It took me less than 30 minutes to get a full refund. I found out about their scam from this site, so I wanted to inform everyone how to get your money back like I was able to. When I was on the phone canceling my trip, they reduced the cost from 698 per person to 198 a person.
If they can reduce the cost 500 dollars you know this is a rip off. Be prepared to have them transfer you about 5 times or hang up before you get to talk to someone for more than 30 seconds. Always remember, be polite.
First, when you call their customer service line you are not seeking a REFUND... You are calling to CANCEL you trip. You are requesting to CANCEL your trip because that is the legal terminology used in the Florida "Sellers of Travel" Act. According to the "Sellers of Travel" Act, if you request your trip CANCELED within 30 days of purchase they must give you a full refund.
So it is that simple, CANCELING your trip EQUALS the full refund you are seeking.
From what I have read, they don't give REFUNDS. Here is the link to the PDF of the "Sellers of Travel" Act: (see link below)
Refer to page 7 section 559.933
Second, the best advice I can give when talking to them on the phone is to NOT TALK. They will alter everything they say based upon what you say. The following are statements I used in response to their questions and recommend you use when talking to them on the phone.
1) You are calling to CANCEL your trip, so when they ask why are you calling you need to say "I would like to CANCEL my trip". I also highly recommend ending everything you say in response with "I would like to CANCEL my trip".
2) They will ask you why you want to cancel your trip... I suggest responding with something like "I decided it is not for me, I would like to CANCEL my trip."
3) They will then ask "Why is it not for you?". I choose to answer this question with "I thought about it and it is not for me, I would like to CANCEL my trip."
4) You are now forcing them to search for ways to prevent you from CANCELING your trip. So they will reduce the price, give you extra days and all kinds of other stuff. Well, I don't choose to trust them, so in response to everything they will offer I recommend you respond with "I decided it's not for me, I would like to CANCEL my trip."
5) The last thing that was said to me was " I have a feeling there is something you are not telling me, did you hear something in the media? I'd like an explanation of why it is not for you". When they said this I got a big smile on my face, because of course it was the media that told me of this scam. Don't tell them that it was this site that told you of the scam. Respond with something like " I feel that the trip is not for me is a good enough explanation, I would like to CANCEL my trip." That line ended my conversation.
Whatever you do, just don't give in. Don't have a discussion with them, and be polite. Just always respond with something that is vague and tells them nothing, followed by requesting your trip to be CANCELED. If you struggle, bring up the "Sellers of Travel" Act, tell them you have filed a complaint with the Florida Attorney General, and tell them you have already filed a dispute with your credit card company. Use these as a last resort only, because it will probably turn the conversation hostile. Just be polite, speak as little as possible, and tell them nothing.
It took about less than 30 minutes for me, but they eventually gave in and canceled my trip. Of course, when they started discussing canceling my trip the background noise got extremely loud and the pace at which the person talked increased greatly. When they were doing their talk about canceling my trip, I heard them say something about a free vacation. I broke into the conversation with "I don't want it, all I want is my trip CANCELED, I don't want anything else".
Lastly, call your credit card company tell them you are disputing the charge.inform them that they should be refunding your charge. Just tell them of the situation, you are not the first person this has happened to, they know how to handle it. This is your insurance against them. They would have to challenge your dispute to get any money, which there is a ZERO chance they will do (Unless you go on the trip).
Best of Luck to all of you. If this method helps you, tell others of how it worked for you by placing a rebuttal. I think this methodology is pretty good, so try and keep it to the top of the list. Site Administrators - Is it possible to put the post stating the ways to get a refund at the top of each page so it is easier to spread the knowledge.
Rick
HTown, Texas
U.S.A.
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