Legal
Cancellation & Refund Policy
What happens if you need to cancel or change a booking, and how refunds work on RateCheck.travel.
1. About This Policy
This policy explains what happens if you need to cancel or change a booking made on RateCheck.travel, and how refunds work.
RateCheck.travel is operated by Fayyaz Travels Pte. Ltd., a licensed Singapore travel agent, licence number TA03463. When you book with us, we take your payment, we issue your confirmation, and we are the ones who handle it if something goes wrong.
Two things worth knowing up front:
Hotels and airlines set their own cancellation rules. We do not control them. What we do control is showing you those rules clearly before you pay, and being straight with you about our own charges.
The rules that apply to your booking are the ones displayed on the rate you selected at the time you booked. Those are always shown before payment. This policy sits alongside them and explains our side of it.
2. Our Fees At A Glance
These are the charges RateCheck applies. They are separate from anything the hotel or airline charges.
| What you are doing | Our fee |
|---|---|
| Cancelling any booking within 24 hours of making it | SGD 20 |
| Cancelling a flexible hotel rate within its cancellation window | SGD 30 |
| Cancelling a non-refundable hotel rate | No fee, and no refund |
| Changing a flight, where the airline permits it | SGD 40 per booking |
| Cancelling a flight, where a refund or credit is recovered | SGD 40 per booking |
| Cancelling a flight where the airline refunds nothing | No fee |
| Cancelling because the hotel or airline cancelled on you | No fee |
Our fees are charged once per booking, not per passenger, per room, or per flight segment. If you are changing a multi-leg itinerary for four people, that is one fee of SGD 40, not sixteen.
Our fees are not refundable once the work has been done, including where we attempt a change or refund on your behalf and the airline or hotel refuses it. We charge for the work, not the outcome.
3. The 24 Hour Window
Changed your mind straight away? Cancel within 24 hours of booking and we will refund what you paid, less a SGD 20 administration fee, whatever rate type you booked.
This applies even to non-refundable rates, which most platforms will not do.
Two limits. It does not apply if your check-in or departure is within 48 hours of the time you booked, because by then the supplier has already committed. And it applies once per booking, not once per change of mind.
4. Hotel Bookings
Flexible rates
Every hotel rate on RateCheck displays its cancellation terms before you pay. Where a rate can be cancelled, cancel it before the deadline shown on your confirmation and we will refund the room cost in full, less a SGD 30 administration fee.
That fee covers the payment processing and handling costs we cannot recover on a refunded transaction. It is deducted from your refund rather than charged separately.
Non-refundable rates
Non-refundable rates are cheaper because the hotel commits the room and we commit the payment. If you cancel one, there is no refund, and we do not charge you a fee either. If your plans might move, book a flexible rate instead. The difference in price is usually smaller than the cost of getting it wrong.
Not turning up
If you do not check in and have not cancelled, the booking is charged in full and no refund is due.
Leaving early or not using all your nights
Unused nights are not refundable, including where you check out early. If you need to shorten a stay, speak to us before your check-in date and we will see what the property will accept, though we cannot promise anything.
Changing dates or room type
A change to a confirmed hotel booking is treated as a cancellation and a new booking. The terms of your original rate apply to the cancellation, and the new booking is charged at the rate available on the day you make it, which may be higher or lower.
Deposits and charges at the property
Some properties take a security deposit or card pre-authorisation on arrival, and some destinations charge a local tourist or city tax payable at the property. Neither is collected by us and neither forms part of any refund we handle. Where we know these apply, they are shown on the property page before you book.
5. Flight Bookings
Airline rules come first
Whether a flight can be changed or cancelled, and on what terms, is set by the airline and the specific fare you booked. Those rules are shown before you confirm. Low cost and basic economy fares are usually the least flexible.
Changes
Where the airline permits a change, we charge SGD 40 per booking on top of the airline's own change fee and any difference in fare. We will always tell you the total before we make the change, so you can decide whether it is worth it.
Cancellations
Where the airline permits a cancellation and a refund or credit is recovered, we charge SGD 40 per booking, deducted from what comes back to you.
Where the fare is non-refundable and the airline returns nothing, we do not charge you anything. There is no refund to process and no fee for the disappointment.
Airline credits and vouchers
Some airlines issue a credit or voucher instead of cash. Where that happens, we pass the credit to you along with its reference, conditions, and expiry date. It is yours to use. We do not hold it, and we do not charge you to redeem it, though the airline may apply its own conditions when you do.
Government taxes on unused tickets
Some airlines refund certain airport and government taxes even on non-refundable tickets. Where that is available, tell us and we will apply for it. Airlines often charge their own fee for this, sometimes more than the tax is worth, and we will tell you the numbers before proceeding.
Names, dates and details
Airlines charge for name corrections and some do not permit them at all. Please check the spelling, dates, and passport details on your confirmation as soon as it arrives. Errors caught in the first hour are usually cheap to fix. Errors caught the week before departure often are not.
6. Larger Bookings
Online bookings on RateCheck.travel are limited to four rooms or eight passengers.
