
CheapOair Reviews
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CheapOair allows travelers to easily access multiple quotes from hundreds of hotels, airlines, cruise lines and car rental companies to ensure that each customer finds a deal that best accommodates their travel needs. CheapOair strives to provide the best customer service to help customers through the booking experience.
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Reviewed June 25, 2009
I would like to point out that the above complaint regarding charging in US currency is exactly true. It is clearly stated on our website prior to even purchasing that the fares are quoted and charged in US funds. I do apologize that the customer overlooked this bit of information prior to purchasing. However, we have done nothing wrong, and with the rate of exchange, yes it is going to be more expensive. I would like you to post this comment so that the viewers get a clear view of what actually transpired with this reservation. The customer failed to read over his booking information until the purchase and charge was made.
Reviewed June 17, 2009
On June 8, 2009, I intended to purchase through the Cheapoair website a flight insurance for a round-trip flight from San Antonio, TX to Santa Ana, California. The price of this insurance is $50.00. The issuing of the flight insurance was denied on the ground that the credit card account number provided was not a valid one. However, when checking my bank statement the next day, June 9, 2009, I found that not only one but two charges of $50 were made to my account for the purchase of this insurance, including $2 charge for COA Air Lines Taxes Fee.
I have called and written the billing department of Cheapoair, stating that since they had denied insurance, to have the $102 credited back to my account and that no insurance was any longer required. It has been 8 days now, since the incidence. No response has been forthcoming, other than they have assigned a priority status of medium to my case.
Reviewed June 17, 2009
I booked a ticket online for an Air Canada flight for $953. All charges are listed in US dollars. I paid it using my US credit card. When I received my statement, Air Canada had charged me $1080 which is US$127 more than the price listed on their website and on my confirmation e-mail. I called the Cheapoair billing department and they said Air Canada charged me and they charged extra because they billed in Canadian and then converted it to US (at an overinflated rate). Plus my credit card company charged me an extra fee because now it was considered an international transaction.
Reviewed June 12, 2009
I am requesting that you remove the posting from Daniel ** regarding CheapOair.com writes bad checks. Mr. ** was sent a check but the agreement was once he received full payment, he would remove his blog postings from all 10 boards. He since has been provided a new check and we have asked him several times to remove this blog. He refuses our phone calls and ignores our emails. As a company, your website does not allow us to post any type of outcome. Therefore, I am requesting you to remove it. If you need proof that this is not the case and he has given inadequate information, I will be glad to provide it.
Reviewed June 7, 2009
Cheapoair deceived me. I booked a flight and then they told me it was never confirmed. I am still owed $1 by them.
Reviewed May 23, 2009
Fareportal, Inc. DBA Cheapoair.com writes bad checks. I am having a very nasty struggle with Cheapoair.com. They think they are entitled to my money. I paid them $4,226 and got nothing in return. On May 21, 2009, after much pressure, I was put on Sheilesh (Sam) Jain, CEO of Cheapoair.com, to return my money. I received check #10049 drawn on Capital One Bank in the amount of $4,226. But when I went to the bank to cash it, the teller informed me the funds were not available. The teller attempted to call Cheapoair but no one would pick up the phone. I am unable to cash my check. Do the airlines and hotels know what kind of company this is? I'm calling the NY Attorney General.
Reviewed May 22, 2009
I booked two tickets through Cheapoair in Feb 2009 for June 29. I just tried to call on May 2009 to confirm the terminal. I then found out the flight was cancelled and they did not even notify me. I asked them to find me another flight. They said, "We do not have and we will refund your money by cutting $30." If I was not calling, they would not call me to say about the cancellation and now charging me for $30 for no service. I would like to know - if they are not giving me any service, then how could they charge me? It damaged my plan that I had for summer; keeping my money; and costing me for another $30. This is not acceptable at all.
Reviewed May 16, 2009
I went on their site to search for airline tickets to Fiji. CheapOair was the cheapest I had found. I purchased the tickets and everything was fine. The next day, I went to use my bank card and I found that my account was overdrafted. As it turns out CheapOair had double charged me for the tickets ($2,450 totaling $4,900). I called immediately and was told that a refund would be posted to my account for $2,450. I waited 6 weeks and I still have not received the refund. I made a claim with the BBB and still had no luck with resolving the problem. I could not get through to a representative to speak to them again. I would never recommend this site to anyone.
As an added bonus, a few weeks later, the price of the tickets went down to $1,950. Do yourself a favor and buy directly from the airlines. Our bank account had been drained of the funds, which resulted in several overdrafts. My bank had issued a temporary refund, but they withdrew the temporary refund and I am still charged the $4,950 for the two plane tickets.
Reviewed May 2, 2009
I found out right after booking that the motel was being watched by police and every comment was horrible. I called back to their India call center and waited for 45 minutes on hold. Then I was told I could not cancel unless I paid a fee of $30. I then made a reservation on my own. This is a terrible business. When I checked out the car rental, I found a fee of $25 was charged. If I had made the reservation myself online, it would have been $25 cheaper.
Reviewed April 24, 2009
The company does business as "CheapOair.com." I am very unhappy with the misleading way they quoted "Taxes and Fees" on my recent booking. This left me paying almost $50 more than if I had just booked the flights directly through the airline (Airtran)! I am requesting a credit to my charge card of the $48 they misled me into paying. If they are "service charges," they should be called that!
