– We have been doing this for over three years. I am so angry and just feel cheated. What they are doing is fraud, says Guo Wei Ma (40).
A number of distraught and angry customers have contacted TV 2 help you to get help in the fight against the travel agency Gotogate.
The Craig Ma family is one of them.
THE CRAIG MA FAMILY: Guo Wei Ma with daughters Emilie and Isabell and wife Lise Craig. Photo: Private
The start of the nightmare
In December 2019, the Craig Ma family booked four flights to Thailand through the travel agency Gotogate for NOK 20,000.
– We were going to travel with another family to Thailand. The children were going island hopping and we were very much looking forward to this holiday, says Ma.
HOLIDAY HAPPY: Guo Wei Ma and daughter Isabell Craig Ma on holiday together in Gran Canaria. Photo: Private
– At this point, Covid-19 was not a familiar term or something we thought could happen, the family says.
But when the community shut down, all flights were cancelled. Also the plane tickets for the Craig Ma family. Then the nightmare began.
– Blamed each other
– We did not get a concrete answer from either Gotogate or Thai Airways, which was the airline we were supposed to fly with. They kept blaming us for waiting for each other, and as consumers we were left in the middle, says the couple in frustration.
– TIRED: Lise Craig and Guo Wei Ma say they are tired of waiting, but that this has become a matter of principle. Photo: Caroline Jensen Dahle
For three years, the family regularly received an email a month from Gotogate stating that the case is being processed.
– We could not respond to the emails we were sent. Then we only got auto-reply, says Lise Craig.
AUTO REPLY: When the family tried to reply to Gotogate, they always got this reply in return. Photo: Screenshot
Route to India?
Then something happened.
Two years later, in August 2022, the family suddenly received a message that Thai Airways had refunded the amount back to Gotogate, and that the money would be in the account within five working days.
REFUND: NOK 20,097 should be refunded to the family within the next working days Photo: screenshot
The weeks go by, and so do the months, but no money enters the account. Then something unexpected happens:
– We call Gotogate to find out where the money goes, and then we suddenly get a message that they can’t find our order, and our profile has been deleted.
– It may seem that when Gotogate got the money refunded from Thai Airways, they deleted us and our ongoing case. It feels like they just took our money and ran away, says Ma in frustration.
See what the company replies below.
When the family again calls support on a Norwegian number, they are routed to a telephone queue in India, according to the family.
THREE-YEAR-LONG FIGHT: The couple is very frustrated that their three-year-long fight seems to be in vain. Photo: Caroline Jensen Dahle
– When we call, we are told that this booking number does not exist. And that the email used for ordering is not in their system either.
– They recommend us to log in to their website, but that doesn’t work anymore either. Something it most recently did in August this year.
PROFILE: In August 2022, the family had access to the profile on Gotogate.no, where they could follow the repayment status. Photo: Screenshot
– I would not recommend Gotogate to anyone. Will never order from there again, or on any similar sites, even if it is a bit cheaper.
– I believe that what Gotogate is doing is illegal. They have taken the money from the customer, and believe that the customer does not exist in their systems, says Ma to TV 2 help you.
– Highly objectionable
Lawyer at the Consumer Council Thomas Iversen says this is a very interesting and criticizable case.
– Here the travelers are clearly entitled to a full refund, they are also entitled to late payment interest. This is highly objectionable handling from the company, which is now also sitting with the consumer’s money.
ADVICE: – Our clear advice is to book the trip directly from the airline or via a package travel agency, says Thomas Iversen. Photo: Consumer Council
– Here the company clearly needs to clean up its routines and tighten up its practices significantly so that its customers do not suffer, he says.
Iversen further explains that customers in similar situations should lodge a complaint with the Transport Complaints Board, as well as try to make a claim against the bank, if the journey has been paid for by card.
He says that Gotogate’s practice can be considered illegal:
– If the company restricts access to customer service, so that it becomes difficult to safeguard one’s rights, it could quickly be regarded as unfair trading practices, which is prohibited. Companies that deliberately make themselves unavailable risk operating outside the boundaries of the law.
TIP US:
Are you dissatisfied with a purchase or a service, or do you have tips on other consumer matters? Contact: [email protected]
Blame the airline
TV 2 helps you make contact with communications manager Claes Tellman in the Etraveli Group, of which Gotogate is a part. He answers this:
– The travel agencies do not take part in making decisions, or have any influence on the airlines’ decisions about reimbursement. When the airline has made its decision and possibly sends money, the travel agency forwards the airline’s money to the customers.
Furthermore, Tellman explains the reason why the case has taken over three years.
– Regarding the delayed payments, the root of the problems is the situation the airline had during the pandemic. The company was very close to bankruptcy, says Tellman.
COMPANIES DEPENDENT ON EACH OTHER: Gotogate says it cannot refund money back to customers until it has received money from the airline. Photo: Thai Airways
TV 2 helps you have tried several times to get in touch with Thai Airways, without success.
– Both the customers and the travel agencies waited a long time for what was going to happen. When new financing was in place, we received information from Thai Airways before the summer that the customers would receive a refund. We were informed that the refunds would be handled manually, which has meant that it has taken a long time and that some customers have to wait.
– We received the money from Thai Airways two weeks ago, emphasizes Tellman.
TWO WEEKS AGO?: On 9 August, the family received an email from Gotogate stating that the money should be in the account within five working days. Photo: Screenshot
– Sorry
TV 2 helps you send Tellman documentation from Gotogate itself, which states that the refund was already in place in August.
Then changing Gotogate explanation:
– Now we have gone through the entire order once more. Since it was a long time since the order was made, it takes a long time to go back and check everything. We received the money from the airline at the end of July and not a few weeks ago as we first thought.
– Today we have contacted the customer once more, and apologized and informed that we will compensate the customer for what has happened. Thank you for making it possible for us to correct what went wrong, Tellman writes to TV 2 help you.
– Not by chance
Gotogate does not answer our questions about why the family was suddenly deleted from the system, nor why the family is not allowed to speak to a Norwegian customer center when they call a Norwegian number.
Nevertheless, after TV 2 help you contact Gotogate, the Craig Ma family receives a response from the company.
– We suddenly received an email from them. Apparently they have now managed to find us in their system after all. This is not accidental, it is because you made contact.
REFUND: This email was received by the family the day after TV 2 help you contacted Gotogate. Photo: Screenshot
– After that email, we received a personal apology from Claes, and it says that we will receive 150 euros in compensation for all the problems. This would not have happened if you did not help us. Thank you very much, now it’s time for the new year, says the family happily.
SATISFIED: The family is ready for a new trip in 2023. Photo: Private
