntarily Withdrew" on 12 November 2020.

    Try contacting ATAS [email protected] about the Standards/Documentation you should reasonably be able to expect and see what they can do for you.
    (The https://abr.business.gov.au/AbnHistory/View?id=74169034575# seems current/valid).

    • MTAB on 24/12/2020 - 09:52
      +1

      Thanks for this. Very helpful. My cancellations were not voluntary but made Gate1 Travel due to non-availability of services.

  • orangetrain on 23/12/2020 - 08:57

    If they insist the amounts are different because of currency, ask them to refund you in that currency? Then you can play the currency waiting game. Since its too late for that, as above poster said, convert to US and wait.

  • bobbified on 23/12/2020 - 10:31

    I needed a correct account so that I could see if my insurance would cover some of the loss.

    Why don't you speak to your insurance company first to see if any of it is covered before you waste anymore time chasing a corrected invoice?

  • MTAB on 24/12/2020 - 09:53

    Thanks, it is covered by my insurance (minus $100 excess) but I do not have an account which shows I have a loss.

  • itx on 24/12/2020 - 17:51

    If you can get a clear email from the agent confirming that they've refunded the $3897.92 in full to your card, consider a chargeback with your bank - call your bank and let them know that:
    (1) you and the merchant both agree on the refund amount
    (2) the merchant confirms that they've refunded the amount in full
    (3) the amount showing on your credit card is incorrect
    (4) therefore you're seeking a chargeback for the difference on the basis of refund not received.

  • holdenmg on 24/12/2020 - 17:53

    I presume the gap is FX and not a Departure Tax or Passenger Movement Charge of some sort?

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