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Drug lord's death led to canceled flight, refund dispute for San Diego couple
Дата публикации: 28-07-2026 14:48:16



A San Diego couple whose Puerto Vallarta vacation was disrupted by violence following the killing of a cartel leader has recovered the remaining balance of a disputed Expedia refund after NBC 7 Responds contacted the travel company.
Kent Springer said he and his husband traveled to Puerto Vallarta in February for what was supposed to be a relaxing week before their return home took an unexpected turn.
Kent Springer and his husband Mark enjoying their first days of vacation in Puerto Vallarta.
“It’s a great place to just relax. The beaches are nice,” said Springer. “Almost all the restaurants and hotels have beach chairs, umbrellas set up, and then they wait on you. So you don’t have to drag all your supplies to the beach like we do here in San Diego.”
On the last day of their trip, Springer said they were warned them not to leave the property.
“We decided to go out for breakfast and a hotel worker was like, ‘I wouldn’t go outside if I were you.'”
Travelers reported that stores and transportation services were being vandalized or set on fire after cartel drug lord El Mencho was killed by the Mexican military. The killing happened a couple hundred miles from Puerto Vallarta, but Springer said the violence affected the city.
“We all had to go into our rooms and we later found out it was because they firebombed two businesses like a block away from our hotel,” he recalled. “It got very close.”
Kent took these pictures of two stores that he says were fire bombed near his hotel in Puerto Vallarta.
Springer said their flight home to San Diego was canceled, leaving them stranded. He said taxis, buses and rideshare services had shut down, making it impossible to even get to the airport.
“There were literally no cars, where there’s usually you can see the 100 cars circling all over the place. There were none,” he said as he simulated looking at his phone.
Eventually, Springer booked refundable tickets through Expedia for a flight to Los Angeles, hoping to secure a way home while keeping his options open.
He later found what he considered a better option: flying to Tijuana two days earlier.
“Then just walk across the border. And I was able to book that for Thursday morning,” he said.
He added that he immediately canceled the Los Angeles flight and was told he would receive a full refund of $283.12 per ticket, about $560 total. However, he said the refund he received was about $150 short.
“And I go, why are you keeping $150? And the answer was, ‘We have to pay airport taxes and fees.’ And I said, ‘But if there is no ticket, why would you pay the airport anything?'”
Springer said he spent months trying to resolve the issue with the online travel agency through emails but eventually stopped receiving responses.
“So I’m watching TV one night and I see you on there,” he said, explaining how it was he contacted NBC 7 Responds for help. “And I thought, I might as well give it a shot.”
He then submitted a request for help through the NBC 7 Responds consumer form. After reviewing his documentation, the NBC 7 Responds team contacted Expedia.
In a statement, a company spokesman said:
“We looked into Mr. Springer’s experience with our customer support team and are refunding him the outstanding balance of his cancelled flight. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and have shared this update with him directly.”
Springer said he appreciated finally receiving the remainder of the refund.
“I truly appreciate your help because, like I said, I’d pretty much just written it off that I wasn’t going to get the rest of my refund,” said Springer.
He added that despite the frightening experience, he and his husband plan to return to Puerto Vallarta.
Consumers who purchase refundable airline tickets through a travel agency should remember that refund requests typically must be handled through the agency rather than the airline. Travelers should understand the agency’s refund process before canceling a flight.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.


Основное содержимое страницы с новостью.

A San Diego couple whose Puerto Vallarta vacation was disrupted by violence following the killing of a cartel leader has recovered the remaining balance of a disputed Expedia refund after NBC 7 Responds contacted the travel company.

Kent Springer said he and his husband traveled to Puerto Vallarta in February for what was supposed to be a relaxing week before their return home took an unexpected turn.

Kent Springer and his husband Mark enjoying their first days of vacation in Puerto Vallarta.

"It's a great place to just relax. The beaches are nice," said Springer. "Almost all the restaurants and hotels have beach chairs, umbrellas set up, and then they wait on you. So you don't have to drag all your supplies to the beach like we do here in San Diego."

On the last day of their trip, Springer said they were warned them not to leave the property.

"We decided to go out for breakfast and a hotel worker was like, 'I wouldn't go outside if I were you.'"

Travelers reported that stores and transportation services were being vandalized or set on fire after cartel drug lord El Mencho was killed by the Mexican military. The killing happened a couple hundred miles from Puerto Vallarta, but Springer said the violence affected the city.

"We all had to go into our rooms and we later found out it was because they firebombed two businesses like a block away from our hotel," he recalled. "It got very close."

Kent took these pictures of two stores that he says were fire bombed near his hotel in Puerto Vallarta.

Springer said their flight home to San Diego was canceled, leaving them stranded. He said taxis, buses and rideshare services had shut down, making it impossible to even get to the airport.

NBC 7 Responds

"There were literally no cars, where there's usually you can see the 100 cars circling all over the place. There were none," he said as he simulated looking at his phone.

Eventually, Springer booked refundable tickets through Expedia for a flight to Los Angeles, hoping to secure a way home while keeping his options open.

He later found what he considered a better option: flying to Tijuana two days earlier.

"Then just walk across the border. And I was able to book that for Thursday morning," he said.

He added that he immediately canceled the Los Angeles flight and was told he would receive a full refund of $283.12 per ticket, about $560 total. However, he said the refund he received was about $150 short.

"And I go, why are you keeping $150? And the answer was, 'We have to pay airport taxes and fees.' And I said, 'But if there is no ticket, why would you pay the airport anything?'"

Springer said he spent months trying to resolve the issue with the online travel agency through emails but eventually stopped receiving responses.

"So I'm watching TV one night and I see you on there," he said, explaining how it was he contacted NBC 7 Responds for help. "And I thought, I might as well give it a shot."

He then submitted a request for help through the NBC 7 Responds consumer form. After reviewing his documentation, the NBC 7 Responds team contacted Expedia.

In a statement, a company spokesman said:

"We looked into Mr. Springer's experience with our customer support team and are refunding him the outstanding balance of his cancelled flight. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and have shared this update with him directly."

Springer said he appreciated finally receiving the remainder of the refund.

"I truly appreciate your help because, like I said, I'd pretty much just written it off that I wasn't going to get the rest of my refund," said Springer.

He added that despite the frightening experience, he and his husband plan to return to Puerto Vallarta.

Consumers who purchase refundable airline tickets through a travel agency should remember that refund requests typically must be handled through the agency rather than the airline. Travelers should understand the agency's refund process before canceling a flight.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.

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