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She didn’t ride off into the sunset after all

September 17, 2007

So much for a happy ending. Janice Japa thought she had one when Expedia agreed to refund the $789 she had spent on a nonexistent hotel room, plus threw in $400 in credit. I did, too. It turns out we were both wrong.

What follows is a cautionary tale about vouchers. The airline, hotel or travel agency you’re dealing with may act as if they’re as good as money. But don’t be fooled.

“I was able to utilize the $100 voucher for a stay hotel stay without a problem,” says Japa. “But I have not had luck trying to use the other vouchers.”

What was the problem? Japa tried to redeem the second voucher for a United Airlines flight. Here’s what happened:

In July, I booked an airline ticket to use the $200 airfare voucher that they supposedly credited my account. The remaining fare, after utilizing the $200 voucher through Expedia, was $38.10, which I tried to charge my credit card. Instead, my card was charged the full amount for the ticket — $233.10. My credit card statement shows the charge by United Airlines. I’ve called Expedia numerous times, and they consistently claim that the voucher was used and that I have not been charged $233.10 for this airfare, but that I was only charged $38.10. This is now in dispute with my credit card company, United Airlines and Expedia.

When a company offers vouchers of any kind — whether it’s an airline voucher for being denied boarding or a hotel voucher for an unpleasant experience during your stay — it’s important to understand that it’s not the same as cash. There are significant restrictions on most company scrip, including blackout dates and expirations.

Travel companies know this isn’t money. They realize that redemption rates on these vouchers are well under 10 percent, and that it’s in their best interests to keep them there by making the coupons difficult to redeem.

Bottom line: vouchers are often used to “apologize” to customers who feel as if they were wronged. But they’re so difficult to use that the apology strikes many travelers as insincere.

You can count Japa among those people.

“Expedia continues to be a nightmare,” she says. “I tried to give them another chance, but they’ve blown it.”

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

7 comments

  • http://hubpages.com/profile/Jennlee3741 Jenni Hammitt

    Ah yes, Expedia strikes again. If a comapny screws up, they sould make it right for the customer. It is insult to injury when your apology also becomes a nightmare.

  • Sam

    What people have to recognize is how Expedia & third party wholesalers often do business and how inventory is controlled. Expedia’s booking system interfaces with only a few hotel chains websites. Most hotel inventories are held in an Expedia extranet site – theoretically, Hyatt’s are all managed with a 2-way & a fax shouldn’t have been sent at all – http://press.expedia.com/index.php?s=press_releases&item=217 – I know that Marriott and Hilton’s system interfaces seamlessly with Expedia – but it seems that Hyatt’s isn’t functioning as well as it should be. Because of the extranet, hotels that don’t have a 2-way connection with Expedia have to manually manage rates – which means if the hotel sells out & Expedia can continue to sell. Granted, this liability should be the hotels, not Expedia’s as they are a booking agent – however, Expedia’s system doesnt’ close out as quickly as it should. I would recommend to all of your readers to use sites like Expedia to research, but book directly with the hotels (generally, you pay the same rate, save the $5-10 booking fee, have better & more flexible cancellations policies, and the hotel isn’t taking a 20% hit on the commission charge that Expedia forces them on, so you won’t be considered a crappier customer – which, even though it shouldn’t happen, we all know it does…

  • Robert Davis

    For the life of me I don’t understand why anyone books through a third party web site. Are the discounts that good? I’ve used Expedia and Travelocity to do research and then book directly with the hotel or car rental company. I’ve never seen where the travel companies offer anything of value. It seems to me the only thing you get with them is an additional chance for something to go wrong.
    Bob

  • Roy Bickley

    To Robert, I book through a Web site due to the ease and speed. That said, last week I went to Expedia and spent 20 minutes going through all of the pages of ad-ons to finally reach the final screen stating that as the price could not be guaranteed, I should try again later. So I went to Orbitz and in less than 10 minutes I had the same flight for the same price booked and ticketed! Guess where I wioll go next time?!?

  • Don

    Actually, the solution is rather simple and already in place — in the EU. Airlines are required to make all compensation in cash or checks. Vourchers are not allowed.
    Problem solved.

  • http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr Allan J.

    There’s a big difference between vouchers that have overt onerous rules and restrictions and blackout date, and vouchers that are simply dishonored even when the rules are followed.

    I heartily agree with, and have preached advice on, looking on Travelocity, Expedia, etc. and bookind directly with the desired airline, car rental agency, etc.

  • Erin

    As a person that has worked in hotel reservations, and as a person who’s traveled, I understand the whole picture. I agree with the concept that you should LOOK on those third party websites, but then call the hotel directly. MOST hotels have a price Guarantee where they’ll match the price you found on third-party site. In some occasions, speaking to an agent at the hotel itself is more beneficial anyway because their could possibly be a promotion that you can only get by calling. Maybe it wouldn’t be a lower price, but maybe they’ll throw in, say, two breakfasts at the buffet or something similar. Then there’s also the benefit of booking directly, you may (not likely, but sometimes) get an upgrade you didn’t pay for. I can’t speak for other hotels, but with the one I worked at, we could not TOUCH a booking made by a wholesale site, for any reason. So if you paid for a standard room, you will get a standard room. However, if we were having a slower-than-normal night, a guest who paid for a standard might get a comp-upgrade to a standardplus or a deluxe…

    Only when you’ve called the hotel to verify availability and found out that they can’t offer a price match, should you deal with the hassle of booking from a third-party. That’s my opinion anyway.

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