Months after the spring, summer and fall waves of travel cancellations by European airlines and travel companies, many people are still waiting for refunds or trying to cash in vouchers they were given in lieu of refunds.
Under EU regulations, refunds are required within two weeks when package travel or air travel is canceled by the supplier, but the sheer volume of the cancellations left many companies hanging between full compliance and bankruptcy, or hoping that travelers would be satisfied with promises of future travel.
A number of governments initially allowed the voucher option on an emergency basis, but then were warned to comply with EU rules. The Dutch government was one of those, and has now come up with a plan to finish the process for Netherlands citizens. The government intends to lend about €400 million to travel agencies and others to allow them to refund vouchers for those who request, paying the funds back in future when business revives. Dutch companies issued about a billion Euros worth of vouchers, but the balance have either been refunded, or belong to customers who have chosen to keep the voucher for future use.