Reviewed April 21, 2009
I attempted to book 4 round trip tickets on Cheapoair.com from Rome to Palermo, Italy. I was given flight options out and back as well as prices. I first booked 2 tickets and then made a separate booking for 2 other tickets. I believed I had successfully booked 4 round trip tickets, only to receive emails which stated for the first two tickets, I had flights from Palermo to Rome - but not Rome to Palermo. On the second two tickets, I had flights from Rome to Palermo - but not Palermo to Rome. I proceeded to call customer service. After holding for approximately 10 minutes, a gentleman disconnected me after he asked me to hold again. I then spoke to Carmen, who was so rude I couldn't believe it. She told me that their process wasn't for me to understand. I asked for a supervisor, but was never connected.
I then spoke to Sandra who attempted to help me, but after 3 hours, didn't resolve my issue. I then spoke to Campbell(?), the supervisor, who asked me to be patient and he would resolve the issue, and call me the next day by noon. Well it has been 4 days and I still have not heard back from anyone nor do I have a refund or the necessary flights. This website is a total scam. Do not use Cheapoair. It is exactly what it sounds like - cheap!
Reviewed April 3, 2009
CheapOair and their India Call Center could not get me on a flight to Paris that I had booked three months in advance. After calling their Indian Call Center repeatedly to try and have them get me on a plane, they placed me on a flight and never confirmed it even though the e-mail they sent me did have a confirmation and an e-ticket number. The supervisor’s answer to my issue was to take my problem up with the airlines and that I will get my refund in three weeks. I requested an e-mail from the supervisor explaining that CheapOair was going to give me the refund. No e-mail yet.
I would not do any business with this company if you want to have to deal with a group that if something does arise with a flight, you will have a very good chance that CheapOair would drop you than have to trouble themselves in getting you another flight. Their call center also has issues with giving you the correct information about your flight and will not inform you if there are changes to your flight times. Do not trust these people for anything. I was out of around $350.00 in train cost which are non-refundable and five days of time trying to get on a plane.
Reviewed April 1, 2009
I was on their website trying to purchase round trip tickets from Dayton to Orlando for the dates of April 9-12. When I tried to put the return time in, it accepted my credit card information and only gave me the out bound flight. The price of the tickets were supposed to be $144 RT and I was charged $256 one way. When I noticed this, I called CheapOair to have them help me resolve the problem and all I got was they couldn't help me. I needed to call Air Tran so I did and they said I had to go through CheapOair and the only thing they could do was put a credit on their airline for future travel but I would still be charged.
I called CheapOair again (this went on for about an hour between CheapOair and Air Tran because no one wanted to help me) and talked to a supervisor. I once again was told they couldn't give me my money back but they cancelled the tickets, but I still had to pay $1200 for the tickets and if I wanted a flight to come back, it would cost me another $1200 because I purchased only a one-way ticket which I was doing round trip.
To me the websites are misleading and I feel they scam people out of their hard-earned money. I could see it if I tried cancelling after 2 weeks or something but this was 5 minutes of me noticing this problem. I wanted them to void that charge on my account and start over, but CheapOair would not help me at all. I am very upset about this but CheapOair just keeps saying I purchased one way and pretty much it was my fault. So, no tickets and they still are charging me $1200.
Reviewed March 13, 2009
I booked a ticket for my family with Cheapoair for $3,200 for two adults and one infant. Even though I had requested a seat for my infant son, they left him out as a lap infant. When the paper tickets arrived, we were surprised that he was not assigned a seat. Upon inquiry, Cheapoair wanted $1,900 more to issue a ticket for him. We wanted to cancel our tickets. This we were told would cost us $1,200. We went ahead and canceled the ticket. But then the refund of the original ticket has not occurred. We are still fighting for the refund. This company has horrible customer service, unnecessary charges, and phony added costs. Stay away from this scam.
Reviewed March 13, 2009
I made reservations to fly from DC to Sacramento, CA last June for a wedding via Cheapoair.com. I noticed after taking the first flight that my return trip was for July and not June as I thought I had scheduled. After hours on the phone with a Cheapoair representative, I was told that the best way to handle this was to cancel the July return flight and schedule a new return flight for the dates I had originally wanted in June. At that time, I was told that I would receive a $220 credit for the canceled trip that I could use until May 2009. I even have an email stating this from the representative.
I just got off the phone with Cheapoair. I was told that the ticket was never canceled so my credit was forfeited. I have an email from Cheapoair stating that it HAD canceled my flight with the information on the credit. So what am I supposed to do now? Is there any action I can take? They didn't do what they were supposed to do and now they will not take responsibility. If I had known that I was supposed to cancel the other flight, I would have taken action to do so, however, I was told that it had been taken care of so now I am screwed.