Above that, hotels and airlines apply group terms, which usually mean earlier payment deadlines, tighter restrictions on name changes, and non-refundable conditions starting much sooner than on a standard rate. We are not willing to sell you a booking on retail terms and then hand you group terms afterwards.
So for anything larger, email info@ratecheck.travel and we will quote it properly, with the actual cancellation terms set out in writing before you pay anything.
7. Bookings Made Together Are Still Separate Bookings
If you book a flight and then add a hotel, or the other way around, these are two separate bookings with their own confirmations, their own references, and their own cancellation terms.
Cancelling one does not cancel the other, and a refund on one does not create an entitlement on the other. If your flight is cancelled and you also want to cancel your hotel, tell us and we will handle both, but the hotel's own terms will still apply to the hotel.
We flag this because it catches people out on other platforms. If you want the two linked, say so when you book and we will tell you honestly whether that is possible on those particular rates.
8. When The Hotel Or Airline Cancels On You
This is the part that matters most, so it is separate.
If a hotel becomes unavailable, closes, or cannot honour your booking, or if an airline cancels your flight or changes it so significantly that it no longer works for you, you are entitled to a refund of what you paid us for that element, regardless of whether you booked a flexible or non-refundable rate.
We charge no fee in these situations. You did not cause the problem.
What we will do:
- Tell you as soon as the supplier tells us
- Set out your options, whether that is a rebooking, a rerouting, an alternative property, or a refund
- Process whichever you choose without adding a charge of our own
Where an airline offers a credit rather than cash, the choice between them is often the airline's rather than ours, and we will tell you plainly which applies.
Refund timing in these cases still depends on how quickly the airline or hotel releases the funds to us, which can be slow. We chase, and we keep you updated rather than leaving you wondering.
9. Things Outside Anyone'S Control
Natural disasters, extreme weather, strikes, civil unrest, border closures, public health measures, and similar events are outside both our control and the supplier's.
In these situations we do not keep money that we can recover for you. We will apply to the hotel or airline for whatever relief is available, waive our own fees, and pass on the full amount we receive. What we cannot do is refund money that the supplier will not release to us, because we have already paid it to them on your behalf.
Travel insurance is the right tool for this risk, and we would encourage you to hold it.
10. How Refunds Are Paid
Where the money goes
Refunds are returned to the original payment method used for the booking. We cannot redirect a refund to a different card, a different account, or a different person.
How long it takes
Once we have received the funds from the hotel or airline, we process your refund within 21 days. Your bank or card issuer may then take a further few working days to show it on your statement.
The part we cannot compress is the supplier's side. Airline refunds in particular run on the airline's timetable and can take considerably longer than we would like.
What we commit to: we acknowledge every cancellation and refund request within two working days, tell you what we are doing, and update you as it moves. You should never have to chase us to find out whether anything is happening.
PayNow refunds
Refunds on PayNow bookings are returned to the account that made the payment, on the same 21 day basis.
Currency
All payments and refunds are made in Singapore Dollars. If you paid with a card issued outside Singapore, your bank converts the refund at its own rate on the day it is processed, which may differ from the rate applied when you paid. That difference is set by your bank, not by us, and we are not able to make it up.
11. How To Cancel Or Request A Refund
Email info@ratecheck.travel with:
- Your booking reference
- The name on the booking
- What you would like to do, and why if it is relevant
For anything time sensitive, put the booking reference and your departure or check-in date in the first line.
A cancellation takes effect from the time we receive your request, not from the time you decided. Deadlines on hotel rates and airline fares are firm, so if you are close to one, send the email straight away rather than waiting until you have more detail.
12. If You Are Not Happy With The Outcome
Tell us before you go to your bank.
If you disagree with a decision, reply to us and ask for it to be reviewed. Requests are escalated to our management team at info@ratecheck.travel and we will look at it properly, including whether there are grounds to go back to the supplier on your behalf.
We ask this because a card dispute freezes the booking and the funds while the banks work through it, which usually takes longer than simply letting us fix it. It also means we lose the ability to negotiate with the hotel or airline for you. In most cases we can resolve things faster than a dispute can.
If we cannot reach an outcome you are satisfied with, you retain every right you have under Singapore law and under your card scheme's rules. Nothing in this policy takes those away.
13. Discretion
Some situations do not fit any rule. Serious illness, bereavement, and similar circumstances are handled case by case by our management team.
We will not pretend that every request gets approved, because the money often sits with a supplier who will not release it. But every request gets read by a person, and where there is room to help, we use it.
14. General
This policy forms part of our Terms and Conditions and should be read alongside them.
Nothing here limits your rights under the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act or any other applicable Singapore law.
We may update this policy. The version that applies to your booking is the one published at the time you booked, and we keep previous versions on request.
This policy is governed by the laws of Singapore.
Contact
RateCheck.travel Operated by Fayyaz Travels Pte. Ltd. STB Travel Agent Licence No. TA03463 2 Tannery Road, #03-03 Cencon Building, Singapore 347720 info@ratecheck.travel