Holiday scam robs 60 elderly victims after months of payments

SIXTY elderly members from the Flamingo Senior Citizens Club, in Tongaat, were left stranded and devastated after their travel agent allegedly scammed them out of R40 000 for a planned holiday.

- MONISHKA GOVENDER

The seniors had spent months saving for their trip only to discover there were no bookings made when they pitched up at the holiday flats.

They said the agent, who is believed to be from the south coast, had disappeared.

Kamala Reddy, the trip organiser and vice chairperson of the Flamingo senior citizens club, said they had eagerly anticipated the getaway at holiday flats in Umdloti on August 25.

“I have been organising trips for the club for 20 years, and this was the first time I had used this travel agent. He was recommended by another senior citizen’s club,’ she said.

Reddy said the other senior citizen clubs had three successful trips with the travel agent and his company Pey-roll Travel Express.

“I had no reason to doubt him, he came well recommended?’

“The club booked ten, six-sleeper holiday flats which came to R40 000. We had 60 seniors on the trip. Thirty eight members paid R900 each and 22 visitors paid R1000 each. We had to pay a 50% deposit of R20 000. The rest of the money was to be paid in instalments from this time we had booked in February until the week of the trip in August.

“Most of the seniors had paid their money - which was not easy to rake up,’ added Reddy.

She said when they arrived at the resort, they phoned the travel agent.

“I told him we had arrived, and he said that he had an issue. He said that someone left the tap open in one of the flats and it had flooded, causing the other units to flood as well.