The thought of having a romantic vacation abroad can feel exciting and look glitzy. That’s until you start considering the financial implications. From trying to stick to your tight budget to dealing with exorbitant costs in tourist hotspots, planning a vacay can be overwhelming. And as if you don’t have enough on your plate already, the high risks of additional fees on your card is there to rub salt in your financial wound.
Whether you’re using a debit or credit card, having to deal with unapproved transactions can be frustrating. A case in point is the story of Alex Robinson and her husband who were charged over a thousand dollars more than the actual cost for their massage at Sandals Resorts. It was a mentally exhausting experience for them to say the least.
Alex Robinson narrated the story in a video which she posted to her TikTok page (@alexx_robinson). In the clip, which had a header that read, “STORY TIME: Sandals Resorts $1,360 Massage,” she explained that she made the video because she didn’t know what else to do. According to her, her husband had booked a couples massage that was to last an hour at $340 as a Christmas gift on his Discover credit card. “We only had one massage that whole time,” she said.
Surprisingly, however, they were debited for two couples’ massages. They dismissed this as an honest mistake that would be easily rectified. As they later found out, it wasn’t.
Continuing her story, she stated that she got back to their room only to discover that the resort also charged them an additional $680 for two couples massages on her Discover credit card. That is, they were debited 4 times for one couple’s massage. When she complained, they told her that it was no problem and all she needed to do was call “1800-Sandals” and “they’ll take care of it.” “It’s been 5 months,” she said, “and I’m paying $1,360 for a $340 massage that was supposed to be a gift for me.”
Alex said that Discover refunded her husband’s card even though it wasn’t for the correct amount. However, Sandals lied to Discover about what the money was for, telling them it was for their stay and not the massage. Discover then added more charges to both cards bringing everything to a total of $2,040. So, her card wasn’t refunded and Discover told her to take it up with Sandals directly.
Her commenters swung into action by tagging Sandals Resorts and asking them to not only refund her money, but also compensate her for duress. Fortunately, Sandals was able to rectify the issue and stated in writing that she owed only $340 for a couple’s massage. But she wasn’t going to leave it at that. In the comments, she wrote that she was seeking damages for “time, stress, and ruined trip.” Fingers crossed for how it all unfolds.
