Direct Air in trouble d

[pigletto]

I am on hold with the credit card company now. Lovely woman helping me. She is concerned that because at least one set of my flights were booked in October that Mastercard no longer has dispute rights. She is looking into it for me.

What we are all going to run into is a situation where our card companies don't know what to do. Be polite but firm. There are laws in place to protect us, and we're all just figuring out how to make this all work out.

It also doesn't help that I am calling from Canada I don't know if those same laws that protect American consumers apply here.

This is going to be fun.

Also.. would be nice of DirectAir to just bite the bullet and say what's really going on, because if you have flights after their posted date of May 15th you'll have to wait to dispute those.

I am in the unfortunate position of having flights within the dates in their statement AND after so it's going to be a headache.
I'll share whatever I learn in case it helps anyone out

 

[vttkdmom]

Thanks so much to the folks in this forum for keeping us informed on what is going on.

You guys rock!

 

[pigletto]

I have to fax in EVERYTHING. A screenshot of the DirectAir site, booking info, receipts, dates, news releases etc. I'll need to find a copy of the act being quoted that stipulates that these funds are held in escrow. I am directing this ship apparently. My credit card company were very nice, but had never dealt with this so it's going to be a first for both of us.

I'll start a new thread to discuss my driving route and options. My husband wanted to drive anyway and I talked him into these flights. Glad he's got a good sense of humour

ETA) and it would appear the DirectAir corporate office number is now disconnected so don't waste your time trying to call.

 

[mousey]

Just got off the phone with my mothers credit card company and I have to fax a letter with her name, acct number, dispute and she told me this was the 6th call she took concerning Direct Air. Good Luck to everyone who was scammed by them!

 

[kirs10a]

Disney Visa is aware that they have filed bankruptcy paperwork. I'm speaking with a claims rep now. They are inputting my dispute and I'll be in a holding pattern for 15 days while they wait for the merchant to respond to the charges. After that, I will receive a statement credit.

It's actually been fairly easy so far (minus the stress of it all & knowing that I have to go back to researching airfare.)

 

[dancin Disney style]

It also doesn't help that I am calling from Canada I don't know if those same laws that protect American consumers apply here.

We do have protection from the credit card companies....for sure !!!!! We also have additional protection from TICO...which plays no part in this particular situation.

What do you mean by you're calling from Canada? Is your CC not of Canadian issue? If it's not then you could be in a different position. If your card is of Canadian issue then you are covered by the rules that apply here.

 

[pigletto]

We do have protection from the credit card companies....for sure !!!!! We also have additional protection from TICO...which plays no part in this particular situation.

What do you mean by you're calling from Canada? Is your CC not of Canadian issue? If it's not then you could be in a different position. If your card is of Canadian issue then you are covered by the rules that apply here.

Awesome , thank you! It is a Canadian Mastercard. They just didn't seem to know what to do with me. In the end I have to fax and copy everything I can find related to this issue and they will start my claim.

 

[poppypetal]

I just bought my husband a round trip 179.00 ticket like 2 weeks ago for his birthday. He hasn't used it yet, he had until October 31st. Should I be calling my Visa Company and getting a credit back or what should I do?? BTW I'm in Canada if this helps any?

 

[pigletto]

I just bought my husband a round trip 179.00 ticket like 2 weeks ago for his birthday. He hasn't used it yet, he had until October 31st. Should I be calling my Visa Company and getting a credit back or what should I do?? BTW I'm in Canada if this helps any?

Dispute the charge. Call and explain what is happening and get the ball rolling now. I'm in Canada too.

 

[dancin Disney style]

Awesome , thank you! It is a Canadian Mastercard. They just didn't seem to know what to do with me. In the end I have to fax and copy everything I can find related to this issue and they will start my claim.

It sounds totally reasonable that they want documentation....if not anyone could dispute charges just because they don't want to pay.

Remember a few years ago...Regent Holidays went under in the spring. A co-worker of mine had booked her honeymoon with them and had to wait until the date she was due to depart before she got her money back but she got every penny. I think in that case it was very easy to have it dealt with because people coast to coast were calling the CC with the same issue and it was all over the news.