Reviewed March 11, 2009
I have traveled all over and have used many different sites but never had as many problems as with Cheapoair. They do not tell you that they have to talk to the airlines after you book your ticket for a certain price. After ordering a ticket for close to US$800, we got notified the morning of the flight at the AIRPORT that the flight had not gone through. I guess this is what Cheapoair considers customer service. Allow your customer to purchase a ticket, don't email them, don't call them, let them drive 2 hours to an airport and let the person at the check in counter notify them that there is not a ticket booked in their name. Since Delta felt awful about the experience, they offered to call Cheapoair, in which they told us that it was our own problem and that they had tried to call us. I would like to see phone records of their so-called calls because the primary number that they stated to call had no missed call in the caller ID and no message was left.
It was at this time that the Cheapoair rep said that they could book a ticket that would be US$350 higher than the price that we had booked at. After reading reviews on this company, I see now that it is part of their method to get you hooked at a low price and then stab you in the back when your flight didn't go through. At this point, they already have you hooked. You're standing in the airport and have no other choice but to book at the higher price with them! This is the WORST site to book your tickets through. I would not suggest it for anyone! STAY AWAY FROM THIS SITE. IT IS A HUGE SCAM!
Reviewed March 7, 2009
Thank you for choosing CheapOair.com. As per our conversation over the phone, after your authorization we will be changing your reservation under booking no. **. Your flights will be as below. Your new payment will be USD 198 including the change penalty and fare difference. This is what they charged me:
Fare: 260.70
Taxes & Fees: 77.21
Sub-Total: 337.91
Insurance: 0.00
Discount Amount: $0.00
Post Booking Charges: 198.00
Total Fare: 535.91 USD
Bait and switch. The website posted airfares and showing flights available. When booking with CheapOair, they say flights are not available and I will have to pay more. After booking, they continue to advertise the lower priced flights as being available. They also charge $150 to change return flight. I made the reservation change 3 weeks prior to flight. COMPLAINT: OVERCHARGING and BAIT and SWITCH.
Reviewed March 4, 2009
I spent most of an afternoon trying to book a flight - and CheapOair kept coming up as less expensive. When I finally booked, it was confirmed and everything was fine. It was a day later before I realized that the flight had NOT been charged to my account. I then got a call from CheapOair saying that they had not been able to book my flight after all but that they had this other flight (about same price but 12 hours longer through JFK). So I said, "No, thanks." By then all flights seemed to be even more expensive but after four days, I finally found a flight and reserved it on Expedia, but at the same price as the CheapOair flight.
It was then that I noticed that CheapOair had charged me for the flight that had not gone through. I have just spoken to the 4th person and it has now been 55 minutes on hold waiting for the billing person. The first person who was supposed to be a billing person was just an agent, so although I told her I did not want to wait for another half hour, here I am. Everyone is right. It's bait and switch and an hour of waiting on hold and no end in sight.
Reviewed Feb. 25, 2009
I just tried booking on Cheapoair.com and they had a great price for my tickets at $1,300. But when I tried to buy my tickets, they would all of a sudden say that it was sold out. I proceeded to attempt to book a flight for over 2 hours going flight by flight trying to book a flight, but ALL 7 were sold out! And so I decided to call the customer service line and after a 30-minute wait, they said they no longer had those flights available, and that the only one that had was for $5,000. So I bought it on Orbitz, and I will never return to their website. They are using a BAIT AND SWITCH method of selling tickets and that is ILLEGAL! I hope more people realize this and we all can do something about this fraud put on by Cheapoair.com
Reviewed Feb. 20, 2009
Four minutes after making a reservation, I realized I had one already. I called the airlines, and they said I had to call Cheapoair to get a refund. I called Cheapoair, and after being on hold for 45 minutes, they told me it was too late. A ticket had been issued, and it would cost me $150 to cancel. I protested, but cancelled. Then I received their invoice where they added another $76 to it as well! This is ridiculous. I was only still within 24 hours of booking. I was within the first hour of booking! I am now over $225!
Reviewed Feb. 19, 2009
On January 17, 2009, I made travel reservations with this travel service. Minutes later, I canceled the ticket. I was immediately informed that I would be charged $24 non-refundable and $25 to cancel; I have this email. I was told the amount that I was supposed to receive was $138.70. Two weeks later, I called to ask about my refund and was put on hold for 2 hours by billing, only to be told by customer service that billing had left for the day. When I asked about my refund, I was told it will take 5 weeks. I asked the man if he was sure, and he said yes. Every time I call, I get switched around.
Once, when I finally reached someone, they asked me to hold so that they can read the account; they never came back. I usually end up talking to 2 or 3 different representatives, and they do the same thing. Now, they have made this account for me with a ticket ID and said that my priority was medium. I also had live chat with someone named Spencer from customer service tonight and have copied our conversation. They took their fees, but I am having to contact them every day about this refund, and no one will talk to me. This is very stressful, and it is rude. I do not have money to throw away or let someone steal it from me. I am angry.
Reviewed Feb. 11, 2009
Tickets were booked through Cheapoair.com back in June for my sister's family in the Philippines. They are migrating to Canada (2 adults/2 kids). I booked the tickets online with itinerary Manila-LA-Vancouver-Winnipeg last June 2008. The scheduled flights were for Aug. 2008 but I have to reschedule. I called and talked to Tony who helped with rescheduling, and paid $800 for booking changes. When I spoke to him at that time, I asked him if my sister's family will need a US visa for the layover in LA. He said no because they're Canadian residents. I had to change the flight date again, spent another $1,200 for booking fees and again verified if US visa is required. Once again, Tony said no, they should be okay.
