Regarding our request for Full refund of advance paid to the hotels and bookings cancelled due to Covid -19
25th June 2020
Mr. Nakul Anand
Chairman
FAITH
Dear Nakul,
Sub: Regarding our request for Full refund of advance paid to the hotels and bookings cancelled due to Covid -19
This is further to my last email sent to you on 23rd June 2020 regarding our request for full refund of the advance payments to the hotels without any cancellation charges for the bookings cancelled after 1st February onwards due to Covid -19.
I had earlier sent you a list of hotels, who have refused to refund the advance received from our members. Copy enclosed once again for your ready reference.
I am sending you second list of the hotels who have who have agreed to refund the advance payments but have advised that this would be adjusted against future bookings or not replying or giving other excuses as mentioned in the remarks column. As mentioned earlier our members want the refund and do not want this to be adjusted for future bookings as we do not know when the bookings are going to resume.
May I request you to kindly help us in the matter by writing to the Presidents of FHRAI, HAI, and IHHA, that they should advise members of their respective associations to refund the advance to the tour operators and copy of the same may kindly be sent to IATO. Also FHRAI, HAI, and IHHA be advised that they should also forward copy of the letter being written to their members to IATO.
I will really appreciate your personal intervention and help to the small tour operators who are struggling for survival. Your immediate action in the matter will be highly appreciated.
Thanking you and with best regards,
Sincerely,
Pronab Sarkar
President
Copy to : Mr. Subhash Goyal, Hony. Secretary FAITH– With copy of all documents and list of hotels. May I request you and Mr. Nakul Anand to personally look into this and if possible advise FHRAI, HAI and IHHA to write to all the hotels by next week under intimation to IATO.
Enclosures – Two lists of hotels as mentioned above.
23rd June 2020
Mr. Nakul Anand
Chairman
FAITH
Dear Nakul,
Sub: Regarding our request for Full refund of advance paid to the hotels and bookings cancelled due to Covid -19
This is with reference to my previous communications regarding our request for full refund of the advance payments to the hotels without any cancellation charges for the bookings cancelled after 1st February onwards due to Covid -19.
In this regard I have written to you on 27th January, 3rd March and 11th June 2020 and also have discussed personally to help us in the matter by taking up with the Presidents of FHRAI, HAI and IHHA. But we have not heard/received any update on the matter. As you know 90% members of IATO are small tour operators who run their family business and are small entrepreneurs. All of them presently have zero business, zero cash flow and are struggling for survival.
On top of this foreign tour operators, who have made the advance payment to our members (Indian Tour Operators) are forcing them to refund the advance they have paid to our members failing they are threatening our members to either refund the advance payment or face the legal consequences. Our members are in very difficult situation as they are not only being threatened but also are likely to lose their business.
All these small tour operators are now looking towards the association to help them in getting refund from the hotels so that they can refund to their foreign counterparts to avoid legal consequences and also to secure future business. During FAITH board Meetings I did mention twice to extend help and you very kindly consented you cooperation in the matter personally.
May I therefore, request you once again for the following:-
• To write to the Presidents of FHRAI, HAI, and IHHA to advise their members to refund the full advance payment without any cancellation charges to the tour operators for all bookings after 1st February 2020.
• Refund should be made in the account of tour operators and should not be kept in credit shell for adjustments in future bookings as we do not know when inbound tourism is going to start.
• Copy of letters being sent to FHRAI, HAI and IHHA, may kindly sent to IATO so that we may also follow up from our end.
In case if you have already written to the above hotel associations, request please share the information and copies of the letters enable we also follow up from our end. We shall also update you with the developments.
Attached is the list of hotels, who have refused to refund the advance received from our members.
I will be sending you another list of the hotels who have agreed to refund the advance payments but have advised that this would be adjusted against future bookings. As mentioned above our members want the refund and do not want this to adjusted for future bookings as we do not know when the bookings are going to resume.
Our members are looking forward towards FAITH for help in the matter.
Looking forward to your favourable response and help in the matter and awaiting to hear from you soon.
With regards,
Pronab Sarkar
President
11th June 2020
Mr. Nakul Anand
Chairman
FAITH
Dear Nakul,
Sub: Names of the Hotels who have refused to make refund of advance paid and bookings cancelled by our members in wake of Covid -19 pandemic
As I have brought to your notice earlier also, our members are facing lot of difficulties in getting refund from the hotels of their advance payments made to hotels and bookings cancelled due to Covid – 19.
Now the foreign tour operators/clients, who had made advance payment to our tour operator members are pressing hard for refund and threatening them of legal consequences if they fail to refund the advance paid. As you know most of our members are small tour operators and they do not have funds to refund the advance received from their FTOs until and unless, refund is made by the hotels to our members.
