Barbara Ward (left) and husband Charles Ward, of Charleston, South Carolina, are among the customers who have been affected. Photo / Supplied
Barbara Ward (left) and husband Charles Ward, of Charleston, South Carolina, are among the customers who have been affected. Photo / Supplied
Sheryl Yesucevitz should have been working with indigenous villagers deep within an Amazon Rainforest last month.
Instead, she found herself among hundreds of well-meaning travellers who fear they are thousands of dollars out of pocket after the Kiwi company they booked their ethical holidays with announced its closure.
The Massachusettswoman is one customer of Lower Hutt-based company We Are Bamboo who were told last week their pre-paid trips had been cancelled, and there would be no refunds.
Most of the affected customers are from the US, UK, and Canada.
Sheryl Yesucevitz, of Massachusets, said she booked the trips as a way to "give back" while travelling. Photo / Supplied
There were multiple postponements due to Covid-19, and in that time Bamboo continued to sell discounted travel packages for trips when the world reopened.
But last weekend, Yesucevitz received an email from the company stating they would be closing down.
The statement, which is also on Bamboo's website, cited Covid pressures as one of the reasons of their closure, but also laid part of the blame at the feet of a group of customers.
"There is a small group of individuals who were not prepared to wait [for delayed trips], and their actions and online influence have broken us, which impacts us all," it said.
"Our intentions here are not to play the victim but simply share with you the levels to which this group has gone to ensure our downfall, and made it their sole purpose to attack us, our families, our staff, and our customers with the intent to destroy Bamboo.
"Our lawyers have advised us that several individuals have crossed the line, and there is a case and evidence for criminal proceedings."
A statement on We Are Bamboo's website announces their closure. Image / Supplied
They said the group shared personal contact details and also "spread misinformation and lies online".
The statement did not specify the alleged lies, but said it meant their sales levels were not high enough to ensure the company's survival.
"Through tears, the Bamboo dream is over but will live forever, in our broken hearts."
Yesucevitz emailed back, asking about a refund of the US$3500 ($6000) payment she had already made for the trips, but received a response that there would be no refunds.
"A refund will not be possible . . . Bamboo no longer operates and has been forced to close," the email said.
They pointed to their terms and conditions, saying they could cancel the trip under circumstances including "force majeure", which means an unforeseen event outside of the company's control.
Yesucevitz has one friend who is losing US$12,000 ($20,500) due to the closure, and said the amount of money Bamboo was not refunding would in her opinion be "in the millions, no doubt".
"We signed up for these because we wanted to make a difference in the world and they took that away from us."
Yesucevitz is a member of a group on Facebook which has about 600 people in the same or a similar boat to her.
Barbara Ward and her husband had booked a trip to Thailand for more than US$4400 ($7500), which was pushed out multiple times until its eventual cancellation.
"We wanted to go on this trip to help people," said Ward, of South Carolina.
Meanwhile, Ian Babey from Canada contacted Chubb Insurance after booking a travel insurance package through Bamboo's website, only to be told by a Chubb employee that Bamboo's policy with them hadn't been renewed since 2020 and the insurance package did not exist.
Chubb has been contacted for comment.
Another traveller, Michelle Morefield, said she felt sick to her stomach at the news.
Mark Foster-Murray (left) and Colin Salisbury started We Are Bamboo to help travellers holiday ethically. Photo / Supplied
"I had three amazing trips, recommended this company to many, and I even got a tattoo on my wrist of their logo," she said.
Yesucevitz said she and multiple others have reported the issue to the NZ Police. A police spokeswoman said they could not provide comment to the Herald on cases relating to specific businesses or organisations.
A petition addressing company founders Colin Salisbury and Mark Foster-Murray and calling them to repay the trip fees has gained 587 signatures.
The company has been contacted for comment.
The Commerce Commission is looking into inquiries about We Are Bamboo.
General manager of fair trading Vanessa Horne said it had received 26 inquiries about Bamboo, 21 of which have been made since August.
"We are currently assessing the information to understand whether there has been any potential breach of the Fair Trading Act, the level of harm caused and whether we will need to take action (and what that could look like)."
