John and Anne, 2 retirees, were due to travel from the UK to Singapore on 5 February 2020 for the holiday of a lifetime. Concerned with Covid-19's spread in Asia and the risk it posed to older people, they cancelled their trip. They were unable reclaim any of their booking fees from the airline or their hotel in Singapore and lost GBP 2,000.
Using this site, John and Anne could make a claim to specify that they would like their booking reinstated in 6 months' time or would be willing to receive a partial refund of up to GBP 1,500 (75%) of their original booking. This site would approach John and Anne's airline and hotel on their behalf. Because the site would aggregate other claims against the airline and hotel with other travellers willing to seek a fair settlement, the airline and hotel may be more willing to reach a compromise.
Sally's company is based in the U.S. and was due to participate in the Singapore Air Show between 11-16 February 2020. Her company lost USD 20,000 for canceled flights, hotel accommodation and conference space. Her company would be willing to participate in the 2021 Singapore Air Show, but she is concerned that airlines, hotel and conference provider may become insolvent.
This site would aggregate claims from other similarly situated participants in the Singapore Air Show. To address solvency concerns, we would try to negotiate with the relevant travel providers ring-fence a portion of this cash, which would then be offset against Sally's company's expenses for attending the 2021 Singapore Air Show.
Jian Wei lives in Singapore and booked a cruise due to depart on 1st March 2020 to go whale-watching in Greenland. He would have flown to the U.S. to board the ship but based on the Singapore Government's travel advice, he decided not to take the trip and was told that since the boat set sail, he was not entitled to any refund.
The site would aggregate claims against the airline and cruise operator to try to obtain a rebooking in 2021 or 2022 and without requiring him to bear any extra up-front cost.
COVID-19 brings economic hardship to everyone. But this is no reason for travel companies to withhold customer refunds.
We are taking on travel industry providers and challenging them to ensure that they are treating customers fairly.
