TICO Consumer Protection Rules 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under TICO regulations, how long does a registered travel agent generally have to respond to a consumer's written complaint?
- 7 days
- 30 days (Correct answer)
- 60 days
- 90 days
Correct answer: 30 days
TICO expects registered agents to respond to consumer complaints within 30 days as part of their professional obligations.
Question 2: A consumer pays a deposit for a vacation package. Before final payment, the travel agent closes its business without notifying clients. Under TICO rules, the consumer should:
- Contact the airline directly for a refund
- File a claim with TICO's Consumer Protection Fund (Correct answer)
- Seek recourse only through their credit card company
- Accept the loss as no refund mechanism exists
Correct answer: File a claim with TICO's Consumer Protection Fund
TICO's Consumer Protection Fund exists specifically to compensate consumers when a registered Ontario travel agent cannot fulfill its obligations.
Question 3: Which statement best describes TICO's role in setting consumer protection standards for Ontario travel agents?
- TICO sets voluntary guidelines that agents may choose to follow
- TICO is a government ministry that issues travel licenses
- TICO is a self-regulatory body that enforces provincial travel industry law (Correct answer)
- TICO only handles international travel disputes
Correct answer: TICO is a self-regulatory body that enforces provincial travel industry law
TICO is a self-regulatory organization designated under Ontario's Travel Industry Act to register and regulate travel agents and wholesalers.
Question 4: A travel agent sells a package but does not tell the consumer that the resort has an adults-only policy. The consumer arrives with children and is turned away. This is an example of:
- An acceptable omission since policies change frequently
- A failure to disclose material information, violating TICO rules (Correct answer)
- A supplier error that TICO cannot regulate
- A situation covered only by travel insurance
Correct answer: A failure to disclose material information, violating TICO rules
TICO requires agents to disclose all material information about travel products, including age restrictions, before the sale.
Question 5: Under TICO's rules, a consumer who books a trip solely with an airline is protected by:
- TICO's full registration and compensation framework
- TICO registration rules since airlines are TICO members
- Federal air passenger regulations, not TICO (Correct answer)
- The TICO fund only if the airline is based in Ontario
Correct answer: Federal air passenger regulations, not TICO
TICO regulates registered Ontario travel agents and wholesalers — airlines are governed by federal transport regulations, not TICO.
Question 6: What is the primary purpose of requiring Ontario travel agents to maintain a trust account under the Travel Industry Act?
- To earn interest that offsets agent operating costs
- To ensure consumer funds are kept separate and protected until remitted to suppliers (Correct answer)
- To provide a reserve fund for agent marketing expenses
- To allow TICO to access agent finances for auditing at any time
Correct answer: To ensure consumer funds are kept separate and protected until remitted to suppliers
Trust accounts protect consumer money by keeping it segregated from the agent's operating funds until it is properly forwarded to suppliers.
Question 7: A consumer books a seven-night all-inclusive vacation but upon arrival discovers only five nights were actually reserved. Under TICO rules, the responsible party in Ontario is:
- Solely the resort, since the agent only books on their behalf
- The registered travel agent, who is responsible for the accuracy of the booking (Correct answer)
- The consumer, for not verifying the booking directly with the resort
- TICO directly, as the guarantor of all travel bookings
Correct answer: The registered travel agent, who is responsible for the accuracy of the booking
Registered travel agents are responsible for ensuring the accuracy of bookings made on behalf of consumers under TICO's standards of practice.
TICO Consumer Protection Rules 5
Under TICO regulations, how long does a registered travel agent generally have to respond to a consumer's written complaint?