AIRLINE BOOKING SCAM

ComplaintsScamsCheapoAir.com

Complaint

0
CHRISTINA
Country: United States
CHEAPOAIR.COM is definitely a very poor company and I strongly urge ANYONE reading this to NOT use there "service".

On July 9th I went to CheapOair.com to purchase a ticket and was provided with a Reservation ID and a booking number. Now, I also went directly to the airline's website to verify the prices, and they were accurate, BUT Cheapoair was offering a $10 instant coupon so I figured I would purchase the ticket through them and not directly with the airline itself.

A few hours go by and I did not receive my ticket so I called them. I was on hold for 15 minutes and then was "disconnected". I then called back and after another 30 minutes was told by a representative that they were "processing' it and I should have a ticket shortly. A few hours later I call back. I waited 30 minutes on hold and once the representative asked me "do you really need a morning flight"? At this point, I'm thinking something is obviously wrong. Apparently, they were unable to offer me the ticket that I had purchased and booked. I requested to speak to a manager and was transferred to SHAW. He would not provide a last name. He basically kept giving the run around and tried to continuously blame the airlines. I told him that if I had NOT used the CheapOAir service and directly booked with the airline that I would have had a ticket so what reason do I have to use his service ever again if they can't provide what they advertise and promote? He did not have an answer. I made him give me a written confirmation that I would not be charged. I also requested the name of a superior. He declined to give me any names so that I could formally complain and told me to send a generic email to their feedback@cheapair.com. I gave him ample notice that I was going to post my story anywhere I could to warn other consumers that this website does not provide the services it charges to the customer!!!!!!

Comments

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  • 0
    rhaffy
    i wanna book!

    i think booking doesn't require a payment, why would cheap O asks for the payment this early? got this feeling that maybe this website is a SCAM.

    such an Ass! Ive wasted lots of time just to find a cheap flight. after all above complaints... I have changed my mind now! f u c k  o f f Cheap O!
  • 0
    RB
    I can not say whether or not CheapoAir is a rip off or not, I can only say that I have never had any problems with them. I have booked flights with them for a year now on 4 week intervals and have had no issues. The only thing I do not agree with is having to pay extra to change a flight.whether it be for time or date the tickets cost enough as it is but that has no bearing on CheapoAir,that is industry wide I suppose and that is what I would consider a scam.
  • 0
    Goerge
    well , I have been a customer of cheapoair and have never had any problem . All the comments that i read are either for their poor customer care service or about airline cancelling the flights . Let me tell you that this happens with all the travel agents, The flights are cancelled or changed by airlines and cheapoair should surely look after their customer care executives whose it should be priority to cool down their customers
  • 0
    Sharon
    I attempted to purchase an airline ticket on Cheapoair and was told that my credit card was refused because I was over limit.  I tried another credit card and was told the amount was not authorized.  I contacted both companies and was told that no one had even sent in a request and that my accounts were not even close to the limit.  Cheapoair then said the reservation was gone and said I could rebook the flight at a cost of 85% higher than the broadcasted rate.  The company is a scam and I am very disappointed that TripAdviser does business with them.  I guess its safer to stay with Orbitz.

    11/1/2010
  • 0
    mary m
    This site that booked my flight cheapo air ruined my first day of vacation my flight was cancelled 5 times in one day spent the whole day at airport waiting for a new flight I want some of my money back but i dont know to get it      mary masotti
  • 0
    Lyane McClelland
    I just want to let all of you know that my husband and my two children and I have just travelled the world for a year and we practically booked all of our 31 flights with cheapoair and had no problem with them what so ever. We are Canadians, if that makes a difference to anyone. Anyhow believe me, we know what we are doing, especially travelling on a budget.  Cheapoair was the cheapest!! We always made sure that we booked at least 1 week in advance, so that we could do it online.
  • 0
    J.S
    Your flight seems to have been canceled by the airline.  Cheapo is the travel agency and they have nothing to do with the airlines and how they operate.  You need to go back to the airline who canceled your flights, get something out of them.
  • 0
    David from AllCheapFares.com
    Im reading through allot of these complaints and dispute that cheapoair is a competitor and i dont want you go to buy from them, The majority of the complaints are not valid. Consumers think the sites or agents are to blame but the rules come from the airlines..they set the prices. agencies and online sites make money based on volume...we are not selling millions in airfare to be a scam...most of the major companies have been around for 10+ years..that does not make it a scam. Not 1 website can always be cheaper...it vaies on the contracts the company has and it varies on your search and airline inventory. if you search SITE A and the price is $200 and then search site B 10 mins later to find $150. SO MANY things could have happened why it was.

    possible causes.

