If 2017 was a record year for national disasters, then it was a disastrous year for charity scams.
It’s difficult to estimate the size of these swindles. The site Charity Navigator says total giving to charitable organizations hit $390 billion in 2016, an increase of 2.7 percent. A separate UK study estimates that charity fraud amounted to $3.1 billion in 2017.
Myron Schuur thought he’d found a deal through Orbitz to stay at the American Inn Benton Harbor in Michigan. And he had — but it wasn’t the deal he expected.
“The first thing we noticed was a terrible odor in the halls,” he says. “It was like a mixture of cigarette smoke, dust and stale air. The walls had been poorly patched and painted over.”
SATA Airlines downgrades Lawrence Hughes from business class to economy class on a flight from Porto, Portugal, to Boston. A representative promises a refund. Where is it?
Of all the bad vacation starts, it’s almost impossible to pick the worst. But here’s a contender.
Madeline Gaffney leaves her Airbnb rental after she discovers it’s in a crime-ridden neighborhood. Can she get a refund?
When Tracy Rubin tried to check in online for her 4 p.m. flight from Boston to Chicago, she discovered she was going nowhere. A Southwest schedule change meant she’d need to depart at 2 p.m., a flight she didn’t want.
Mary Mason doesn’t want to pay for the clutch failure on her Easirent rental; and after you hear her story, you’ll understand why.
An unexpected cancellation of her domestic flight puts Janice Malvey’s Australia vacation in jeopardy. But who should fix the problem? And is there time to do it before she leaves? Why won’t JustFly fix her ticket?
After a months-long delay on his Bluesmart luggage order, Michael Tarajos tries to cancel — only to be subjected to even more delays. Can this refund be expedited, or is it permanently lost?
After Reza Alborz’s father dies, there’s almost no chance he can fly back to Iran to visit his family. Would Turkish Airlines consider refunding the plane tickets his mother bought?
