A consumer watchdog has paid out almost $70,000 to customers after a travel firm went bust overnight.
Consumer Protection BC refunded a total of 44 claims — affecting 72 people — resulting from the collapse in April of Alameda Travels Ltd in Admiralty Centre in the Cambie business district.
Another 22 claims worth around $40,000, involving 37 people, remain outstanding. However, some of them may not get paid out due to a lack of proof of payment.
Compensation payments come out of the watchdog’s BC Travel Assurance Fund.
A peculiar aspect of the investigation was the fact that the majority of the customers paid for their flights and/or vacations in cash.
“It is a little bit different to see so many cash transactions,” said Manjit Bains, vice president of corporate relations for Consumer Protection BC, which is responsible for enforcing consumer law and issues travel firm licences across the province.
“I’m not sure why that was; maybe it’s just the culture of the area.
“But I would always recommend using a credit card if possible as most credit card companies will refund in this instance.”
At the time, one News reader, Tingting Yao, accused Alameda’s owner, Deanna Leung, of doctoring a cheque she’d made out to the company.
When looking at her bank statement, Yao noticed the name on the cheque had been changed from the company's to the owner's.
However, the RCMP probed the firm’s sudden closure in May but found no cause for a criminal investigation at the firm on McKim Way, just southwest of the Cambie and Garden City roads intersection.
No website was ever listed for the firm, but their office window suggested it specialized in trips to Thailand and Hong Kong.
Bains told the News how the company has now lost its $15,000 security, which every firm pays in order to be licensed.
“We would always urge people to book through a licensed agency and you can check on our website who is actually licensed,” added Bains.
“I would also urge people to always get proof of payment, no matter what you use to pay for your services.”
Alameda is the fourth licensed travel firm to go under this year. Consumer Protection BC has paid out a total $142,000 from the travel fund so far this year, compared with last year’s $187,000.
Since 2004, more than $1.1 million has been paid out from the fund, benefiting some 1,462 consumers.
For more information, on the BC Travel Assurance Fund and licensed agencies, log onto www. consumerprotectionbc.ca.
*Consumer Protection BC offers the following tips for any customer buying services from a BC-licensed travel agent:
1. Pay with a credit card. Be cautious if a travel agency only accepts cash as a form of payment.
2. Keep proof of payment documentation. Ask for (and keep!) documentation for your travel services. This could include receipts, contracts, itineraries, boarding passes, hotel vouchers and more.
3. Research the limitations of the Travel Assurance Fund. It’s important to know that the Travel Assurance Fund doesn’t cover purchases made by gift certificate, damage deposits, dissatisfaction with the quality of service and circumstances beyond the control of the supplier (such as natural disasters, bad weather and more).
