AboutTimmy Chou Expertise I am a experienced Mediator and a partner in a management consulting firm. As a mediator I work as a third-party neutral and specialize in partnership/shareholder disputes, management/labor issues, company culture difficulties, and family-owned business problems. I can help describe why alternative dispute resolution may be a good choice for you. As an experienced management consultant I may be able to offer creative ideas to help resolve your organizational and business problems and disputes. "If you say conflict, I say opportunity".
Question In Sept. 2007 my husband and I booked a trip to the Baltic Capitals and St. Petersbury for May 2008 with Vantage Travel to celebrate our 50th anniversary. We paid for the trip in full at that time and included $978.00 for insurance. My husband got sick the end of March 2008 and I notified Vantage. They finally sent each of us voucher for 1/2 the total price less the insurance and administrative fees. The vouchers have to be used by May 14, 2009. My husband passed away on 9/1/08 and I notified Vantage. In Nov. 2008 Vantage notified me that if I submit a name and my husband's voucher, they will issue a new voucher for 1/2 of the value. Is this standard procedure? Is there anything that you can do to help me? Thank you for any assistance you may be able to provide.
Answer Thank you for your question!
Sorry for the delay -- I was just notified today of your question by the system. As I always note to questioners, mediators act as neutral third parties to disputes and never "get involved" in judging the merits of conflict, but merely use special techniques to help the parties decide how to negotiate their own settlement. I am not a lawyer and cannot give you legal advice, but I can give you an opinion from my consulting experience.
Note that this may have legal factors and you may wish to consult a attorney.
Please begin by documenting a very careful chronology of events as they have occurred. Names, dates and locations. Put things in writing at this point as much as possible.
Your first task is to consult the wording of any advertising or contract documents you have. Figure out what rights you may have. You should next check with the Better Business Bureau and your State's consumer protection office to see what practices may be regulated by State law. You should be able to discover what rights you have. I cannot speak to what may be "standard" in the travel industry.
Mediators may be able to help you, but mediation requires the voluntary willingness of both parties to attend and pay for a mediation session. It is not often that a company will be willing to do this in my experience.
These are some ideas. Feel free to follow up with additional questions.
For your information, the pros and cons of the types of dispute resolution methods follows.
GOOD LUCK!
Arbitration, Mediation, and Litigation
Arbitration: the referral of a dispute to one or more impartial persons for final and binding determination outside of the judicial system
Benefits of Arbitration:
Confidential, no public record
Limited exchange of documentation, information
Quick, don't have to wait for a court date
Arbitrators have expertise in the subject matter and are trained in conflict resolution
Cheaper than litigation
Preserves business relationships
Negatives of Arbitration
It's a compromise, no 100% winner
Complex arbitration can be costly
If not satisfied, may litigate the arbitration procedure
Poor results with an unskilled arbitrator
Both parties must agree to cooperate in the process
Mediation: the process by which parties submit their dispute to a neutral third party (the mediator) who works with the parties to reach a settlement of their dispute.
Benefits of Mediation:
Neutral mediator can objectively suggest alternatives not considered before
Parties are directly engaged in negotiating the settlement
Can be quicker than litigation
Less costly than litigation
Preserves business relationships
85% of American Arbitration Association cases mediated find successful solutions
Negatives of Mediation
may not reach a binding decision
unskilled mediator
Litigation: using the judicial system to resolve disputes
Benefits of litigation:
a clear winner and loser
uses a prescribed set of procedures
more predictable outcomes
is final
Negatives of Litigation:
waiting for court dates can do more harm
usually more expensive than mediation and arbitration
part of the public record