On the date of flight (1/23/09), my sister and her family got held at the airport because NW airlines will not let them fly without a US visa. They were there for 4 hours with the kids plus all their belongings hoping to fly. I contacted Cheapoair and their staff refused to take responsibility. They keep on promising me that they'll listen to the taped conversation about the US visa inquiry. Of course, they never did. They completely ignored my request for return call to reschedule my sister's flight. I had to call them every time. I finally have to purchase my sister and her family new tickets because they couldn't wait long. My brother-in-law has a job waiting in Canada. I called NWA to see if I can just refund the fare myself instead of going through the incompetent people at Cheapoair. I was told that I'll be able to refund $580 each (total $2,320). Everything that I paid Cheapoair (base fare plus twice rebooking fees) totaled to $7,000+. These people are horrible. They have no heart in taking people's hard-earned money.
Reviewed Feb. 10, 2009
Excessive service charges, horrible customer services, and deceiving customers' review board - After I purchased a round trip ticket from cheapoair.com via Continental Airline to Asia on January 5, within a few hours later, I found out the price had dropped $74.00 for the exact same itinerary. I called the customer service and talked to many representatives regarding the price drop and wished to be credited the differences (as other reputable web agencies allow customers to cancel without penalty within 24-48 hours); I was treated as a pest and was refused of my request.
I was wondering of my treatment by those nasty customer service representatives since I had read as many reviews as I could on their website before I purchased my ticket, and could not find any negative one. So, I intended to post my bad experience of their horrible customer service and cheapoair.com’s unfair business practice on their customer reviews board. But it never appeared on their reviews board. Instead, Renee ** contacted me via email. After a whole day of back and forth emailing, they finally agreed to credit $65.00 out of $74.00 back to my AmEx. Don't ask me why, but it's better than nothing.
A few days later, I checked my reservation on the Continental Airline's website and found out the cost of my trip was only $1,320.30 ($1,232.00 + $88.30 taxes and fees). But CheapOair charged me $1,344.30 and another $124.00 taxes and fees on my American Express credit card. That means, CheapOair charged me $148.00 for their commission on my ticket. I have never heard of such a big commission profit from an airline web agency. The normal commission for a travel agency is around $20-$25.00 per round trip ticket.
Reviewed Nov. 25, 2008
I purchased on Dec 3, 2007 two tickets for a business trip in Cancun, Mexico. I filed for a passport renewal that was denied, so I called to call CheapOair and inform them I was unable to travel with the new passport laws with no valid passport. I was instructed by Ms. ** to send an email authorizing to cancel the flights and for the cancellation fees on my itinerary. That was sent on 1/14/2008 to this email address **. We have been round and round with CheapOair to us my ticket or for a refund. At first they said we had to book with Spirit Airlines and not with them because that is who the credit for the tickets was with.
Spirit was more than helpful to tell us that CheapOair never booked a flight with them for my original itinerary and that they did not have to pay any cancellation fees to them. We then went back to CheapOair and requested a supervisor to resolve this matter... Since July 29th, we have not received a call. I paid for the tickets on my credit card and was charged $703.43 on itinerary **, and charged $50 for cancellation fees on 1/14/2008. We have no credit, no tickets and out a lot of money in these tough times. I tried to use the tickets/credit when my mom passed away and was told I could only use them where Spirit flew, and I don't even have credit or tickets with Spirit. CheapOair brokers for multiple airlines and would not let me use the tickets with any other carrier/airline. I need help in making sure this travesty does not happen to other who do business with CheapOair in good faith.
Reviewed Nov. 24, 2008
Paid for my ticket Jun. 23. Flight was cancelled. I was not informed until after Oct. 20 by airline b/c l called for seat assignment but airliner informed agency since July 5th.
Reviewed Nov. 13, 2008
On 11/3 I purchased 2 round trip tickets for $578 online with a debit card I use strictly for online purchases, linked to an account I keep limited funds in. When I received the confirmation, date for the return flight was wrong. It was 11/24 instead of 11/26 (I still had my web page pulled up in a different window, so I knew I put in the correct date). I called CheapOair, and was told the only tickets available for the date I was returning home were going to cost almost double what I had already paid! We went back & forth. I was telling the man I was speaking with I was looking at their web site and saw 8 pages of return flights for the date I was coming home within $50 of what I had paid. He said that was wrong, they were all sold out. Finally he agreed to a flight we could get on, on the date we needed it.
On 11/6 I attempted to make an online purchase with my debit card. Guess what I found out? CheapOair had replaced my original charge of $578 with a new charge of $828, and added charges of $50 and $48 and $1, bringing my total for those $578 tickets up to $927. Repeated calls to CheapOair resulted in my being placed on hold for 67 minutes one time, 31 minutes another time, and never getting a live person a third time. Emails have gone unanswered except for the READ receipt coming back.
