When Denise Elwell booked a Celebrity cruise, the last person she expected to have a dispute with was her travel advisor.
But that’s precisely what happened. Celebrity overcharged her by $641 in a reasonably complex transaction that involved discounts and gift cards, and her travel advisor kept the money—at least, that’s what it looked like to her.
“I have emailed my agent multiple times to check on the status of my refund,” she says. “He said he isn’t having any luck with Celebrity and is only offering credit towards a future booking with his agency.”
Elwell’s case raises a few questions:
- What is your travel agent’s responsibility when you overpay for your cruise?
- Can your travel agent keep your refund?
- What are the steps you can take to get your money back?
First, let’s find out what happened to Elwell.
“There was an overpayment”
Elwell paid $4,823 for a three-night cruise on the Celebrity Summit to Mexico and the Caribbean. She made the arrangements through a local travel advisor and had a $300 reward credit applied to her booking.
After making her final payment, she received an email from the travel agent.
“There was an overpayment,” she recalls. “I would be receiving a refund for $641. I had asked if it would be credited back to the credit card used for payment, but he said I would receive a check.”
Months went by, and Elwell didn’t receive her money. She repeatedly contacted her agent to inquire about the status, but he only offered a credit toward a future booking, claiming he was “not having any luck with the cruise line.”
Unhappy with this response, Elwell contacted various organisations for help, including Celebrity customer service, the Better Business Bureau, the Illinois attorney general, and the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA). However, the celebrity refused to discuss the issue with her directly because the booking was made through a travel agency.
And that’s when Elwell’s case landed on my desk.
What is your travel agent’s responsibility when you overpay for your cruise?
When you book a cruise through a travel agency, it is more than a middleman handling your reservation. An agent is supposed to be your advocate.
That includes ensuring that the pricing is accurate and that you get a prompt refund if you overpay. Travel agents, particularly those affiliated with a professional organisation like the ASTA, are held to a high standard of ethical responsibility. In other words, they’re supposed to act in your best interest, provide clear communication, and resolve issues such as billing discrepancies.
Suppose you discover that you’ve overpaid for a cruise. In that case, the travel agent is generally responsible for following up with the cruise line or supplier to resolve the issue on your behalf.
In Elwell’s case, the overpayment was complicated, caused by a combination of an improperly applied $300 credit and another billing error.
The travel agent was responsible for facilitating the refund and ensuring it was processed back to Elwell’s original form of payment.
However, the situation isn’t always clear-cut, and travel agents often face challenges when working with cruise lines. In Elwell’s situation, Celebrity was the ultimate source of the overcharge, but her agent failed to communicate effectively or actively pursue the refund process.
Instead, he told Elwell that he wasn’t having “any luck” with the cruise line and was offered only a credit toward future travel. Elwell believed the agent might have pocketed the money.
This leads to a crucial question.
Can your travel agent keep your refund?
No, your travel agent cannot keep your refund unless you have explicitly agreed to a future travel credit.
Elwell’s case resembles Nartach Djepbarova’s airfare refund problem a few years ago. After Delta Air Lines cancelled Djepbarova’s flight, Delta issued a full refund to the travel agency. But instead of returning the money to the traveller, the agency kept it, citing “handling fees.” Just like in Elwell’s situation, the agency was obligated to return the full refund to the customer, and after I gave it a nudge, it eventually did.
I’ve also seen travel agencies try to keep refunds by implementing a separate no-refunds rule, but that’s also wrong.
Your travel advisor may only keep a portion of the refund to cover a valid commission or service fee. (As a customer, you would know about that well in advance.) Otherwise, any refund for a billing error must go directly to your original payment method, usually your credit card or bank account.
Elwell’s frustration is understandable: although her agent assured her she’d get a check, no refund materialised. All she got was a future booking credit with the travel agency. To her, it appeared as if the agency was pocketing money from the cruise line.
This is a clear example of a travel agent failing to advocate for the customer and resolve billing disputes in a fair and transparent manner.
What steps can you take to get your money back?
If you’re in a similar situation where a travel agent may have mishandled your refund or billing issue, here are some steps to take:
Reach out to the cruise line directly. Even if the booking was made through a travel agency, cruise lines sometimes have policies that allow customers to resolve billing issues directly. Ensure you have your booking reference and any communications with the agent when you call.
Blaze a paper trail. Keep a detailed record of all communications with your agent, including emails, phone calls, and any written statements about the refund. This will be helpful if you need to escalate the issue to a third party, like our consumer advocacy team.
Escalate to a higher authority. If your agent is unresponsive or unwilling to help, consider filing a complaint with your state’s attorney general or the Federal Trade Commission. You can also contact Elliott Advocacy for help. These organisations can help mediate disputes and ensure that consumer rights are respected.
Complain to a travel industry organisation. If your agent is a member of a professional association like ASTA, you can file an ethics complaint directly with it. Travel advisor organisations have strict standards and can often assist in resolving disputes between consumers and agents. (Note: Suspensions are as rare as a blue moon, but ASTA can give your case a nudge if you ask nicely.)
Sue ’em. In rare cases, if you have exhausted all other options and your refund is still being withheld, you may need to pursue legal action in either regular or small claims court to recover your money. This should be a last resort, but it’s available in some jurisdictions. Another possibility: A credit card dispute under the Fair Credit Billing Act. If she had paid with a credit card, Elwell might have been able to recover her overpayment quickly.
In Elwell’s case, her best course of action was to escalate to Celebrity Cruise’s customer service department. When that didn’t work, she turned to several consumer protection agencies for help. Finally, she came to us.
“I received a check”
This was a case for our advocate Dwayne Coward. He contacted the travel agency and Celebrity Cruises on Elwell’s behalf.
A few weeks later, we received some good news:
“I am pleased to advise you that I received a check from my travel agency for $641,” she wrote in an email. “It took just over a year to resolve this.”
While the resolution came much later than it should have, Elwell was grateful for the assistance that finally closed her case.
Elwell’s case reminds us that not all travel advisors are created equal. Finding one who will act as your advocate is not easy. (Here are a few strategies for finding one.)
It also highlights the necessity of holding agencies accountable for following through on promises and processing refunds promptly and transparently. If you find yourself in a similar situation, remember that you have options: contacting the cruise line, contacting consumer protection organisations, or, like Elwell, seeking professional advocacy to ensure you get a refund.
By Christopher Elliott
BIO:
Christopher Elliott is an author, consumer advocate, and journalist. He founded Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organisation that helps solve consumer problems. He publishes Elliott Confidential, a travel newsletter, and the Elliott Report, a news site about customer service. If you need help with a consumer problem, you can reach him here or email him at [email protected].
