The best way to judge a travel company is not when you are booking - but when you have to cancel.
Report by Ian McIntosh
While many organisations will fall over themselves to help you seal the deal - far too often the rule book comes out when you can't go. Rules often buried in tiny type.
Bit like the time we were booked from Singapore to London on Lufthansa - we needed to cancel - I went to the site and it was easy to do - but then no refund. When I finally got a note from Frankfurt months later the message was there was no refund. Never mind this was not pointed out at the time. So lesson one - don't deal with off line carriers. You just do not have any support when problems occur. I am advised that in Europe Lufthansa would not have been able to get away with taking a cent if the passenger was not fully advised of the consequences. Another example - British Airways. We booked a hotel/flight deal in Malta and paid a deposit - not a lot but that's not the point. Our conference was shifted from one hotel in Malta to another - but do you think I could get our hotel booking changed? A simple change you are thinking - but no way - after emails and phone calls to the UK I gave up. There are BA reps in Australia - but they washed their hands of my problems because I had booked direct on the BA site. Why don't you follow your own rules and avoid off line carriers you might ask. Good point. Cruise companies are pretty flash at submerging rules and regulations as well. We had to cancel a Viking Cruises booking years ago - and then again. Our deposit vanished. Nothing we can do the rep in Sydney said - they are our rules. So be warned. Which brings me to my current problem - cancelling a Singapore Airlines flight to Singapore and return and an Emirates ticket from Singapore to London return. Here is another lesson to learn - we had upgraded to business class on the Singapore/home leg. As soon as you add that complication to a ticket the usual simple cancellation process is voided - and you have to call the local office..in this case in Sydney. It too a bit of negotiation but eventually the refund was approved. Emirates on the other hand made cancellation a simple task - you fill in a form on the site and within a week I was being advised the refund was on its way. 10/10. Very impressive. To conclude - read the small print or ask your agent exactly where you stand re cancellation before handing over your hard earned money.
