Aussie’s $1,500 flight credit vanishes in costly mix-up after cancelling son’s Bali trip: ‘I’m so angry’
A Brisbane mother, Jessica Dorante, says she has lost a A$1,500 Virgin Australia flight credit after a mix-up over the terms attached to a cancelled family trip to Bali. Ms Dorante, 43, had booked flights through travel agency Flight Centre for a June trip, but pulled her 15-year-old son from the booking in February over his behaviour, receiving the credit for the unused fare instead. She says she was told by a travel agent she simply needed to make a new booking before the credit's expiry date, only to discover two weeks before that deadline that Virgin actually required the trip itself to be completed by then, leaving her unable to travel next year as planned.
Unable to use the credit, Ms Dorante says she was repeatedly passed between Flight Centre and Virgin Australia, with each company pointing to the other, before the travel agency's customer relations team told her she would not get a refund. Virgin's own terms distinguish between credits booked directly, which only require a new booking (not travel) before expiry, and travel agent bookings, where conditions vary and customers must check with their agent. A Flight Centre spokesman acknowledged "some confusion/miscommunication" on the company's part, and Ms Dorante has since been told she may be offered a refund or voucher, though she says she has yet to receive formal confirmation.
In short
- Brisbane mother lost A$1,500 Virgin flight credit after son's Bali trip fell through
- She was misinformed by Flight Centre about the credit's expiry conditions
- Flight Centre admits miscommunication; a refund or voucher may now follow
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Ms Dorante has a strong case for relief: she says she relied on advice from the travel agent that handled the booking, and Flight Centre has acknowledged possible confusion or miscommunication. If that advice led her to believe she could book later travel before the credit expired, it is reasonable to expect the agency to take responsibility for the resulting loss, particularly after she was passed between the two companies.
The case against
The companies can reasonably point to the booking terms and the limits of what they can promise: this was an agency booking, for which credit conditions may differ from Virgin Australia’s direct bookings, and the customer was directed to check with her agent. If the applicable terms clearly required travel to be completed by the expiry date and were made available at booking, they could argue the credit was not transferable to a later trip; the reported acknowledgement of confusion and possible offer of compensation nevertheless leave the precise responsibility unresolved.
Explained simply
When an airline ticket is cancelled, the value may be returned as a credit rather than cash. The rules for using that credit can depend on how the ticket was bought and when the new flight must be booked or taken.
Jessica Dorante bought the family’s Virgin Australia flights through Flight Centre, a travel agency. Virgin’s conditions for credits issued on bookings made through an agent can differ from those for tickets bought directly from the airline, so the agency’s advice and the booking terms matter.
The dispute involves which deadline applied and what Ms Dorante was told about it. It highlights how unclear or misunderstood conditions can leave travellers unsure which company is responsible for resolving a problem.