Reviewed Sept. 4, 2008
I booked a pair of round trip tickets from Newark (EWR) Airpot, to Phoenix (PHX) AZ tickets on 8/19/08. The combined cost of both tickets was $806.00, which was paid for via my boyfriends credit card on the 19th. My bags were packed by the door when I realized I had booked tickets for September the 29th returning on November 3rd, instead of August the 29th returning on September the 3rd. In a pit of despair, I called CheapoAir and was connected with a woman named Shelly. Shelly was kind and patient, but had a very thick accent which rendered her speech unintelligible at times. After working through this language barrier and finding a comporable flight, Shelly informed me that I would be held responsible for a $ 150.00 cancellation fee per person, totalling $300.00.
After much apprehension and discussion with my boyfriend I decided to go ahead with the changes. At this point I viewed the old transaction as being wiped away following the $300.00 fee. Having made these arrangements, I was prepared to book my new tickets. I was informed that the new tickets would total approximately $520.00 per ticket. This price was to include a $333.00 base fare, $150.00 (per passenger) airline imposed cancellation fee, plus taxes and fees. This brings us to a total of $1,040. I agreed to the charge of $1,040 under the premise the his credit card was going to be reimbursed the $800.00. This only makes logical sense since I had just paid Cheapoair $300.00 to cancel my origional tickets.
Now I am finding myself in a predicament where they have charged my credit card a total of $ 1,040, (they seperate the charges so many ways to make it even more challenging to distinguish all the charges) and are refusing to credit my boyfriends credit card for any of the charges. The end result is that I learned a harsh and expensive leasson about entrusting secondary ticket sources with my hard earned money and valued vacations.
For the pennies on the dollar that you may save by booking through a secondary ticketing company such as CHEAPOAIR you will inneviatebly pay for in aggrivation, phone bills, added fees, hours on hold, and loss valuable time with family when you deal with such companies.
Reviewed July 8, 2008
I am in Belgium visiting my dad who has been diagnosed with lung cancer. Cheapoair had the cheapest last minute flight. I needed to change my return ticket and called 10 days in advance on 06/25/08 to ask if I could change it. The agent said no problem, it will cost $350.00. And had to call back at least one day before my return flight on 07/04/08.
I called, made the changes, got a confirmation email. And then a couple days later, when I checked my email again, they had sent another email; sorry the airline cannot confirm your ticket, it is non changeable. I called 3 times, first time I was on hold 30 mins, no one came back. Second time the agent pretended he couldnt hear me anymore and hung up, the 3rd time the lady said that I was told that the ticket non-changable. It was noted in the comments. Why would they change it then, and quote me a price to change it? They lie, I have no ticket, no one will help me. I've emailed but no responses. Horrible, do not buy with them if you need to make changes.
Reviewed July 7, 2008
I am including details of my husband and my attempt to resolve our claim with Cheap O Air: On March 26, 2008 we purchased 2 airline tickets to Paris FR for a family visit and a wedding. About 8 days later, we received a call from the groom and realized the date for the wedding was a week later than we thought (meaning were scheduled to leave Paris 4 days BEFORE the wedding). We would have to change our return flight for the next Tuesday.
We immediately called the customer service number listed in our receipt from Cheap O Air (866-) since it claimed that dates, names and routing could be changed for a penalty. It also said the tickets were non-refundable and that some flights may be non-changeable even with a fee. We assumed that we would have been alerted prior to purchase whether or not our ticket was one that could not be changed, so we were prepared to pay a fee plus any difference in the cost of a ticket. The first customer service agent I spoke with, Debbie (extension 6019) on April 7, 2008 was very helpful and looked into our changes while I was on hold. When she came back onto the line she was sad to say that our tickets were unchangeable and there was nothing she could do about it. She suggested we call the airline directly to see if they could change our return flight. Otherwise, she would be happy to help us find one-way tickets on the date we wished to return and she gave me her direct extension.
Next I called Northwest Airlines (our scheduled return is on NWA), on April 8, 2008. The customer service agent at NWA took our confirmation number and said she could change our return flight for a $20 seat assignment fee. Wow, we thought, that was easy. She then put me on hold to gather the information she needed. When she returned, she was sorry to say that NWA was unable to make any changes to our tickets because we purchased them through Cheap O Air, and only Cheap O Air can change the ticket for us. She gave me their phone number (212-).
So, I called Cheap O Air again on April 8, 2008. This time I spoke to Massy. She was really very helpful and took all of my information. She found that she could make the change for us and it would cost $75 per person plus a $100 re-issue fee plus a $200 airline penalty per person plus tax, totaling $712.40 for the change. I wanted to confirm with my husband so she said she would call me back in 24 hours to make the change. She called back (in less than 24 hours), on April 9, 1008, to tell me that she was sorry, but she could not make the changes to our itinerary; our tickets were unchangeable. She was unable to fully explain why she could do it less than 24 hours ago, but not now. She assured me that if I called Air France they could make the changes since our ticket was "contracted" by Air France. We called Air France that night, but they were closed.
I called Cheap O Air again that night and spoke to Massy again. I asked her if there was a manager available to speak with. She put me on hold for three or four minutes then I was disconnected. I called again and asked for a manager and was connected with Angus. I was met with contempt from Angus. He iterated the fact that our tickets were unchangeable and that there was nothing he could do to change our flight. I requested a supervisor's name for the next day and he assured me that I would get the same answer from anyone there. He finally gave me Aiden's name, the daytime supervisor, with reluctance.