    1) inventory opened up on lower price


    2) airline added a new fare


    3) the site is searching a different system which returned a different Route/combination for example... Travelocity(powered by Sabre) searches disregarding connections and layovers.. usually cheaper but bad flight
    Expedia uses worldspan, cheapoair and allcheapfares uses Amadeus, orbitz also uses worldspan...ECT...

    different system  =  different results.

             
    Anyway my point is..about 90% of all travel complaints i've found..being im in the industry for about 20yrs are due to the lack of understanding how the industry operates.
  • 0
    Kathy Pollick
    I agree that Justin may be a plant by the airline to say nice things but I am also sure that sometime there are tickets that work. WAAAY too many things have gone wrong though to really want to take that chance??? I only tried them once and it cost me over $500 to get to my desitination which they will not refund to me. Fool me once, shame on them... fool me twice... well that will never happen!
  • 0
    Chris L.
    Really? Really? someone said that Cheapoair can't take responsibility for airlines cancelling the flights? That we don't understand the system. Are we supposed to know when a flight is changed? Does the airline call us? NO! that infomation goes to the travel agent and if cheapo air takes our money, they are our travel agent and have to tell us. They figure they don't make much on the ticket so they don't do their job right. How can anyone say we have to go after an airline for a cancelled flight when Cheapoair took our money. What a bunch of crap. I will NEVER use them again.
  • 0
    J.B
    When an airline cancels a flight at the last minute due to the pilot didn't have enough sleep, mechanical problems, weather delays those are all airline problems. Who do you think Cheapo gives the money to? ya think the airline let's you fly for free without getting a dime from the travel company...wake up people the airlines are not in the clear here they have your money, inconvenience you and you think that your travel agent is held accountable for something they have no control over...really people!
  • 0
    Carolyn
    It should be called "Cheat O Air."  When they said there would be a $130 fee to change my flight times I called my credit card companyand asked them to refuse any further requests for payment from this scam!w6r8
  • 0
    bonehead
    Carolyn, haven't you read any comments on this board. Any changes to a reservation you have to pay the fees that go along with it.  May be you should read rules before making purchases. Better yet call the airline see what they tell you. Best advice don't make any changes, know what your doing before you make any travel plans.
  • 0
    J-H
    I very much doubt that he's a plant, but he is being a jerk, just like everyone else on the internet.  Even you.

    As regards Cheapoair.com, I've used them twice without incident.  The fares are indeed cheaper than other websites.  I don't know how they do it, and so long as I have no problems to report, I don't care.  I'm sorry your experience was otherwise.
  • 0
    Jake
    Take a class in spelling and grammer before you post! It's so obvious you work for cheapoair! Are you indian too?
  • 0
    Tish
    Just tried to book an airline ticket on Air Tran and CheapOair popped up and I pushed the Book it button  and then they wouldn't give me a seat assignment. Said I had to go directly to AT. When I did I discovered that CheapO air charged me $50 more that Air Trans normal air fare. Will never!!! use them again!
  • 0
    Jake
    Airtran charges for seat assignments, that's why you cannot book on the website. Didn't you read the terms and conditions, Cheapoair charges service fees, but usually if you email them or call they will refund some of it back, it's worth a shot.
  • 0
    concerned citizen
    Cheap O customer service is a joke.  I will never used them again.  When Cheap O makes a booking mistake or double books then cancels, or never mails u the A/L ticket it is impossible to contact their customer service or get a refund.  Stay away these guys they are bad news.
  • 0
    Bonnie
    I just purchased two tickets from them...really good prices, and had no problem with my flight or tickets.  Flew there, flew home, no problems.  I didn't have to change anything, so that may be the deal.  So, the message may be, don't use them if you aren't 100% sure you are going to follow through with your plans.  The only slight issue I had was that the confirmation number they gave me didn't match up with the airline so I had to call to change / select my seats.  But, that wasn't a big deal becuase the reservation was still fine at the airport.
  • 0
    HJB
    This company is a disgrace. I booked a ticket with them, never received a ticket, called them over and over, was hung up on over and over and then they just would not answer my call.
    I then went online and read all these horror stories, thank god they had not yet charged my credit card, so I called my bank and canceled my card. Cheapoair were very quick in contacting me for new credit card details.
    I am one of the lucky ones, cheapoair, I beat you at your game.
    How do you people sleep at night?
    Any positive remarks written about this company are false, their staff probably get paid to write this crap.
    DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY - THEY ARE FRAUDULENT AND DISGUSTING!
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