A CIVIL servant was looking forward to performing the haj with her husband and father, but the journey to Mecca and Madinah did not take place.
On top of that, the travel agent did not refund them in full the money paid in advance for the pilgrimage that was supposed to take place in August 2019.
Of the RM62,000 Noor Faezah Abdul Jalil paid the travel agent for the trip, only RM25,000 was refunded.
She filed a claim with the Johor Baru Consumer Claims Tribunal to get the balance of RM37,000 refunded to her.
Tribunal president Rashidah Abu Bakar ordered the respondent to return RM37,000 to Noor Faezah in two weeks after hearing claims from both parties.
Based on the facts of the case, Noor Faezah was offered to perform the pilgrimage on May 25, 2019 from the mother of the owner of the travel agent.
Her uncle Hamzah Ali, 65, who represented her at the tribunal hearing said she and her husband Mohd Saddiq Mohd, both 37, and his brother Abdul Jalil, 67, who is Noor Faezah’s father, were supposed to perform the haj in August 2019.
“They paid RM62,000 for the haj package joining some 82 people from all over the country,” he said when met outside the tribunal building.
Hamzah said Noor Faezah received a call from the owner’s mother on Aug 5, 2019, to say the visa for the three of them had not been approved by the Saudi Arabia authorities.
“The company refunded RM25,000 to them,” he said, adding that his niece received messages from the company’s lawyer in May and June 2020, informing her that the balance of RM37,000 would be refunded in September 2020, but it failed to do so.
After the travel agent failed to refund the money on another promised date in February this year, she then filed the claim at the tribunal.
Hamzah said the company refunded the money paid by the other 79 pilgrims who were also unable to make the pilgrimage.
“We did a search on the company and found that its licence issued by the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry had expired in 2019,” he said.
The respondent who was present at the hearing said the company was no longer in business and its operations were badly affected for about three years following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Those who need assistance in regard to tribunal matters in Johor can call 07-227 1755/1766.