Following Massy's instruction, I called Air France again on April 10, 2007 to change our Northwest Airlines flight home. The gentleman at Air France was very helpful and explained that Air France holds the contract our ticket since our original outbound flight from Los Angeles is on Air France, but he was unable to make any changes to our ticket since we purchased our tickets through Cheap O Air. Only Cheap O Air can make a change to our tickets.
My husband then called Cheap O Air to make one last request to change our tickets. The first customer service agent he spoke to put him on hold for three to four minutes then disconnected him. He called again and explained to the next customer service agent that he was not informed at the time of purchase that our tickets were unchangeable and that he would not have purchased from Cheap O Air if this were the case. He went on to explain that he was given the impression there would be a $100 fee for any changes. The customer service agent said the tickets were unchangeable.
This is when we contacted WaMu Debit Card Claims. We have tried as we might to resolve this matter with Cheap O Air, but to no avail. We purchased the tickets knowing we may extend our stay as my husband has not been home in almost eight years and there were numerous family gatherings planned for us (including a wedding). We were prepared to pay Cheap O Air, Northwest Airlines or Air France for the changes and were gravely disappointed with the lack of customer service we received from Cheap O Air. Cheap O Air's website is misleading in that it does not alert buyers when their tickets are unchangeable, it merely states that "some tickets are unchangeable even with a fee", see below:
"Please note: Your ticket is NON-REFUNDABLE . For any changes to dates, names or routing, there will be a penalty. Please call our Customer Service at 866- to request changes to this Itinerary. Some flights may be completely NON CHANGEABLE even with a fee.
Changes - In addition to penalties imposed by the airline, a processing fee of up to $100.00 per ticket will be charged for changes made to this Itinerary."
I have looked at other travel websites to see if any of them state the same, and I found that on other sites it is stated that tickets are non-refundable and some may be unchangeable. On those sites, though, they ask that the buyer call the customer service number PRIOR TO PURCHASE to confirm whether or not their ticket is one that is unchangeable. This is where Cheap O Air left us in the lurch. We had no choice but to purchase 2 more tickets (which we purchased directly from the airline), and contacted our bank to dispute the original airfare charges from CheapOAir.
Our bank conditionally returned the original purchase fare to our account while they investigated our claim. We were just informed that based on their investigation, CheapOAir delivered the goods they promised, and that is where they ended. Now, the original purchase fare of $1819 will be again deducted from our account. So we will have ended up paying twice for one trip to Europe.
Reviewed May 13, 2008
I have purchased a ticket back an February 10, 2008 from Ft. Myers, FL. to Sydney MT. in March i found out that Big Sky airline went bankrupt and I called cheapoair, I was on hold for 35 minutes, then they kept telling me that Big Sky is still operating when in fact it was not.Finally on April 14,after beeomg pm the phone again for 1 hr., they changed the itenerary, it cost me an other $316.50 because they had to reraute me.
To this date, I have not been able to get the info how it was changed,the times ectr. and flight numbers, and when I try to print out my schedule it is still the old schedule, going to Sydney MT. I was put on hold tonight again for 1 hour and 10 minutes waiting to talk to a supervisor, and then I got cut off, again, and I could not get to talk to anyone,they just kept putting me on hold. I should be traveling on May 28. but I have no correct itenerary and I can not get to talk to anyone that would help me or give me the information. Can you please help me.
I will never ever by a ticket from cheapoair, and I surely would not recomend them to anyone.
Reviewed April 25, 2008
I have had a very bad experience with this reseller. I wanted to make a change to a ticket and they advised me to cancel the ticket I had and book a new ticket. That cost $175 --fine I wanted to make the change. When they issued the new ticket, they issued it with the first name on the credit card instyead of the first name of the passenegr, which they were supposed to get from the cancelled record. I have tried to have the problem resolve --to no avail. Every time I call, I come across a customer service rep who doesn't speak english well enough to carry a conversation. I asked the last one I spoke with to cancel the ticket so I could get a credit from the airline.
The conversation quickly evolved to something resembling the skit who is on first, except for the laughs: I was trying to ask the guy when the ticket would be cancelled and he kept telling me to call the airlines to re-book. Then he just hang up on me. The next call, I asked for a supervisor, and was put on hold for long periods before being disconnected.
Two weeks later, I am still trying to get a hold of someone who can communicate. I know some of you have had fair experiences with this company. I assure you that you are playing with fire. I've booked my own travel for a very long time and often use discount providers. i have never come across such a slick outfit. So do yourself a favor and avoid them. Most airlines offer the same rates on their website or have lowest fare guarantees
Reviewed April 12, 2008
On 7/31/07 I booked a flight for my husband and I from Atlanta to Barcelona, Spain. We are flying to Barcelona to connect with a cruise ship departing from Barcelona on May 24, 2008. Just recently Iberia Airlines changed my flight departure times for both my Atlanta to Chicago flight and my Chicago to Barcelona flight. The flight times I originally booked provided an 80 minute layover between the time I arrive in Chicago and depart for Barcelona which I felt was sufficient. However, recently Iberia Airlines changed the flight departure time and the new arrival/departure times between flights only allow 35 minutrs between arrival and departure times.