 

[dancin Disney style]

I just bought my husband a round trip 179.00 ticket like 2 weeks ago for his birthday. He hasn't used it yet, he had until October 31st. Should I be calling my Visa Company and getting a credit back or what should I do?? BTW I'm in Canada if this helps any?

Yep..call Visa right away.

 

[poppypetal]

Yep..call Visa right away.

We are sure they are going bankrupt? I mean I dont want to dispute something and have it turn around as a pre-panick when it wasn't anything. But I also dont want to get burned with paying this if I dont have to.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I hate to say this, but what your credit card company is going to do is investigate and when they discover Direct Air has not cancelled YOUR flight the dispute will be closed.

I would hold off 24 or 48 hours to start the dispute. Hopefully by then the airline will make more definite statements.

Reading the fares folks say they were getting I am shocked any airline could even try to make money. If you don't have a base of business travelers to pay more then $80 it is going to end badly IMHO.

 

[pigletto]

I hate to say this, but what your credit card company is going to do is investigate and when they discover Direct Air has not cancelled YOUR flight the dispute will be closed.

I would hold off 24 or 48 hours to start the dispute. Hopefully by then the airline will make more definite statements.

Reading the fares folks say they were getting I am shocked any airline could even try to make money. If you don't have a base of business travelers to pay more then $80 it is going to end badly IMHO.

It couldn't hurt to hold off.

But they did cancel MY flights. It says on their website that all flights from today to May 15th are suspended and to contact credit card companies for a refund.
So if you're outside those dates you can wait for more definitive answers.
But for those of us inside the dates.. it's time move on this now.

 

[dancin Disney style]

We are sure they are going bankrupt? I mean I dont want to dispute something and have it turn around as a pre-panick when it wasn't anything. But I also dont want to get burned with paying this if I dont have to.

No, not yet but genreally were there's smoke there's fire.

I agree with OCC and Pigletto...it won't hurt to wait a few days to see what happens. You're in a good postion to get it charged back to your account.

 

[poppypetal]

I hate to say this, but what your credit card company is going to do is investigate and when they discover Direct Air has not cancelled YOUR flight the dispute will be closed.

I would hold off 24 or 48 hours to start the dispute. Hopefully by then the airline will make more definite statements.

Reading the fares folks say they were getting I am shocked any airline could even try to make money. If you don't have a base of business travelers to pay more then $80 it is going to end badly IMHO.

This is what I was hinting at, but I didn't write it correctly
I'll give it another day or 2 see what else comes out before I start looking for my refund back.

 

[rdsx28]

My mother-in-law notified her credit card company this afternoon as she was traveling May 5-May13. She said that the company was notified this morning that Difrect Air had filed for chapter 11 and that it would be no problem to get her funds refunded. They were sending her the paperwork for it. We had travel plans for June with Direct Air and I have emailed them and will call my company in the morning to see if I can also cancel as I do not want to wait just in case. I need to have my plans all set. I just feel badly for those who had April school vacation plans that is horrible for them as prices are sky high!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

My boss booked his seats with a TD Visa just 11 days ago. Preliminary phone discussions with their customer service department have not given us much hope of having the payment refunded . We have followed Pigletto's advice and faxed in our request for a chargeback with all the documentation we could get our hands on, hoping that they will surprise us and come through in the end.

Wishing you all luck in your quest for reimbursement. I rebooked my boss on a Delta flight from Syracuse to Myrtle Beach for his dates this afternoon......at a cost of $417 return. Add that to the $218 he had already paid for the DirectAir tickets and its a costly journey, for sure.

 

[doconeill]

I had heard this earlier today. It sounds like they are in the process of filing for Ch. 11, but it appears that some suppliers are already holding them in default. Not sure what that means in terms of the bankruptcy.

But in my mind it seems likely that they'll survive it. I wouldn't put any money on May 15th.

It will be a long time before I book a flight out of Worcester...not a good track record with the airlines that have operated there.

 

[Jake797]

I have a flight in June. I called the Disney Visa claims department, and they said that they cannot do anything at this point. I have to either wait until they announce that they are not going to do flights in June or until the June date has passed, and I did not receive services paid for. Ugh. What a headache.