KNOW YOUR RIGHTS – CANCELLATIONS AND COVID-19
20 March 2020, Ian van Zyl
Amid
all the hysteria surrounding the Covid-19 virus, we as suppliers of goods and
services and the consumers thereof have... to take cognisance of the far-reaching
effects of the virus on life as we know it. As the virus continues to spread
across the globe at an exponential rate, travel bans are imposed or limited travel
is encouraged, borders are closed and cancellations of meetings and events have
become necessary within reason or even
peremptory, all in an attempt to contain the Covid-19 virus and prevent it from
mushrooming. As a result, the questions on the minds of many suppliers and consumers
are: what about flights, trips and
events already booked and paid for? Is the supplier, on the one hand, obliged
to refund deposits/advance payments in respect of goods which were to be
supplied or services which were to be rendered, and on the other hand, is it
possible from a consumer’s perspective
to recoup deposits or payments already made in full for goods that would have been
supplied or services which would have been rendered?