We are concerned that 35 minutes is insufficient time to ensure that we and our luggage get on the flight from Chicago to Barcelona. Also, insomuch as this is the only flight that Iberia Airlines has on this day, if we don't get on this flight, we will miss our cruse ship. I have contacted Cheapoairlines several times and they refuse to assist us. I called American Airlines (Atlanta to Chicago leg of the trip) and they indicate they can put us on an earlier flight but since I booked through Cheapoair, they must make the change.Cheapoair's customer service department is horrible. After speaking to Sage (a customer service manager), she promised to get back to me and never did. I have sent 2 e-mails to Cheapoair, and neither one has been responed to. All Cheapoair cares about is booking the flight and getting their money. They are not an advocate for their customers and do not care what happens to them once they book their flight or trip.
Reviewed March 29, 2008
I purchased two international air tickets from Cheapoair in April 07. They were both issued in my husband's name. When I called this to Cheapoairs attention they advised me that I would have to purchase a third ticket under my name and they would refund me the amount of the third ticket. The flight took place on March 1, 2008 but despite numerous e-mails and phone calls I have received no refund. Any help you may offer would be appreciated.
Requesting a refund for the third ticket I purchased ($1152.90).
Reviewed Feb. 29, 2008
On 11/26/07 I made an online air travel reservation for my son through CheapoAir. When a confirmation e-mail arrived minutes later, I saw I had mistaken pm for am and called customer service to see what could be done. Nikita Peniston advised that it was possible to cancel a reservation if done within the first 24 hours, for a fee of $50.00. I agreed, and she proceeded to arrange the cancellation. At the end of our conversation she said "You're all set". In a few minutes an e-mail arrived from her with Cancellation in the subject line. The body of the e-mail was blank, but I assumed that must be standard. I then re-booked a different flight at the correct times. On 12/18/07 I received my credit card statement and found I had been billed for the canceled flight! I immediately called Cheapoair and spoke to Mary Ann. She advised me to e-mail Nikita, which I did.
Weeks went by, and I was not contacted. I contacted the airline directly just before the flight to make sure they knew the ticket would not be used. I did finally hear from Nikita, who told me there was nothing that could be done. I went to her supervisor and got the same reply. In the meantime, I called CheapoAir to verify the cancellation policy, and got the same information from three more agents. This case has now been turned over to Georgia Gallarde, who repeatedly sends me letters saying the ticket was non-refundable, and American Airlines won't give me a refund. I continue to ask her why the ticket was purchased at all, when I followed the procedure to cancel the booking. To date she has not answered this question. If I had known the booking was not canceled, I would have re-booked the outbound leg and kept the return. I am posting this story on all consumer opinion websites I can find, and now wonder if I should attempt small claims court. I have saved all e-mails and letters.
I had to pay a bill for $223.80 which I feel CheapoAir should refund to me, or issue a credit toward future travel booked through their agency, since they are at fault.
Reviewed Feb. 9, 2008
On February 3, 2008, we purchased 2 tickets to the Philippines, totaling $2400. Customer service was OK during the payment phase. Later, on the 5th of February, 2008, we noticed we were billed 2 other charges totaling $1019.80, with no explanation. We used our Visa CheckCard, and my checking account was drained completely from that overcharge. We have tried continuously for 3 days to contact Customer Service with no luck, and no explanations of the charges. They were confirmed by our credit union as charged by CheapOair. When they returned my call about the overcharges, the caller I.D. had the name JEN NY, rather than Cheapoair. The fly-by-night company has made no effort to reimburse the unauthorized charges.
Because I am a police officer, I suspected fraud after seeing the charges, and other information that raised red flags. I have contacted the Virginia Attorney General's office and intend to file criminal fraud charges against Cheapoair and it's parent companies and officers by February 10th. No further calls have been returned by the company, and it is obvious they have caller I.D. as they have not answered ANY calls I have made to the billing office.
THEY TOOK ME FOR $1019.60. MY CREDIT UNION HAS REIMBURSED ME FOR THIS.
Reviewed Jan. 3, 2008
I need to fly from Albuquerque to New York City for a family health emergency. I've been trying to get the lowest fare possible as I am retired and on a fixed income. For the past 3 days I've been researching CheapAir fares which are advertised as the lowest. No matter what time I've tried to book this flight (advertised at $213 not incl. taxes) I am advised that this fare price is not available at this time. We apologize) Once-- one day-- OK-- I understand--- Three days in a row-- not OK--- I have been in the travel/sales industry for many years before retirement. I know Bait and Switch when I see it. Does anyone out there care-- Or is this really the 3rd World?
Reviewed Nov. 29, 2007
l bought a ticket from them for New York to London in Jun 2007. My ticket was suppose to be deliver to my house two days before and I never got the ticket. l have a print from the computer the day l bought the ticket so l called them the day before l was leaving to ask if it is ok to use the printed ticket. l was told yes, go ahead and use it. l got to the ticket line to board the plane but was rejected and also was told by the airlines l would have to buy the ticket again in order for me to travel, l called Cheapoair while l was in line and they told me to pass the phone to consumer service. They finished talking with cheapoair and then hang up. l called Cheapoair again and they told me l should buy another ticket and they will refund me on my return. Luckily my cousin was with me and she paid for the ticket. So I asked her to call them the next day and she did. They told her to fax copies of both tickets to them and my refund will be on its way. Still nothing. And when l returned, l called them many times and they kept telling me to give it some time. l did, but still nothing. I finally called them and was very upset and they asked me again to fax copies more than three times. Two days ago l called and was asked again to fax copies of both tickets to them so l told them I am not faxing anymore copies to them. And the person l was talking with told me that then l don't need me money and hung up the phone on me.
