The travel agency won't reimburse me for my holiday in COVID-19 time
The travel agency won't reimburse me for my holiday in COVID-19 time
"Last February, I went through a travel agency to organise a getaway for a few days during the Easter holidays. Unsurprisingly, our flight was cancelled due to a health crisis. The airline reimbursed the travel agency for the cost of the tickets, but the travel agency was reluctant to pay me the corresponding sum and only offered me a travel voucher of equivalent value in exchange. Do they have the right to do this? "
D, Thônex
The contract between you and the agency to which you entrusted your holiday can be classified as a package holiday, provided that the purchase of the plane ticket was not the sole purpose of the transaction. This classification is essential because, in the presence of such a contractual relationship, the law on package travel (LVF) applies specifically.
A package holiday is defined as a combination of services offered by an organiser, often a travel agency, for a period of more than 24 hours and for an overall price. The law stipulates that if the organiser cancels the trip before the departure date through no fault of the traveller, the latter may terminate the contract and has a number of options available to him: in particular, he may demand another trip or reimbursement of all sums paid as soon as possible. Cancellation of a flight in this context is considered to be cancellation of the trip.
The travel agent is not liable for damages if the trip is cancelled due to force majeure. It goes without saying that the coronavirus crisis falls into this category, so the customer cannot claim anything other than the amount he has paid.
However, recent legislative developments aimed at mitigating the consequences of the current troubled period may temporarily prevent customers from requesting refunds for their travel. On 6 May, Parliament agreed to extend the suspension of proceedings against companies belonging to the Swiss travel industry until 30 September 2020. In practical terms, this motion prevents holidaymakers from taking legal action during this period, to give travel agencies time to actually receive the money from their service providers before reimbursing their customers. Your tour operator can therefore offer you a voucher as compensation for cancelling your holiday, but you are still entitled to demand reimbursement of the amount you have paid.
