You might be concerned about how coronavirus could affect your plans and payments you've made. Like if you’ve booked a holiday, including flights and accommodation. Or bought tickets for an event like a football match or a concert.
We’re here to help you as usual and ready to keep doing so, even if we can’t be in the office. You can find out more about how we can support you, especially if coronavirus is affecting your finances.
But if your plans get disrupted or cancelled, we thought it’d be useful to explain if and how you might be able to get your money back. So we’ve put together some pointers here, if payments you’ve made get cancelled or have problems because of coronavirus.
If the merchant cancels your purchase
For example, if:
You booked a holiday, and the airline cancels your flights
You booked tickets to a festival and the organisers postpone it indefinitely
If something you’ve booked has been cancelled by the merchant you bought it from because of coronavirus, clarify the refund policy with them directly.
Whenever you buy something, the merchant you bought it from will have a refund policy. In most cases, the refund policy will say what the merchant will do if they have to cancel the booking or event, and if you can get your money back. If anything’s unclear, reach out to the merchant.
Bear in mind that a merchant’s policy could mean you do get a refund, but they might charge you postage or admin fees.
If you decide not to travel or go to an event
If you decide to not go to an event that’s still running, the merchant isn’t likely to offer you a refund. But it’s worth speaking to them anyway in case.
Their policies might be different if you’re cancelling as a precaution, or cancelling because you’ve been told to self-isolate. So it’s best to talk to them directly.
If you had plans to travel to a country that the government advised not to, you’ll probably need to cancel your trip.
Speak to the merchants you’ve got bookings with to find out their refund policy is and see if you can get your money back.
If they don’t refund you, talk to your travel insurance provider if you have one. An insurance provider will also have a policy that explains if you’re entitled to a refund.
If you can’t get a refund from the merchant after they cancel the booking
If the merchant cancels the booking because of coronavirus and doesn’t refund you, check to see if you have any insurance that covers what you bought. If you do, talk to your insurer.
Depending on your insurance policy and when you made the purchase, you might be able to make a claim.
If you can’t get a refund and your travel insurance doesn’t cover you
If the merchant doesn’t refund you and you don't have any insurance or protection, your bank can look into creating a chargeback for you. If you use Monzo and you made the payment with your account, we might be able to do this for you.
A chargeback is where your bank disputes a transaction you made with the merchant, to try and get your money back.
Tell your bank:
What you paid for
Why the merchant won't refund you
What their terms and conditions say
Please give us as much detail as you have, including screenshots of your transactions. This’ll help improve our chances of getting you a refund.
We won’t be able to create a chargeback for any purchases that haven’t been cancelled by the merchant. If the event or booking is still being provided by the merchant, we aren’t likely to win a chargeback dispute.
Have you been affected financially by coronavirus? Find out more about support available to you in our coronavirus FAQ.