40 families await refunds from Dubai travel agency over 'bogus' offers

Residents said when they tried to claim the holidays, the company refused to honour agreements.- Supplied photo

Scores of residents are up in arms against a travel and tourism company headquartered in Bur Dubai, claiming it was refusing to refund thousands of dirhams in membership fees. Complainants said they had been chasing the company for repayments since November 2017.
The Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) is currently investigating the complaints.
The complainants alleged they have not been able to avail a "single benefit" offered by the company. The membership packages included hotel stays in four- and five-star hotels, free gym memberships in leading fitness centres, and discounted air tickets in some cases. The packages had a 10-year validity, depending on the number of holidays availed.
Residents said when they tried to claim the holidays, the company refused to honour agreements.
Visiting Dubai? A detailed travel guide for every tourist
Several complainants approached Khaleej Times with copies of contracts with the company, legal notices issued to it, and complaint letters addressed to the DED.
"I paid Dh18,500 for the package using my credit card in January for a 105-day package. I converted the payment into easy monthly instalments and am still repaying the credit card debt," said Dubai-based Aniqua Ekram.
"Many residents made the payments through credit cards. We are still repaying in instalments," said Sameer Panjwani Ali.
Dubai resident Alwyn Mendonca said: "I realised there were others like me after someone posted a WhatsApp messenger link. That is when I realised there were over 40 of us. There could be more. We have been trying to raise awareness."
Complainants said they were charged anything between Dh4,000 to Dh40,000 and were promised a 100- to 150-day holiday packages to any destination in the world. "I was told I could avail a six- to seven-day stay at any given time, except Christmas," said Ekram.
Once the pressure from complainants began building, the managers of the company began writing refund promise dates on the company letterheads. Daisy Mali, a complainant, said: "We have been following up since April this year. They gave us dates of refund in July but did not honour them. They cited reasons like no business, etc. for not releasing our refund amount of Dh30,000. We received Dh2,000 during the second week of August."
The complainants have pinned their hopes on the DED, and are hoping they will be repaid as soon as possible.
Police, DED get involved
Over 35 complainants and their families, including small children and a pregnant woman, gathered at the travel agency's office on Sunday, demanding they refund their membership fees.
Two employees of the company were present at the office premises, but refused to offer any comment.
The confrontations that began at 2pm came to a dramatic end at 8.30pm as two Dubai Police officers walked into the office, addressed the complainants' concerns, and took the employees into custody.
The officers at the Rafaa police station then referred the residents to the Department of Economic Development (DED) office in Deira.
DED officials told Khaleej Times that the department has registered complaints of "several" residents. "The DED is currently investigating this case, and is undertaking due diligence to solve this matter as soon as possible," an official added.
Aggressive marketing strategy
>Residents are approached by sales officials of the company at shopping malls and supermarkets
>They are asked to fill free vouchers for 'raffle draws', containing their contact information
>Company representatives call residents, claiming they had won prizes in the raffle
>Residents are invited to a prize ceremony in hotels in Barsha, Bur Dubai, among others
>A 90-minute presentation on the offers is made
>Once the customer agrees, they are made to sign contracts and make payments up front
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com