A government employee and his wife were forced to drop their Malaysia holiday after a travel agency allegedly sought an additional Rs 30,000 for an alternate flight. The Hyderabad consumer commission has now directed the agency to pay the couple Rs 1 lakh for retaining money despite the tour not taking place.
The Indian Express reported that the Hyderabad Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission directed the travel agency to refund Rs 80,000, which it had retained after returning only Rs 50,000 from the amount paid by the couple.
The commission also awarded Rs 15,000 as compensation and Rs 5,000 towards litigation costs, taking the total relief to Rs 1 lakh.
President B Uma Venkata Subba Lakshmi and members C Lakshmi Prasanna and B Raji Reddy passed the order on September 3.
Why did the Malaysia trip get cancelled?
According to The Indian Express, the complainants, a government employee and his wife, had booked a five-night, six-day package covering Kuala Lumpur and Langkawi.
They paid Rs 1.30 lakh to the travel agency for the package. The government employee, who works as an assistant section officer in the Telangana government’s finance department, had also obtained permission to travel abroad.
However, two days before the scheduled departure, the agency allegedly informed the couple that they would need to pay an additional Rs 30,000 for an alternate flight.
The couple refused, arguing that the additional amount was not part of the agreed package terms. They subsequently decided not to undertake the trip and sought a refund.
The travel agency returned Rs 50,000 but retained the remaining Rs 80,000.
The couple then approached the consumer commission seeking the balance amount, along with Rs 1 lakh as compensation for mental agony and losses and Rs 25,000 towards litigation expenses.
Travel agency did not appear before commission
The travel agency did not appear before the commission despite being served notice. The complaint therefore proceeded on the basis of the evidence submitted by the couple.
The commission noted that once the proposed tour was not undertaken, the agency was required to return the money paid by the consumers.
If the agency wanted to retain any portion of the amount on the ground that expenses had already been incurred towards the proposed tour, it had to establish “what expenditure had been incurred and how much had actually been spent,” the commission said.
‘Cannot retain money without evidence’
The commission found that the agency had failed to provide such evidence. “In the absence of any such evidence the opposite party cannot be permitted to retain the complainants amount,” the commission observed, according to The Indian Express.
It held that retaining the couple’s money without providing the promised travel service amounted to “deficiency in service”. The commission directed the agency to refund the entire Rs 80,000 it had retained.
Couple gets Rs 1 lakh
The commission awarded Rs 80,000 refund of the retained amount, Rs 15,000 compensation and Rs 5,000 litigation costs. The total amount comes to Rs 1 lakh. The travel agency was given 45 days to comply with the order.
Takeaway
The case highlights that a travel agency cannot necessarily retain a customer’s money simply because a booked tour did not go ahead. Where a customer disputes an additional charge and subsequently cancels the trip, the agency may need to demonstrate the “actual expenses incurred” before retaining any portion of the amount paid.
In this case, the commission found that the agency had not provided evidence to justify retaining Rs 80,000 after the promised travel service was not provided.