6 days ago
Kolkata Commission Awards Rs 4.27 Lakh Over Cancelled Switzerland Trip
A couple planned a special Switzerland holiday for their 25th wedding anniversary.
They gave their passports to a travel agency to help obtain visas.
The couple later found that the passports were damaged.
Their visas were rejected, and new passports could not be issued before the trip.
Because of this, the holiday had to be cancelled.
The travel agency said it was not responsible and sought cancellation charges.
A consumer commission decided that the agency was responsible for the damaged passports.
It ordered the agency to refund the couple and pay extra compensation and legal costs.
A Kolkata consumer commission ordered a travel agency to pay Rs 4.27 lakh to a couple whose Switzerland trip was cancelled.
The couple had paid Rs 3,02,971 for an eight-night, nine-day European tour planned around their 25th wedding anniversary.
Their passports were allegedly damaged while with the agency for visa processing, leading to visa rejection and cancellation of the trip.
The commission held that the passports were damaged in the agency’s custody and rejected the agency’s claim for cancellation charges.
The agency must provide a full refund, Rs 1 lakh for mental agony and loss of the trip, and Rs 25,000 in litigation costs within 45 days.
- Who
- A couple, a travel agency, and the Kolkata consumer commission were involved.
- What
- The commission ordered the agency to pay Rs 4.27 lakh after the couple’s Switzerland trip was cancelled following alleged passport damage.
- Where
- The case was decided by a consumer commission in Kolkata, West Bengal, and the planned trip included Switzerland and London.
- When
- The tour was booked in 2018; the agency must pay the ordered amount within 45 days.
- Why
- The commission found that the passports were damaged while in the agency’s custody, causing visa rejection and cancellation of the tour.
Consumer Commission’s Finding
Travel Agency’s Defence
Responsibility for damaged passports
Consumer Commission’s Finding
The commission held, on a preponderance of probabilities, that the passports were damaged while in the agency’s custody.
Travel Agency’s Defence
The agency denied damaging the passports and said its role was limited to assisting with visa applications.
Cause of visa rejection
Consumer Commission’s Finding
The commission found that the visas were refused because of the passport damage and that the agency’s default caused the failed tour.
Travel Agency’s Defence
The agency argued that visa approval or rejection was entirely at the discretion of the relevant authorities.
Cancellation charges
Consumer Commission’s Finding
The commission rejected the agency’s reliance on its forfeiture clause, saying it could not use the clause when its own default caused the tour to fail.
Travel Agency’s Defence
The agency argued that its booking terms allowed the booking amount to be forfeited when visas were rejected.
Key facts
- Total award
- Rs 4.27 lakh
- Tour payment
- Rs 3,02,971
- Planned itinerary
- Eight-night, nine-day European tour including Switzerland and later London
- Purpose of trip
- The couple’s 25th wedding anniversary
- Compensation
- Rs 1 lakh for mental agony and loss of the anniversary trip
- Litigation costs
- Rs 25,000
- Payment deadline
- Within 45 days
Quotes
Kolkata consumer commission
The consumer commission president and member who issued the ruling.
“A commercial organisation faced with a written accusation that its staff had damaged a customer’s passport would be expected to repudiate it at once. The first denial came in the written version filed in January 2021, nearly two and a half years later. Conduct of that kind is a relevant circumstance and tells against the opposite party.”
financialexpress.com
“The complainant and his wife lost a tour planned over several months for their 25th marriage anniversary, an occasion which, as the complainant rightly says, does not come twice in a couple’s life.”
financialexpress.com
Sources
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