Giving card details for a refund

[dayslikethese1]

I have been trying to get a refund from an online travel agent for over a year for flights cancelled during lockdown. They have finally agreed (with a fee). Now they are asking me to confirm the card details. I have been speaking to the same staff member via email. Is it normal to ask for card details for a refund (would they not have these on file already?)? Also, I am thinking giving this information over email is not sensible so I was thinking of phoning them. The number she has phoned me on is not one of the listed numbers on their website either (probably an outsourced call centre) so I am thinking phoning the main one would be safer. I don't know, Not sure what to do, this company is terrible (and I'll never make the same mistake booking flights again) but I just really want my money back now.

I would phone the number on website and allow them to redirect you if needed to call centre. Better safe than sorry like you say

The fact you are asking implies that it is ringing alarm bells even if they are faint.

I think due to money laundering laws, refunds have to be in the same format and same card as they were made. I have never had to give my card for refunds and I had an airline refund early last year and they told me they were refunding to the card I had paid in. I had no choice or discussion on that matter and did not provide any card details.

Normally you can refund a card payment only for a specific time that the payment system at their bank allows - with my work I think it's about 6 months. After that you cannot access the transaction to refund against the transaction. At no point can you access the actual card details (of online payments or payments taken over the phone and number input to the system), it's just blanked out apart from the last 4 digits, so when refunding you can at least tell the customer it'll be refunded to their card ending in xxxx (saves them complaining the transaction isn't refunded when they're looking on the wrong card!).

The travel company is unlikely to store card details - there's heaps of rules about it nowadays it shouldn't happen, which is why they use a heavily regulated 3rd party banking system to take card payments. Once they've input the details into the system, the system stores the number but no travel company employee can access the actual number, and after a certain time the transaction expires to an archive where it can't be refunded, which is why they need the details from you again.

I'm pretty sure they can't keep your credit card details "on file"

You wouldn't want that would you?

Have you always been "speaking" to the same email address? No harm in trying to confirm by phone though. Which travel agent is it? Someone might know their specific was of doing refunds

As others say, I would ring the company's main number that is on their website and you are familiar with and ask to be transferred as required (rather than let you be rung back) . But they do need to transfer the funds back to the card you paid with

Just rang the main number and they transferred me to the person I've been speaking to over and she said she will pass it to the card refund team and they will refund back to the same card so I didn't need to give the details after all. Very weird if you ask me but we'll see if it gets refunded now. They tell me different things every time which is why I get them to confirm things in writing with regards to what they will refund etc. My warning to everyone is never use any of those online agents that come up when you use flight comparison sites like Skyscanner etc. It's been a lesson learned for me for sure.

It is normal to refund to the card from which the payment is made. It is also normal to request these details again, so they have a level of assurance that they are refunding the proper person.

You are absolutely right to make doubly sure that you are giving your card details to the firm in question and ringing back on a published number is a good way to do that