The Travel Troubleshooter

The Travel Troubleshooter is a weekly consumer column that solves travel problems. Missing cruise refunds, lousy airline service, car rental surcharges — it’s all fair game for this feature. Each story presents a problem and fixes it in a quick Q&A format.

The Travel Troubleshooter: Snared by the Mexican insurance scam

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Question: I recently returned from a nine-day trip to Cancun, Mexico. Before arriving, I booked a car rental through Hotwire.com, accepting a midsize vehicle with Europcar for $9.80 a day. With taxes, my rental was supposed to come to $97.

Before leaving for my trip, I verified that my credit card company covered all types of rental car insurance and that no additional insurance should be purchased. When I arrived in Cancun, the Europcar agent insisted that it was company policy that I take the extra insurance, otherwise he could not rent me the car. He even insisted that this would have been on the Hotwire agreement page.

Reluctantly, I accepted the insurance. When I got home, I ended up being charged $268 for the rental car. The Hotwire and Europcar websites do not mention mandatory insurance, yet neither will compensate me for what I believe was an attempt to overcharge me for services. What can be done about this? — Gordon Houston, Calgary, Canada

Answer: Ah, the old Mexican insurance scam! Regular readers of this column already know about this one. It goes something like this: You rent a car south of the border, believing the rate you’ve been quoted includes all mandatory charges. But wait. When you get to the car rental counter, an associate tells you that without insurance, you’re not going anywhere. So you pay.

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Oh no! They lost my ticket refund

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Question: I recently lost a paper airline ticket to Spain that I booked through Travelocity. I was told to fill out a lost ticket refund application through Iberia Airlines, which I did. Both Travelocity and Iberia assured me that I would receive a refund for the second ticket I had to buy, minus a $100 fee.

Since my return, I have contacted Iberia numerous times to get the status of my refund, but they said they were not able to help me directly. I asked Travelocity to contact Iberia, which they did. I also provided Travelocity with background information and sent them the original paper tickets (which were subsequently found).

Travelocity contacted Iberia to request a refund on my behalf, but I have not heard anything since then. It’s been four months. I requested that Travelocity follow up, but they told me to contact Iberia directly. When I contact Iberia directly, they tell me they will only speak to my travel agent. What should I do? — Karen Smith, Stamford, Conn.

Answer: Did you say you had a paper ticket? I thought those were obsolete. Travelocity and Iberia should have issued an electronic ticket. (In fairness, this case was brought to my attention a few months ago, but still — paper tickets were supposed to go the way of the dodo in 2008.)

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I rented a clunker — now they want my cash

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Question: I recently rented a car from Enterprise in Jacksonville, Fla. I was asked if I wanted optional insurance, and I declined. At first I was told that there were no cars available to me, but as I waited, another customer returned a car, and I was told I could have that vehicle at the same rate I had originally been quoted.

The car was a mess. It had paint on the outside of the windshield and no gas in the tank. An Enterprise representative thrust a clipboard into my face and told me to “sign here.” I did.

I drove the car home, where it was parked in my driveway the entire time. When I returned the car, I was told that I had damaged it. I was speechless, since there was no way the car could have been damaged in any way while it was in my possession. A representative said she would write something up and send it to me. Later, I received a bill for $775 from Enterprise. I did not damage the car. What can I do? — Nancy Westcott, Jacksonville, Fla.

Answer: Enterprise should have offered you a clean car with a full tank of gas, and given you enough time to inspect the vehicle before driving away.

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Two rooms with one bed — and no refund

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Question: I have recently had a problem with Hotels.com, and I hope you can help me. I called them to reserve one room at a Holiday Inn in San Francisco. This was to be a gift for my two granddaughters.

I was sent two email confirmations, which I assumed were duplicates since they both were for one room for two nights. My granddaughters were given two keys when they arrived. They showed the desk clerk the confirmation, but were told the reservation was for two rooms and that they were prepaid.

It turned out that each room had only one bed, so the girls did use both rooms. I received my Visa bill the next day and saw that I was billed for two rooms — two different charges for $302 each.

I called the Holiday Inn and was told that it was Hotels.com’s problem. The reservation that was made was for two rooms, and they had nothing to do with the billing. Hotels.com denies that they made an error, and that because the girls used both rooms, they would not refund the money.

I feel they made the mistake in reserving two rooms, and I should not be made to pay for the extra room, even though it was used. Is this the way they make money? — Nula Fales, Elk Grove, Calif.

Answer: Certainly not. If you only ordered one room, then Hotels.com should have only given you one. Any business that tries to sell you more than you wanted, wouldn’t last very long online, or anywhere.

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I thought car rental insurance was optional

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Question: For nearly a month now, I’ve been fighting to recover more than $280 from Hertz in connection with a reservation for a Mexican rental I made through Hotwire.

