Predictably, given the widespread coverage of budget airline Velvet Sky’s woes, and speculation about impending liquidation, quite a few of that airline’s ticket holders have written to me to ask whether they’d have any recourse if that happened.
Bruna Gilham wrote: “My husband booked air tickets online with Velvet Sky for us to fly to OR Tambo on March 16.
“Due to the current problems… he decided to see if he could cancel the tickets and get a refund.
“The response from Velvet Sky was that he couldn’t cancel or get a refund, because although they have currently suspended their services, they will be flying again from March 5. My concern is: what if their contingency plans come to nought and we are stranded?
“What consumer protection is available in these situations?”
The answer there is chargeback – it’s a protection offered by credit card companies globally.
If you pay for goods or services with your credit card and you don’t get them, for whatever reason, you may apply for chargeback by filling in a dispute form at the bank that issued your card.
It’s essentially a reversal of the initial purchase transaction.
Many Nationwide Airlines passengers got their money back in this way when that airline folded a few years ago.
I wrote to all four major banks last week, asking them to explain their chargeback procedures.
Here are their responses.
Absa
A cardholder has 120 days from the date of travel as reflected on the ticket to dispute and request chargeback via Absa for services not rendered. Cardholders need to first attempt recovery from the supplier, failing which they are entitled to initiate a chargeback dispute.
From there, a formal process is followed between the issuing bank and the merchant’s acquiring bank (bank that processes card transactions on behalf of the supplier) to determine the validity of such dispute. Should the dispute be found to be justified, the supplier of the service is debited and the cardholder’s account is credited.
To claim chargeback via Absa, call 0861 462 273, visit a branch, or e-mail disputes@ absa.co.za
Nedbank
In the event that Velvet Sky ceases operations and not merely suspends its operations, as is currently the case, cardholders who have purchased flight tickets from Velvet Sky using a payment card branded with a Visa, MasterCard or an American Express logo may contact their issuing bank for a chargeback, says Nedbank.
Chargebacks cannot be initiated where the merchant has expressed an intention to honour the flight or to accommodate the cardholder in a mutually acceptable manner.
Nedbank clients have just 30 days to raise a chargeback.
In the case of an airline, that would be 30 days from the date of the scheduled flight, or “from when the cardholder was first made aware that the service would not be provided”.
To claim chargeback from Nedbank, call the bank’s call centre at 0860 555 111.
First National Bank
FNB clients have 180 days from the transaction date, or the expected delivery date, to apply for a chargeback.
Should they (Velvet Sky) be liquidated, the acquiring bank (Nedbank) will then inform the different banking institutions to proceed with the standard chargeback process where applicable.
Affected FNB customers should call 087 575 1111 to get the necessary form which needs to be completed and then e-mailed or faxed back to them.
Standard Bank
Standard Bank gives its customers 120 days in which to apply for chargeback from the time the service has not been rendered.
Customers have to wait until the day after the flight should have taken place, complete a statement of dispute for services not rendered, and forward an e-mail to Chargebacks.disputes@Standard Bank.co. za. Disputes between Velvet Sky and its passengers should be e-mailed to [email protected] or faxed to 086 214 5018. - Pretoria News