Chargebacks911 COO and Co-Founder Monica Eaton was quoted in a recent Washington Post article regarding expiring pandemic travel credits. She weighed in on whether keeping or using them is the wisest course of action.
The Washington Post is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large international audience. Daily broadsheet editions are printed for D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.
According to the article, travel companies parceled out pandemic travel vouchers like there was no tomorrow. This allowed them to keep their customers’ money because, as with all vouchers, there was a good chance that many customers would never get around to using them. But some travel companies didn’t offer refunds, even when legally required to do so.
Despite many consumer concerns about pre-pandemic travel credits, there are several ways to use them or be refunded before the points expire… and chargebacks are just one of them.
Speaking to both merchants and consumers, Monica said, “The pandemic triggered a tsunami of payment disputes,” she says. “Almost immediately, credit card chargebacks jumped by 25 percent. Suddenly, it became far more commonplace for consumers to actively — and sometimes wrongfully — dispute their credit card payments and demand a full refund from their bank.”
Monica explained that the surge of chargebacks could increase fares and rates as travel companies struggle to compensate for their losses. But for now, the time limit means using a chargeback to recover your money or negotiate a credit extension is a less effective strategy.