In spite of regular follow up by our members with the hotels, some of the hotels have refused to refund the advance received. A list of such hotels is attached herewith.
May I request you to kindly intervene and FHRAI, HAI, and IHHA be requested to advise these hotels to immediately refund the advance so that our members can in turn refund the same to their foreign tour operators/clients
I will be sending you another list of the hotels who have agreed to refund the advance payments but have advised that this would be adjusted against future bookings. We are all small tour operators and this may not be practical to adjust in future bookings as we do not know when the bookings are going to resume.
Looking forward to your kind help in the matter and waiting to hear from you soon.
With regards,
Pronab Sarkar
President
3rd March, 2020
Mr. Nakul Anand
Chairman
FAITH
Dear Mr. Nakul Anand,
Sub: Request for retention waiver for Cancellations due to Coronavirus as some hotels are levying retention charges
This is with reference to our email sent to you on 27th January 2020 regarding cancellations being received by our members due to Coronavirus and requesting for nil cancellations/retention charges by the hotels.
With the recent developments, visa restrictions have been made for travelers from Italy, Japan, South Korea, Iran, Thailand, Singapore and travelers who visited these countries after 1st February 2020 and no Visa is being issued to them by the Bureau of Immigration, Government of India. Therefore many such tourists are not in a position to visit our country as they are forced to cancel their trip to India, which is resulting lot of cancellations being received by our members from above countries and for the nationals of other countries who are living in these countries or who visited these countries. We are attaching the latest directives from Ministry of Tourism dated 3rd March, 2020
While some of the hotels, airlines and IRCTC for Luxury Trains are not charging retention charges, there are some hotels who are not agreeing to waive off the cancellation charges.
The current situation is very serious for the tourism industry and more and more cancellations are coming from all corners of the world. At this time of difficult situation it is requested to cooperate with each other and extend all possible help. This is not the time to make money on retention charges and give a bad feeling to our tourists as this is not their fault to cancel the bookings. We should convey a positive and cooperative message to the world by waving the cancellation charges and give them a feeling to visit India in the near future.
May I request you to kindly advise FHRAI, HAI and also request RTDC to consider Nil Cancellations charges being received from travelers from Italy, Japan, South Korea, Iran etc. for the bookings made for them by our members and full refund be made to them under force majeure clause and on humanitarian basis. The same system which we had followed for the Chinese Nationals, may be followed in these cases also.
Just to inform you, all major exhibitions in the month of March including ITB Berlin which is a major tourism fair/mart was scheduled to be held in Belin from 4th - 8th March 2020 has been cancelled due to Coronavirus.
We look forward to your favourable response on the above.
Thanking you and with best regards,
Sincerely,
Pronab Sarkar
President
(M) 9811102111
27th January 2020
Mr. Nakul Anand
Chairman
FAITH
Dear Mr. Nakul Anand,
Sub: Urgent - Cancellations due to Coronavirus and hotels levying retention charges
As you know Coronavirus is spreading fast out of China and tourists movement from China is getting badly affected as Chinese nationals have been advised not to travel out of the country, in Wuhan, residents have been advised not to even go out of their homes as per newspapers reports.
Restrictions have been made for travelers going to and coming from 13 Chinese cities, including Wuhan, Huanggang and Ezhou, with countries both in the Asia-Pacific and elsewhere initiating body temperature checks at airports and railway stations to stop those at risk of carrying the virus. On arrival in India, people arriving from China and other affected countries are being thoroughly scanned for medical checkup. Similarly Indian Government has also issued advisory for the India Travellers to not to travel to China.
In this regard, advisories have been issued by General Office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Government of China and China Association of Travel Services and have advised suspending domestic and foreign group travel and have requested to properly handle the reasonable demands of tourist itineraries, cancellations and refunds and minimize financial losses. (copies enclosed).
All this is being done to ensure that Coronavirus does not spread into our country.
Apart from China, countries such as Canada, France, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, South Korea, Japan and the U.S. have reported cases of the infection.
All this is resulting lot of cancellations being received by some of our members especially handling China Market as informed by our members.
We have been informed by some of the members that hotels are not agreeing to waive off cancellations charges for such cases or refund, which is beyond any one’s control and is under force majeure of natural calamities.
May I request you to kindly as Chairman FAITH write to Presidents of FHRAI and HAI to advise their member hotels to honour such cancellations and do not charge the Cancellation charges and make refund in case of advance as per force majeure clause, which is beyond any one’s control.
Similar letter should also be sent to the Domestic Airlines not to levy the cancellation charges.
We need to keep our country’s image high in such a situation and cooperate with foreign counterparts/clients in this difficult time.
Looking forward to your support and cooperation from the leading associations like FHRAI and HAI.
Thanking you and with best regards,
Sincerely,
Pronab Sarkar
President
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