Frank Santa Maria buys two tickets to Italy on Expedia. But when an agent misspells his wife’s name, he must embark on an odyssey to ensure she’ll be allowed to use her tickets. Will he be successful?
EXPEDIA
For years, we’ve been told that names on airline tickets can’t be changed. Never, ever. Wouldn’t be safe. Usually, our only option was to buy a completely new ticket, even if the name was a small mismatch, like an obvious typographical error. Well, it turns out that isn’t our only choice.
On his return flight from Madrid to San Juan, Jose Morales is forced to buy a one-way ticket because of an error made by Expedia. Now the agency wants him to contact the airline for a refund. Can it do that? And what of its “promise” to take care of any problems that come up?
Jerry Stannard booked a room at the St. Gregory Luxury Hotel & Suites in Washington through Expedia recently. But when he tried to confirm the reservation by phone, no one had heard of him. He had to pay for another room, even though Expedia already had his money.
The nightly room rate at the Best Eastern Sovietsky Hotel in Moscow is $279. At least that’s what the Expedia sales agent promises Ilan Saadia. But the hotel begs to differ when he checks in. It jacks up his rate to $839 a night. Who’s right? And who should pay the bill?
Joseph Dunlap runs into a snag when he tries to buy an airline ticket online for his mother. So he calls the online agency, Expedia, and is sold a ticket that costs twice the online rate. Do rates really vary by that much? Well, yes — and no.
I’m baffled by Expedia’s latest marketing campaign, a tie-in to the upcoming film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The other day, my friends over at the online travel agency sent me a fedora in a box along with a note that promised I could “Travel like Indiana Jones, starting today.”
Bob Ledford is promised a room with a two-sided ocean view when he books through Expedia. But when he arrives, the view isn’t what he expected, the hotel doesn’t seem to care, and Expedia won’t post the negative review of the resort. What’s wrong with this picture?
When Allison Fagerness’ flight to Rome is canceled, she’s forced to call off her vacation and return home. Her online travel agent, Expedia, promises a refund, but her airline, Alitalia, won’t pay. What should she do?
There’s bad news for anyone who is considering booking a trip online: the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index from the University of Michigan finds customer satisfaction has fallen to an all-time low. The online travel industry’s aggregate scored slipped from 76 to 75 last year, a drop of 1.3 percent. It’s the lowest reading since the ACSI began tracking online travel agencies in 2002.
Here’s an important footnote to the airline industry’s year from hell. A closer look at the Transportation Department’s 2007 report card shows some carriers were likelier to lose your luggage, deny you boarding, get you to your destination late and provoke a written complaint. And some airlines were above it all.
