Thousands of Quebecers will be travelling on the dime of an online travel risk management service, thanks to more than five inches of snow that fell at Pierre Elliot Trudeau International Airport in Montreal.
itravel2000's Let it Snow promotion offered Canadian consumers who booked a qualifying package vacation, hotel or flight by Dec. 7, 2007 for departures up to Apr.30, 2008 the chance to be reimbursed for the retail price of their vacation package if more than five inches of snow fell at airports in Calgary, Halifax, Montreal or Toronto on New Year's Day.
The online travel retailer entered into an agreement with WeatherBill, an online weather risk management service, to receive insurance coverage for the promotion.
"We maintain a strong supply of capital for paying out even these huge sums," David Friedberg, WeatherBill CEO and co-founder, said in an itravel2000 release.
Under the terms of the agreement, WeatherBill would provide up to Cdn$100 million in snow coverage.
"Our significant risk capacity and simple, automated service for managing weather risk and promotions is the perfect solution for the large scale of 'Let it Snow,'" Friedberg said in a WeatherBill release when the two companies initially announced the agreement. "WeatherBill eliminates the time, expense and hassle of typical promotions — there's no unnecessary paperwork, redemption process or waiting for payment.
"itravel2000 simply purchases coverage in increments to perfectly mirror customer sales, and there are no upfront set-up costs, administrative fees, minimums or maximums."
Toronto's snowfall, at 9.4 cm, fell just shy of the required 12.7 cm to be covered under the arrangement, while Halifax and Calgary measured minimal amounts of snowfall.