Wagga's Joy Reid lost money after holiday cancelled, consumer advocates say she is one of many

Joy Reid had travel plans booked in 2020, but like many others, was forced to give up those holidays when the borders slammed shut.

So in 2021, when the government offered half-price flights to domestic locations to boost the tourism industry, Ms Reid decided to take up the offer.

Booking a flight to Broome, she was then to join a 16-day camping holiday with Kimberley Safari Tours.

"That was booked to leave on July 15," Ms Reid said.

"It was all booked and paid for, and it all came unstuck because the Western Australian government closed the border to NSW on June 23, which meant I could not go.

"The camping trip cost just a little over $4500 to book."

Ms Reid said when she contacted them about the issue, she was informed that due to their cancellation policy - which was advertised on their site - she was not entitled to a refund.

It was still the same answer when she tried to reason that she had not "cancelled" but instead was unable to attend due to circumstances outside her control.

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Ms Reid tried to claim the expense on her insurance but was told by the provider the terms and conditions contained "an exclusion that applies to any claim caused by an epidemic, [or] pandemic".

"I was devastated and had lost a considerable amount of money," she said.

"Before I had paid the insurance, I had tried to find if there were any terms about COVID but couldn't see it, and it turns out there was a couple of lines in the 40-odd page document."

Ms Reid said she hopes that by sharing her experiences, others would be more careful when booking holidays and encourage governments to look at protections for consumers.

Erin Turner, director of campaigns at CHOICE, said they have heard from thousands of people in the same boat as Ms Reid, who are trying to recover money lost due to lockdowns and border closures preventing them from travelling.

"Australians needs stronger consumer rights to be confident enough book travel," she said.

"What we have found is that the terms and conditions are confusing, and consumer rights aren't clear enough.

"Sadly, you can't rely on consumer law in cases where the pandemic forces you to cancel, and that's not good enough."

Ms Turner said they are calling on the federal and state governments to implement easier travel refunds, minimum credit rights and a travel and tourism industry ombudsman, among other initiatives.

Consumer advocate Adam Glezer has been helping Australians recover money from travel companies and lobbying federal MPs to improve consumer protections since April 2020.

He runs a Facebook group, 'Travel Industry Issues - the need for change for Australians' to help shine a light on the issues.

"The government has been encouraging Australians to support local tourism by offering half-price flights and travel vouchers, yet we don't have the laws in place to protect us when cancellations occur due to COVID 19," Mr Glezer said.

"We have the distinct possibility of not getting our money back if a lockdown occurs, and the reality is that Australians have no protection outside of the terms and conditions of their travel provider."

"How can providers say that customers have to cancel 45 or 60 days in advance when a lockdown can come with hours notice?"

Mr Glezer said he is focusing on getting legislative reform to ensure Australians have better protection going forward.

He helped organise a motion in federal parliament where four main points were raised. The main one being that everyone should have a right to a refund for cancellations outside of human control, such as COVID-19.

"Going forward, I will keep raising awareness of the issues, and I am hoping to sit down with Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar to see if we can get these issues resolved," Mr Glezer said.

In 2020, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission received 26,412 travel-related complaints, and for the first six months of 2021, they have documented 6657 issues.

A spokesperson for the ACCC said while travel-related complaints have dropped considerably since the peak of the pandemic, they are still currently higher than pre-COVID levels.

"Early in the pandemic, the majority of travel complaints received by the ACCC related to the cancellation of overseas holiday bookings arising from international travel restrictions," they said.

"Since mid-2020, complaints have increasingly focused on the impact of recurring local COVID outbreaks and government restrictions on domestic travel.

"For this reason, complaints have largely related to domestic travel suppliers such as accommodation providers, booking platforms and airlines."

Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar said the COVID-19 pandemic had had an unprecedented impact on the travel industry.

"If a consumer is having difficulty understanding their rights or dealing with a business, they should speak with their state or territory consumer affairs regulator or the ACC," he said.

Ms Turner said there are a couple of ways that keen travellers can protect themselves when booking trips.

"Look at the terms and conditions, and look at the options for cancelling in advance to see if you will get a refund, credit or the ability to transfer," she said

"When booking travel insurance, check out if there is a COVID or pandemic clause."

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