Expedia to refund mother after devastating Burnaby car crash forces cancellation of trip

A bitter twist in a series of devastating events has come to an end for the families profoundly affected by a fatal crash on Highway 1 in February.

CityNews brought you the story of a mother of one of the young women who survived the crash, explaining that the four friends were supposed to head to Toronto for a birthday trip Wednesday.

But as Jennifer Miller explained, since the crash that ultimately claimed two of her daughters’ friends’ lives, they’ve been battling travel company Expedia to receive a refund.

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“After the car accident, I contacted Expedia and they told me that it wouldn’t be an issue to get a refund for these girls’ money, and all I needed was a copy of the death certificate, which I did have the really disheartening task of asking … for,” Miller, the mother of one of the two women who survived the crash, explained Tuesday.

“I gave it to Expedia who then told me that I needed to fill out a form, which wouldn’t work, and I tried several times from several different sources, laptops, computers. I finally did get the form to work, and after I submitted that, they’re now telling me that I need proof of kinship between them and the deceased.”

Miller says she started reaching out to Expedia on Feb. 24. She tells CityNews she was “very upfront” with the travel company, saying one of the four woman had died and another was in a coma.

In a statement to CityNews Wednesday, Expedia says it has now spoken to the airline, and “a full refund will be issued to Ms. Miller within 7-14 business days.”

“Our sympathies go to the families impacted by this tragedy,” the travel company added.

Speaking to CityNews after receiving the update that she would be receiving a full refund, Miller expressed exhaustion after battling the travel company.

“I’m just so happy it’s over. It’s crappy that I had to go this route,” Miller said. “But I dealt with this for over a month and I just kept getting different responses and paths to complete the refund.”

Miller says dealing with the travel company has been confusing because initially, Expedia told her it wasn’t a problem to issue the refund — even though she didn’t buy cancellation insurance. But even after providing the documents the company asked for, Miller says she was put through the wringer.

“It was something that they didn’t have to do, but they told me that they would and then they made it very challenging,” she said.

On Feb. 18, the Uber that four women were in had it pulled over near the Sprott Street exit just before 4 a.m. so the driver could attend to one of the passengers. The women had been on their way home from an evening of celebration when the white Tesla was hit from behind by a Chevrolet SUV.

At the time, police said two women were taken to hospital in critical condition, while another — Miller’s daughter — received non-life threatening injuries. The fourth woman died at the scene, while one of the two in hospital succumbed to her injuries days later following a coma.

The devastating crash has sent shockwaves through the community of Maple Ridge, and shattered the lives of those involved in the crash and those closest to them.

Upon reflection, Miller says she’s glad she could get this refund for the mothers and girls who invested their money into the trip.

“I feel a lot better that I’ll be able to give Jenna’s mother back the money that she put into that trip and I’ll be able to give the other girls back the money that they worked hard to pay to go on that trip that was supposed to leave this morning,” she said.

Now, Miller says she’s focusing her energy on providing support to the girls and the other families who are facing a new reality.

“I’m just going to keep helping these girls navigate their way through the loss of their friends and their new life.”