Travellers told they are not allowed to leave Australia are set to lose thousands of dollars

Travellers told they are not allowed to leave Australia are set to lose thousands of dollars because travel companies aren’t answering their calls

  • Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday advised against all overseas travel
  • Hundreds of people have since tried calling Expedia to cancel their holidays
  • No one has been able to get through and they are worried about losing money
  • Many people have taken to the company’s Facebook page to lodge complaints

Australians who cancelled their overseas trips are being left thousands of dollars out of pocket as they struggle to get in contact with their travel companies 

For the first time in Australian history Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday advised against all overseas travel.

There are still flights available but Australians abroad have been told to come home as soon as possible in case they are cancelled and they are left stranded overseas.

Since Wednesday, hundreds of people have tried getting in contact with Expedia to get refunds for their international trips but have had no luck.

Travellers have been advised by the government they can no longer go overseas but are now struggling to get in contact with travel companies causing them to lose thousands of dollars

For the first time in Australian history Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday advised against all overseas travel

For the first time in Australian history Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday advised against all overseas travel

A 24-year-old woman who was meant to travel to the United States on Friday told Daily Mail Australia she had tried calling for the past week.

She said she was left on hold for over four hours when she tried calling. 

‘It feels like they are avoiding all forms of communication,’ she said, claiming she had been hung up on multiple times.

When she did manage to get through to Expedia, she was met with a recorded message.  

‘Wait times are extremely long. We can only help if you’re travelling in the next seven days,’ the message says.

Another one says: ‘Expedia is experiencing technical difficulties and are unable to take your call at this time.’

She has also been told to try cancelling her travel online, which isn’t possible.

A 24-year-old woman who was meant to travel to the United States on Friday told Daily Mail Australia she has tried calling and cancelling online for the past week for the past week

A 24-year-old woman who was meant to travel to the United States on Friday told Daily Mail Australia she has tried calling and cancelling online for the past week for the past week

There are still flights available but Australians abroad have been told to come home as soon as possible in case they are cancelled and they are stranded overseas (Sydney airport on Wednesday)

There are still flights available but Australians abroad have been told to come home as soon as possible in case they are cancelled and they are stranded overseas (Sydney airport on Wednesday)

Hundreds of other furious people have taken to the company’s Facebook page to beg for refunds for their cancelled trips. 

‘I have been on the phone for over FOUR HOURS. I am trying to CANCEL our flights and hotel for NZ in FIVE DAYS,’ one man wrote.

‘This is ridiculous and outrageous. I got disconnected by y’all after being on hold for two hours earlier today, and my friends were on hold for over five hours yesterday.’

‘Even tried calling direct, and they said I had to go through you, but that’s not the easiest thing to do right now. HOW CAN I GET IN CONTACT WITH YOU????’

One woman said she had called almost 60 times over the course of four days and spent 15 hours on hold.

Hundreds of other furious people have taken to the company's Facebook page in the same position

Hundreds of other furious people have taken to the company’s Facebook page in the same position

‘Flight leaves tomorrow at 7:50am. Now I’ve just gone onto website to try and use the chat function only for it to say they can’t find my booking and I have no upcoming trips,’ she said.

‘Customer support is non-existent. When directed to use the email contact on support, you are told you’ll get a reply within 48 hours,’ another woman wrote.

‘Then you get an automatically generated email saying they don’t answer these emails! You are then directed to telephone but advised only to telephone if your booking is in 7 days.’

‘This is when the panic sets in as every time you are on hold, experiencing a “brief delay”, the call cuts out after 50 minutes. Suddenly that 7 days is now 6 and no resolution.’

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Expedia for comment.

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk