A B.C. resident had to cancel her Hawaii trip but didn’t get her money back from the vacation rental, leading to a costly legal fight at the Civil Resolution Tribunal.
Helen Louise Donald booked accommodations at a condo in Hawaii, which George and Leslie Ramsay rented out.
Donald had to cancel her trip and told the tribunal she had not received her promised refund or rental credit. She claimed $5,000 CAD in total. Eventually, the Ramsays sold the condo and told the tribunal he offered to rebook Donald later, but she never got back to them.
“He says he can no longer offer a later rental because of the sale,” the tribunal decision states.
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Donald’s trip included a 28-day stay at the Ramsays condo between Jan. 3 and Jan. 31, 2022. The trip was for Donald and her husband, JD.
This condo rental was somewhat of a tradition for Donald, as the tribunal decision states she would stay every January for about a month since 2016.
The total was $5,078.42 USD, which was based on a discounted nightly rate of $150, a $125 cleaning fee, and taxes. Donald paid the whole amount in December 2021. Sometime that same month, JD began experiencing some health issues, meaning that the couple would not be able to make the trip.
According to the tribunal decision, “The Ramsays’ April 25, 2022 email says the Ramsays were able to re-rent all but six of the 28 days Mrs. Donald booked. So, the Ramsays offered a two-week credit on future rental days and a cash refund of $1,539 USD, based on the days they could re-rent.”
The Ramsays sold the condo in May 2022.
“In later emails, they told Mrs. Donald they would no longer be able to offer a future stay to Mrs. Donald, but would be sending a cheque for the refundable portion.”
Donald never received that money.
“I find Mrs. Donald is entitled to $3,489 USD in total. Neither party provided evidence on the applicable exchange rate. So, I have used the current exchange rate from the Bank of Canada’s website. Based on that rate, this equals $4,942.52 CAD,” the tribunal concluded.
Ultimately, the Ramsays were ordered to pay Donald $5,117.52 CAD for the cancelled vacation rental.