I reserved a Hertz car for a week in Mexico for an estimated $113 — a flat $90 for the rental of the car, and an estimated $23 in taxes and fees. I did not pay Hotwire at the time of the reservation and understood that I would pay Hertz directly when I rented the car.

At the Hertz desk in Mexico, I was presented with an entirely different set of charges. There, I heard for the first time about the mandatory Mexican liability insurance. I did not have the option of declining the insurance, which amounted to approximately $110 for the week.

But that wasn’t the only surprising charge. The price of the car had mysteriously risen to around $108, and I was assessed a “service charge” of approximately $135. No one at Hertz or Hotwire has yet been able to tell me what that’s about. Together with two smaller fees of about $44, my total bill came to $397.

The day after I returned from Mexico, I contacted both Hotwire and Hertz. Although their stories have varied slightly over the weeks, each company tells me that I should go talk to the other. Hotwire says it has no control over what Hertz bills me, and Hertz says it has no control over what Hotwire quotes me.

Given the enormous discrepancy in price and the hours I’ve spent trying to get this matter resolved, I am seeking a refund of the full $283 difference between the $113 reservation price and $397 charge. Hertz has my money, but Hotwire made the representations that led me to the Hertz desk in Mexico. Can you help me get my refund? — Brian Perez-Daple, Arlington, Va.

Answer: You should have been charged the rate you were quoted. When you weren’t, Hotwire should have asked Hertz to refund the money on your behalf.

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Who’s gonna pay these overdraft fees?

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Question: I booked a hotel room at the Hampton Inn Atlanta-Buckhead in Atlanta earlier this year. I paid a special online rate of $96 for one night. A few days later, I discovered that I had been charged for the room again.

This caused my account to be overdrawn and I incurred a $35 overdraft fee. I called the hotel immediately and was told they would investigate and that I would receive a call back later that day. I received no such call, so I tried to call the hotel several times but could reach no one.

I called the Hilton VIP hotline, since I am an HHonors Diamond VIP member, and they said they spoke to the manager at the local hotel and they are working on it. They told me I would be contacted. I was not.

I wrote to Hampton Inn and Hilton through its website. In the meantime, another purchase I had made before finding out about this charge posted, so I incurred yet another $35 overdraft fee. I finally received an email from Hilton three months after my stay, promising a refund. It never came. Can you help me? — Alia Naffouj, Martinez, Ga.

Answer: Hampton Inn should have refunded the extra $96, plus the overdraft fees you incurred because of its error. I’m astounded the company — Hampton is part of the Hilton family of hotels — would do this to one of its best customers. What were they thinking?

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Paris for 10 euros a night — uh, make that 100 euros

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Question: I recently booked a hotel in Paris through Travelocity for 10 euros a night. Great rate, huh? Afterward, I booked airline tickets separately.

Not long after that, in the course of e-mail conversations with the hotel, they told me this was a mistake and that they could not honor the rate. Instead, they offered to increase my rate to 100 euros a night.

I then contacted Travelocity via phone, told them the problem and they called back and left me a voice mail saying it was a mistake and to go ahead and travel and then when I got back to contact the consumer relations department for a refund. I still have the voice mail. I contacted the hotel via e-mail and I said I would accept the new rate.

Now Travelocity has offered me a $50 voucher for my trouble. A few days later, they upped it to $250. This is pretty much worthless to me as I usually travel using miles and book my hotels using points. Can you help? — Patrick Kerr, St Louis

Answer: You’re right, that’s a great rate for a hotel room. Unbelievably good. And if Travelocity hadn’t left a voice mail promising to refund 90 euros a night, your case wouldn’t stand much of a chance.

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Oops, you missed a scratch on the roof

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Question: I hope you can help me with a dubious repair bill I received. I rented a car from Enterprise in Newark recently, and we did a cursory walk-around inspection with the agent in the rain.

The agent did not mark the “no damage” box on the contract, but I did not see any damage, either. When I returned the car three weeks later in Manhattan, the Enterprise employee did not tell us there was damage, but a supervisor told me there was a scratch on the roof. I couldn’t see it until I opened the car door and stood on the sill.

I told the supervisor I had never been asked to check the roof on a rental car, and that the Newark agent had not asked me to. The supervisor said she “agreed with me” regarding the agent error and would ask her regional manager to help us out. We were promised a call back within 48 hours. No one called.

We got a bill for $600, including three days of loss-of-use and eight hours of repair work for something that definitely does not need to be fixed, and that we did not cause. When I asked for documentation, the recovery agent sent me pictures of long, wide scratches on two different cars, not the car we returned. This is truly an attempt to rip off the customer! — Sandy Lamke, Mill Valley, Calif.

Answer: That must have been some scratch on the roof! When the Enterprise supervisor discovered the damage, you would have been asked to sign a form acknowledging the scratch and agreeing to pay for it. After that, the car rental company should have sent you a repair bill and documentation, including a photo of the car. Not any car.

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