Questions Of Cash: Website bumped us to wrong flight

When he bought the flights online, the website's confirmation note did not specify the flight details. But the confirmation e-mail that arrived the next day showed a morning flight from New York - that we cannot catch.

We have spent two weeks arguing with Travelocity, which insists we booked the wrong flight. One of its staff told us that the company's website sometimes "flips" the requested booking to another flight if selected flights are full.

We have advised our credit card company that we did not authorise this transaction, but it says it cannot do anything as the confirmation response confirms we booked the fight.
MS, by e-mail.

A. Travelocity has agreed to rebook you and your mother on to the evening flight. It is unable to determine whether the fault lay with your boyfriend or a system error at the company.

Q. I have enduring power of attorney for my mother, who is 89. In October last year, I wrote to Royal & SunAlliance, requesting payment from a Lifestyle Bond [an investment which contains some life cover] to contribute to my mother's residential home costs, to begin in December.

A company called Phoenix answered, requesting sight of the power of attorney, which I sent to it and received back with a page missing.

Phoenix later admitted this page had been unintentionally destroyed. My solicitor tells me that the affadavit I must now swear to explain the loss of the original power of attorney will cost me from £75 to £100.

Phoenix is still not making the payment to meet the costs of my mother's care, nor has it agreed to pay for the affadavit.

This has become urgent, as my mother has had to move to an elderly and mentally impaired unit, with higher fees.
AR, Sittingbourne.

A. Phoenix has now agreed to meet your costs for swearing the affadavit and apologises for having destroyed the document. It promises to resolve the request for the payment quickly. Phoenix is the trading brand of Resolution Life, which bought many of Royal & SunAlliance's life policies.