Australian Borders closed - no refund allowed

davekey

I'm after some advice if at all possible as I'm about to lose £4000 in flight costs that wont be refunded.
I booked tickets to Australia back in March 2020 (before we were hit with Covid) We were planning to fly in January 2021 but it became apparent by the end of November 2020 that the flight would not go due to the covid restrictions. As Cathay were not flying, we were given the option of a refund or to transfer the ticket. As we still were planning to go, we opted to transfer the ticket to January 2022. 
Last month, I contacted the travel agent to ask about applying for the visas and to raise my concerns about applying for an exemption certificate? I explained that the Australian border is only open to Australian citizens, permanent residents or their immediate family members. As we are neither, we wont be granted entry. I spoke directly with Cathay Pacific who told me that unless the flight is cancelled which it wont be because it will have Australian citizens on board. They have told me to 'just turn up and you be denied boarding and should receive a refund' (I have screen prints to prove it). I asked that surely I wouldn't be expected to buy 4 PCR tests knowing I would be permitted boarding? They replied that "I would need to wait a little longer as there is still quite a bit of time until the flight goes and things may change".
I went back to the travel agent and informed them of the conversation. Again they said it was down to the airline but maybe try my travel insurance? I tried the insurance only to be told that no insurance will cover for the fact a government close the borders. 
So here I am unable to fly because we don't meet the criteria, unable to get a refund as the flight is still currently going, unable to claim off my insurance as they don't cover for a close of border by a government. I am about to lose all my money with know one taking any responsibility!! Can anyone help with any advice?? 
Thanks in advance

eskbanker

If the flight operates, then the airline has no obligation to refund you, assuming of course that it's not a refundable fare that you bought.

The 'denied boarding' issue is a red herring - airlines/flights within scope of the EC261/2004 regulations (and their post-Brexit UK equivalent) are obliged to refund if denying boarding unless it's due to circumstances beyond their control, such as this - the denied boarding provision is essentially to protect passengers from flights being overbooked, etc.

The travel agent is unlikely to have any responsibility to you either, unless the Ts & Cs under which you booked offer refunds/changes?

If your travel insurance doesn't cover this eventuality then you would appear to have run out of options - the only other route sometimes available is a section 75 or chargeback claim from a card provider, but that only comes into play if the merchant you paid breaches the contract, which doesn't apply here.

So, not good news, I'm afraid....

jimi_man

Why don't you exchange your tickets for a flight voucher (Cathay Credits I think they are called). That would give you another year I think - up to 31/3/2023?

michael1234

Isn't it the airline that is breaching the contract by refusing to allow davekey to board ?

Moreoever, he now has proof that the airline has told him to check in and receive a refund.

Westin

I would investigate and explore the idea that @jimi_man suggests. 

eskbanker

michael1234 said:

Isn't it the airline that is breaching the contract by refusing to allow davekey to board ?

Unlikely - airline terms of carriage will normally exclude liability for passengers not having the correct documentation to enter the destination, or similar caveats about health/security provisions excluding admittance, and as above the wider regulations also don't offer refund rights in this scenario.

michael1234 said:

Moreoever, he now has proof that the airline has told him to check in and receive a refund.

That could potentially muddy the water a bit, although they do say 'should' receive a refund rather than 'will'.  However, the airline knows that their direct customer is the agent, and so can easily make 'commitments' that they're expecting someone else to deliver on!

Sandtree

michael1234 said:

Isn't it the airline that is breaching the contract by refusing to allow davekey to board ?

Moreoever, he now has proof that the airline has told him to check in and receive a refund.

No, the contract allows for denial of boarding where the passenger has no right to enter the destination country - indeed its their legal duty and some countries fine airlines that do board such people in addition to them having to fly them back to their port of origin. Its always the passenger's responsibility to ensure they have the right to enter... booking far in advance always risks visas being denied, entry rules changing etc which is why airlines normally say to get the visa first then book the tickets (though for various reasons this can create other challenges).

They could speculate and pay for the tests and turning up at the airport etc in the hope that they honour what their agent has said but its more losses if the airline simply apologises and say their agent was wrong (probably would just compensate the additional costs and not the tickets).

cx6

Yes, @sandtree is right - an example being in 'normal' times if you turn up for a US flight without an ESTA you will be denied boarding.

If you are not an Australian citizen etc you will be denied boarding with no compensation other than what the ticket allows (for changes, cancellations etc)

davekey

Thanks for your advice everyone.
I did try my bank on the chargeback scheme but because the original flight was booked more than 540 days ago, it falls outside of the time frame. That being said, to dispute the transaction you would need to prove that it wasn't in the T&C's which of course it would be somewhere. 
I just feels so unfair that circumstances change after you book the tickets and there's nothing you can do. The initial booking was pre covid. I was permitted to transfer the tickets to Jan 2021 and now since originally posting earlier Cathay have come back and said that they'll honour them to transfer again but have to be used by 18/2/23. Which is probably the best I could've hoped for. 
What is really frustrating is the people we were going to visit are coming back to the UK in July and as an option I enquired to change the name on the tickets. this was met with a firm NO!! Cathay will not do a name change under any circumstances. It's frustrating and extremely stressful not knowing which way to turn with the possibility of potentially losing your money for a situation that isn't your fault.

Thanks again everyone, I really appreciate all of your input.

eskbanker

For future reference, you might consider a few things to do differently next time, with the benefit of hindsight:

• If you're offered a refund or a rebooking (while in the midst of a pandemic), take the refund!  It keeps your options open and you can always buy new tickets when you have the money in your pocket, whereas having tickets and wanting money instead is a much harder direction.

• Buying flight tickets direct from the airline rather than via middlemen such as travel agents can preserve more rights, so if you were using an intermediary to save a few quid then this may not be optimal.

• Not using an intermediary also opens up the prospect of benefitting from Section 75 coverage if you pay any portion of the cost by credit card.

• Adding accommodation to flights to construct a package will typically bring a trip within the scope of the Package Travel Regulations, which offer significantly more consumer protection than flight-only bookings.

• Pay closer attention to the policy terms for travel insurance - they're not all the same and it's important to consider which aspects are likely to be useful to you.  Obviously this is easier to say with hindsight, but unless you originally booked very early in March 2020, it was clear that Covid was going to have significant ramifications for international travel.

• As well as s75 coverage for credit cards, chargeback is also an option when paying by credit or debit card - as you've found out it's not a silver bullet, given its timeframe constraints, but I can't see how a chargeback claim could have been sustained in the above circumstances anyway.  Having said that, it is still useful for many....

davekey

eskbanker, thank you, I really appreciate your advice. I'll answer in order of what I've learned from doing this.

• I would absolutely take the refund if offered again. We always intended to still go so it just seemed the right thing to do and transfer the ticket for the same time a year after.
• I will never ever buy a flight only ticket again from a travel agent. I have definitely learned the hard way of not having the same protection as if it was purchased direct. That being said, the travel agent has been nothing but supportive and has gone over and above. They're a smaller independent agent that I tend to always use for family holidays and will continue to do so, just not for a flight only.
• I have heard that a fraction of a purchase price covers the whole amount when on a credit card. I will be doing this in the future for the S75 protection.
• We are staying with friends but do understand now that a package has a better level of protection.
• With the travel insurance, 'once bitten, twice shy' applies here. I originally booked on the 3/3/20 so it was very very early. I didn't however do my travel insurance at the same time. (tut tut and wrists now slapped) I will be doing it when I rebook the flights.
• Trying a chargeback with my bank was always a long shot, but I had not other options and was trying everything I could think of.

Thanks again for you advice. It's appreciated.