In September 2005, my wife received a fax (thought it was from her headquarters office) containing information about a vacation package - 3 vacations for $100 per person. On September 27th, I called the number mentioned in the leter and after speaking to a rep, purchased two vacation packages for a total of $310 for two packages($60 or so additional charges applied per package).
On December 21st, 2005 I reserved our first vacation (cruise vacation) and sent a payment of $468 to Wholesale Connection Company (WCC). I later had to cancel my reservation and requested refund of my payment.
This is what their policy states on reservation form: "You may cancel this contract without any penalty or obligation within 30 days from the date of purchase or receipt of the vacation certificate, whichever occurs later."
The company, however, refuses to issue refund of my money, stating that a credit will be applied when I reserve a vacation next time. When I asked them what happens if I don't use the money, they have no answer. They simply want to pocket this money.
Below, please find detailed description of events.
September 2005: My wife and I purchased a vacation package, which entitles me to 3 vacations over the next 18 months:
1. 5 Day / 4 Night Orlando, Florida Vacation;
2. 4 Day / 3 Night Bahamas & Stay Vacation;
3. 3 Day / 2 Night Florida Beach Vacation.
December 21, 2005: We sent out reservation for a 4 Day / 3 Night Bahamas Cruise (Dates: January 13-16, 2006) along with a check for $468 to cover the costs of reservations ($75 per person) and port fees ($175 per person) and some miscellaneous charges.
December 28, 2005: Our plans changed and we had to cancel our reservations. I called WCC customer service and spoke to Dani (ext. 1018) explaining that we had to cancel our reservation and asked Dani if I could get my money back. She assured me that WCC will send my payment back because our reservation hadn't been processed yet. She also stated she made a note in their system to notify other customer service representatives not to process our reservations and NOT to process our payment.
December 30, 2005: I received a phone call from another customer service representative, Jennifer, who told me that WCC received my reservation request, Jennifer just processed it and is calling to confirm our reservation. I said that I spoke to Dani 2 days ago asking her to cancel my reservation. Jennifer replied she didn't find a note from Dani and just processed my reservation. As a result, I couldn't get my money back; instead a credit of $468 would be applied when I reschedule cruise vacation. She also suggested I write a complaint letter.
I wrote a letter to the above address in a couple of days, but to this date haven't received a reply from WCC.
January 8, 2006: I decided to review WCC's vacation Rules and Regulations. Interestingly enough it specifically states the following: "You may cancel this contract without any penalty or obligation within 30 days from the date of purchase or receipt of the vacation certificate, whichever occurs later."
January 9, 2006: I called WCC and spoke to Dani again and requested a full refund of my payment since that's what Rules and Regulations state. She said she didn't remember our previous conversation and said that it was impossible to get a refund and instead a credit would be issued. I then requested to speak to her manager. I spoke to Dani's manager, Ashley (ext. 1006) and requested refund of my payment. Ashley told me she'll file a complaint on my behalf to Board of Directors, which would be reviewed within 30 days, but stated it was very unlikely WCC will issue refund of my payment.
I did research online and found that other people became victims of this company. It's clear to me that this company is involved in fraudulent activities.
Hopefully, this letter will help others avoid this company. The names it goes under:
Wholesale Connection Company
GLOBAL E TOURS LLC
Steve
Haskell, New Jersey
U.S.A.