Help! I am nonetheless ready for my Vantage refund

Pricey Vacation TROUBLESHOOTER: Very last year, we booked a tour to Portugal and Spain by way of Vantage Deluxe Entire world Journey. This was to be our 3rd Vantage journey in as many yrs, and the 2nd with mates. Like the optional excursions, air, insurance plan and costs, my wife and I paid out $12,959 for the tour.

This March, Vantage canceled the tour because of COVID-19 fears. On March 16, I requested for a refund. Vantage agreed to problem a refund in 30 days.

Two weeks later, I been given an e-mail confirmation that the refund was “in course of action.” I have made quite a few calls and three penned requests given that then. Immediately after 100 days, I am nonetheless awaiting the refund. Vantage is stonewalling.

Vantage’s Tour Participation Agreement claims that Vantage will concern a “prompt” refund for any tour canceled by Vantage for any purpose. Can you assistance me get my Vantage Deluxe Environment Vacation refund?

— Rick Pedersen, Fulshear, Texas

Answer: Vantage must have refunded your tour inside of 30 times as it promised — and as it is contractually required to do. But it had no way of realizing what would take place in the future 30 days. In March, you are going to recall, travel floor to an just about complete halt. Just about every a single of Vantage’s suppliers experienced identical delays. So the refund approach slowed down significantly.

How slow? Perfectly, as I create this, one cruise line is telling travellers they’ll require to wait around two several years to get their refunds. And allow me skip suitable to the resolution for individuals tourists: File a dispute with your credit rating card corporation. Inquire your financial institution to take the revenue back again.

But with this Vantage refund, I can understand the delay. It appears to be like as if they ended up really honest in their intent, and they stayed in get hold of with you (at least originally). But you ended up more than patient and 100 days was a great deal of time for Vantage to get its act alongside one another.

I’m glad you talked about Vantage’s Tour Participation Agreement, the authorized agreement between you and the tour operator. It’s well worth examining the conditions and ailments before you ebook your tour, but if you’re dealing with a cancellation, you absolutely have to know your legal rights. I read the contract the same way you do if Vantage cancels, you get a comprehensive refund.

Other tour operators modified their conditions and circumstances halfway by way of the pandemic so they would only have to present a credit. Then they used the policies retroactively. To its credit, Vantage didn’t.

You can discover the names, figures and addresses of the Vantage managers on my customer advocacy web page www.elliott.org/organization-contacts.