Section 75 Help Third party issue?

summersmum82

I booked and paid a deposit on a credit card to GWWM who were pertaining to be an 'independent travel agent'. it has since transpired that this company has no valid insurance and has not booked my holiday. they have since disappeared with no way of contacting them.
I have spoken to my credit card and asked to claim back £448 (£198 on credit card and £250 debit) under section 75. They say that its not a section 75 issue however as the travel agent is a '3rd party company'. My response was that my contract and payment went to GWWM and they misrepresented themselves by having no valid insurance and by not being a legitimate partner of DISNEY. my CC has said that until I receive no holiday (booked april 2020) that I cannot claim. any advise? surely this cant be true?

18cc

I have just put a similar reply to a thread on the banking board but I believe you have to do a chargeback within 120 Days of 'realising there was a problem' so I would go back to the bank and tell them that

born_again

18cc wrote: »

I have just put a similar reply to a thread on the banking board but I believe you have to do a chargeback within 120 Days of 'realising there was a problem' so I would go back to the bank and tell them that

But in the case of a future dated event. Then they will not action the chargeback till the day after the event. Unless the OP could get something in writing to say they are not going to get the holiday.
If it done prior to the date of the holiday, then the company can simply reject the chargeback on the basis that it is still available and not due till the date of holiday.
Case lost Op can not go back again.

Not sure what no valid insurance has to do with anything, and it could be they will book the holiday at a later date.

chattychappy

summersmum82 wrote: »

They say that its not a section 75 issue however as the travel agent is a '3rd party company'. My response was that my contract and payment went to GWWM and they misrepresented themselves by having no valid insurance and by not being a legitimate partner of DISNEY. my CC has said that until I receive no holiday (booked april 2020) that I cannot claim. any advise? surely this cant be true?

My advice would be that you are correct - if what you say is correct. In the event of misrepresentation, you are entitled to rescind (ie cancel) a contract. This means you are entitled to your money back now. You do not have to let the contract run and ultimately see if you get your holiday.

Terms such as "legitimate partner of DISNEY" are a bit vague. Suggest you google misrepresentation in English law. Legal misrep is something a little more than advertising puff that you might see on websites/brochures. If you are still sure that there has been a misrepresentation in a legal sense, then do not delay.

summersmum82

the company state in their terms and conditions that they are fully insured (no ABTA due to being a small company) however this turns out to be untrue and they have NO insurance. I would never have entered into a contract with them if I had known there was NO insurance so surely this is the legal definition of misrepresentation?

summersmum82

18cc wrote: »

I have just put a similar reply to a thread on the banking board but I believe you have to do a chargeback within 120 Days of 'realising there was a problem' so I would go back to the bank and tell them that

unfortunately I am not within 120 days

Ben8282

Could you please clarify:
What exactly did you book through this company.
Did what you booked include air travel.
In what country is this company located.
What type of insurance did they not have that you think they should have had.

Caz3121

was it this lot? https://www.trustpilot.com/review/gowestwithmickey.com
this does appear to have been a scam
There is a Facebook group called "Go West With Mickey Support and Advice for Victims" with almost 5k members

This group was originally set up for reviews but since it was open it has become glaring apparent GWWM are not a legitimate travel agent and never have been.

If you have ever booked with GWWM this is the group for you to get advice and support on how to proceed claiming refunds and how to report to action fraud or the police. "

note: group was set up end August so looks like this mob appeared for a few weeks...ripped off at least 5,000 people and disappeared
It does highlight how careful you should be about the giving money to companies on internet without checking them out first....there will be plenty other scams out there

good luck

born_again

chattychappy wrote: »

My advice would be that you are correct - if what you say is correct. In the event of misrepresentation, you are entitled to rescind (ie cancel) a contract. This means you are entitled to your money back now. You do not have to let the contract run and ultimately see if you get your holiday.
.

If you cancel the contract, then no matter what it is YOU breaking the contract as far as any card provider is concerned.
Just who (full description) has debited the card?

Terry_Towelling

What follows is just my opinion and does not constitute legal advice.

If this so-called agent was just a scam operation then you do, in theory, have a right to have your money back. It also seems likely that there will be Chargeback rights for the issuer to use to recover any losses they incur if they pay you out under S75.

Your Issuer's advice to you that the agent is a third party which breaks the debtor-creditor-supplier (DCS) chain and thereby nullifies any S75 protection is bunkum. That restriction only applies where the agent has booked your holiday and the end supplier defaults in some way.

On this occasion, it is the agent that has defaulted - or so it would seem. You need to gather as much evidence as you can that this was a scam operation and that they never booked anything for you but just took your money. Once armed, you can ask your issuer to assess your claim properly.

You paid part by credit card, so that probably gives you S75 protection and the Chargeback time limits become irrelevant. However, as mentioned the issuer may still be able to pursue Chargebacks to recover their losses, as the 120-day time limit is quite flexible and can have a variety of different start points depending on the situation.

Frankly, I'd not worry about that just now. Do your homework, gather your evidence and go back to your issuer with your claim for Breach of Contract by the agent.

born_again

Terry_Towelling wrote: »

Frankly, I'd not worry about that just now. Do your homework, gather your evidence and go back to your issuer with your claim for Breach of Contract by the agent.

The point that really comes into play here is who is the actual debit on the statement too?

If it was this Fake co, then S75 can come into play. If it is Disney or someone else then it does not.
OP.
Just how did you book this? As I can find no web page for them. Lots of stuff on social media about them. But trip adviser make for interesting reading. Loads of Happy single post users. Unhappy multi post users...
Not relevant to the claim with the card provider. But has this been reported to the police, given you may not be alone.
It maybe something they can chase up and if funds are found will in the end comeback to the people who have been scammed.