Reviewed July 10, 2007
On Wednesday May 23, 2007 I visited the website cheapoair.com.com to search for an airline ticket.
The rate I was quoted was around $436 + 118 for handling. This was the best rate I had found thus I proceeded to book the ticket.
After I submitted my information I received a message stating that rate was no longer available and that I must choose either:
1. A different itinerary or2. Pay $850 for the itinerary I wanted.
AT NO TIME WAS I ALLOWED TO CHOOSE TO NOT PURCHASE THE TICKET.
I did not want the alternate itineraries and when I tried to page back the ticket was automatically purchased without my agreement!
I did not want to change the itinerary and I certainly did not want to pay $850 for the ticket.
I called immediately and at the same time I emailed cheapoair.com indicating that I did not agree to change my itinerary nor did I accept the amount I was charged.
I received no response to either the voice mail I left or the email I sent.
That afternoon of I again called cheapoair.com. I waited on hold for nearly an hour; spoke to a customer service representative who worked on my case until we were disconnected.
I again called cheapoair.com. I again waited on hold for another 20 minutes. I then spoke with another representative, Derik, who was very helpful. He worked to try to find me the ticket I wanted at the price I agreed to pay. We talked for nearly an hour and he indicated her would call me back within the hour.
Derik did call me back. At that time he informed me that he could not find a ticket for the price I agreed to pay with the itinerary I chose.
He told me that the ticket had been cancelled and my credit card would be refunded.
One week later the refund had not appeared and the ticket remained as still issued, not cancelled as Derik had indicated it would be.
I have received responses from every email I sent indicating the problem is being evaluated and that cheapoair.com would contact me promptly with a resolution.
CHEAPOAIR.COM HAS NEVER CONTACTED ME OTHER THAN TO REPLY TO THE EMAILS STATING THAT THEY WOULD.
Reviewed Feb. 21, 2007
I booked a ticket with CheapoAir.com on 2/5/07. The website informs its customers that they offer the cheapest fares online so I bought a round trip Delta ticket from New York to Mexico City at a cost of $418.69. I then went to Delta.com and searched for the same flight and time and it turned out that their total cost was 310 dollars. I called delta and the agent said that CheapoAir.com was over charging me and advised me to contact CheapoAir.com to reduce the cost to market value.
I called the website travel agency and I spend more than an hour trying to convince them that they had overcharged me and that their website marketing information had misguided me in my purchased. The agency agreed to reduce only 20 dollars and they promised me to receive a call from a manager to discuss the matter further. It’s been 20 days and I have not heard from them.
Reviewed Aug. 15, 2006
My Grandmother died on the 31st December 2005, I had to return to England for the funeral. I searched the internet and came up with a fare offered by the above company.It was from Jacksonville to London Gatwick with one stop over in New York. The flight was carefully selected to allow time for custom and immigration formalities as my 7 year old son would be travelling with me.
Upon arrival at Jacksonville airport I was told by the Continental Air Lines that my tickets had been cancelled as Cheapoair had failed to confirm the tickets despite two requests from Continental.
I immediately tried to contact Cheapoair and an hour later I finally got to speak to someone, what followe was 3 hours of me having to keep calling them, they were looking for another flight that would not be a financial burdent to them! As I was desperate to get to England for my Grandmothers services I took the only flight they offered me, it did not leave Jacksonville airport until 7pm, and stopped over in Atlanta and Paris France. The stop over in Paris was so short that we had to run between terminals and would have still missed the connection had the flight not been delayed even so we only just managed to board - our luggage did not and was missing for four days.
Due to the issues I did not have my return flight details and purchased a cell phone in England ( I did not have internet access) so that I could obtain these details.
What followed was numerous calls to Cheapoairs offices when I constantly got Voice Mails each time I left a message stating I did not have access to E Mail but to contact me on the cell phone and left the number. I never got a call. However I know that a call was received as upon my return to the USA I had an E Mail in my inbox on the date of my first and second calls.
Eventually I had to purchase another ticket to return to the USA, for a futher $1392.00.
Since my return in January I have tried dealing with the company, they never call me back, I haveto call random extention numbers and ask to be put through, which then gets routed to a voice mail. If I do manage to speak to a person they never call back, if I ask to speak to a manager they are never there.
I am at my wits end as to how to proceed with this further. I have paid almost $1500.00 and not in any way got the service I paid for.
My luggage was lost and damaged - I had to buy clothes for my son before it finally arrived - Air France ( I would not voluntarily travel with them) catagorically stated the luggage would not have made the flight to London because of security checks.
CheapOair Company Information
- Company Name:
- CheapOair
- State/Province:
- NY
- Country:
- United States
- Website:
- www.cheapoair.com
