Attorney General Mark Herring has secured a settlement with Voyageurs International Ltd. relating to international music tours sold to high school students and later cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under the settlement, Voyageurs will provide $313,500 in refunds for 165 high school students for trips organized for Virginia high schools. Affected students will receive $1,900 each, representing a cancellation fee withheld by Voyageurs at the start of the pandemic.
“Many of us have had to postpone plans, cancel trips, and rearrange things because of the COVID pandemic, but Virginians should not be punished financially because of factors that are out of their control,” Herring said. “This agreement ensures that Virginia high school students will receive all outstanding amounts kept by the company for trips that were canceled through no fault of their own. I’m glad my team and I were able to reach this settlement with Voyageurs that will provide significant refunds back to consumers, especially when many families across the Commonwealth are in difficult financial situations due to the pandemic.”
In his complaint, Herring alleged that Voyageurs violated the Virginia Consumer Protection Act by misrepresenting the amount of the cancellation fees it was able to recoup from the cancelled 2020 Virginia Ambassadors of Music Tour, which involved students participating in choral and instrumental concerts abroad.
In addition to the refunds, the settlement also requires the company to agree to comply with the law going forward, and consumers who have received partial refund checks that were marked “Full and Final Refund” will still be eligible to receive refunds of the additional $1,900 in cancellation fees retained by the company.
The settlement, in the form of an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance, was filed for approval with the Loudoun County Circuit Court.
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