Booked refundable ticket / company refusing refund / Amex saying not their problem

Mm12345

Hello
i hope someone can help

in 2021 I booked a fully refundable ticket with an Italian ferry company. I was supposed to travel this month. The terms and conditions say it was fully refundable. 

I had to cancel. The ferry company are now refusing a refund as I booked it in 2021 (no mention of this anywhere). 

I contacted Amex who are saying as I paid over 90 days ago, it isn’t their problem.. any suggestions?
 Thank you

Sandtree

What do the T&Cs say about cancellations and variation of terms?

Did you explicitly buy a flexible ticket or was it a case of all tickets being flexible/covid promise etc? Does the ticket state on it its refundable in any way?

90 Days sounds like AmEx has considered it under their Refund Protection insurance policy rather than a chargeback... not sure what the total time limit for a chargeback on the AmEx network is... its 120 days for standard transactions (same as Visa/Mastercard) however the other two networks have a higher overall limit for future dated services but a maximum of 540 days, not sure if AmEx has the same or not.

Mm12345

Thank you. It was a fully flexible ticket. I can cancel at any time and receive refund up to date if sailing. Nowhere does it mention it depends when I booked it. Nothing to do with Covid, I just paid extra for flexible ticket…

MattMattMattUK

Mm12345 said:

Thank you. It was a fully flexible ticket. I can cancel at any time and receive refund up to date if sailing. Nowhere does it mention it depends when I booked it. Nothing to do with Covid, I just paid extra for flexible ticket…

I suspect if you work your way through the Terms and Conditions, which will be in Italian and governed by Italian law that it will likely be fully flexible for 12 months from the date of booking, first date of sailing and that you cannot just keep rebooking indefinitely. 

Mm12345

I booked less than 12 months ago (just in 2021). I have not rebooked indefinitely. I booked for this month under their flexible policy. I read their terms and conditions in English and nowhere is this mentioned. I can also speak Italian and again, nowhere is this mentioned. 

Manxman_in_exile

If you can speak Italian have you actually spoken to them and explained that you bought a refundable ticket under their flexible policy but they are refusing to refund you?

Ask them to explain why (ie where in their T&Cs) they won't refund.

What did you ask AmEx to do?  Did you specifically ask for a refund under s75?  (My understanding is that s75 cover extends to purchases from "abroad", assuming you satisfy the other conditions* for a s75 claim).


*I'm assuming your AmEx card is a credit card, not a debit or charge card.

Mm12345

Manxman_in_exile said:

If you can speak Italian have you actually spoken to them and explained that you bought a refundable ticket under their flexible policy but they are refusing to refund you?

Ask them to explain why (ie where in their T&Cs) they won't refund.

What did you ask AmEx to do?  Did you specifically ask for a refund under s75?  (My understanding is that s75 cover extends to purchases from "abroad", assuming you satisfy the other conditions* for a s75 claim).


*I'm assuming your AmEx card is a credit card, not a debit or charge card.

Yes they said (and also put it in an email) that as I booked in 2021 I don’t get a refund. Even though the terms don’t say anything like this. The internet is full of reviews of people chasing and chasing refunds on flexible tickets. 

Amex never mentioned section 75 (I have gone back to them since). They said their purchase protection is only for items bought in the last 90 days. I am going to call them again on Monday re section 75.  Thank you

user1977

Mm12345 said:

Manxman_in_exile said:

If you can speak Italian have you actually spoken to them and explained that you bought a refundable ticket under their flexible policy but they are refusing to refund you?

Ask them to explain why (ie where in their T&Cs) they won't refund.

What did you ask AmEx to do?  Did you specifically ask for a refund under s75?  (My understanding is that s75 cover extends to purchases from "abroad", assuming you satisfy the other conditions* for a s75 claim).


*I'm assuming your AmEx card is a credit card, not a debit or charge card.

Yes they said (and also put it in an email) that as I booked in 2021 I don’t get a refund.

But have they explained why they think booking in 2021 means you don't get a refund?

sheramber

Did you ask them to point you to the where it days that?

S75 is only applicable if a ticket cost over £100

Undervalued

Mm12345 said:

Thank you. It was a fully flexible ticket. I can cancel at any time and receive refund up to date if sailing. Nowhere does it mention it depends when I booked it. Nothing to do with Covid, I just paid extra for flexible ticket…

I find it extraordinary if that is actually the case as it is totally one sided. 

They keep your space on the ferry, right up to the last moment, then you say "not going now, give me my money back"!

If something seems to good to be true then maybe it isn't true?

Olinda99

You have consumer rights but these are governed by Italian consumer law. 

First port of call is the ferry company - do they have a formal complaints process.

You should then find out if there are any remedies available to you eg do they have an equivalent of consumer council, trading standards, any ferry and sea travel ombudsman system. 

Finally (depending on the value of the ticket) you could investigate to see if they have anything like the small claims court.