Greg's Corner

Tagged: airline tickets Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on June 19, 2024 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: 411, airline tickets, funeral ( 14 ), impersonation scam ( 148 ), Scams ( 1,386 )   

  Ticket scam keeps widow from husband’s funeral 

  

  By Greg Collier

  A 79-year-old widow from Central Florida missed her husband’s funeral due to a sophisticated scam. She had cherished 59 wonderful years with her late husband.

  Her husband passed away in March, and the family had planned to lay him to rest in their family cemetery in Wisconsin. The widow, along with her son and grandson, was scheduled to fly from Orlando-Sanford International Airport to Appleton, Wisconsin, on June 1. However, a medical emergency forced her to miss the initial flight. Determined to attend her husband’s funeral, she had to book a last-minute ticket on her own.

  Admittedly, not being tech-savvy, she dialed 411 to get the contact details for the airline. She was connected to a man who claimed to be from the airline, and explained her urgent need for a flight. The man quoted an exorbitant price of $988 for a roundtrip flight, citing the funeral as a reason for the inflated cost. He even provided what seemed to be a legitimate airline boarding pass with a confirmation code.

  She arrived at the airport with her confirmation code. The ticket counter accepted the code, issued her a boarding pass, checked her luggage, and even provided wheelchair assistance through TSA. Yet, when it was time to board, she was left at the gate.

  An airline supervisor broke the devastating news that her ticket was not valid. The supervisor claimed the widow was not the first of their customers to be scammed in this way. Additionally, the scammers had charged her card over a dozen times in small amounts, totaling roughly $2,000. Although her luggage made it to Appleton, Wisconsin, she missed her husband’s funeral.

  Airline customers should book directly through the airline’s official website to avoid falling victim to such scams. To ensure you have the correct customer service number, visit the airline’s website and obtain the number directly from there.

  If you rely solely on a web search for the airline’s phone number, there’s a high probability you could end up calling a scammer, as they often place ads on search engines to pose as airlines. Additionally, while calling 411 used to be a reliable way to get correct phone information, this service has largely been phased out by most phone providers.

  To protect yourself from scams, always verify the identity of who you are calling before providing any personal or financial information. Double-check phone numbers directly on the airline’s official website, and be cautious of search engine ads and outdated services like 411. Taking these extra steps can help ensure your safety and peace of mind when making travel arrangements.

   

  Leave a ReplyCancel reply
• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on July 21, 2023 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: airline tickets, customer service ( 50 ), customer support ( 23 ), impersonation scam ( 148 ), Scams ( 1,386 ), traveling ( 15 )   

  Scammers hope you miss your flight 

  

  By Greg Collier

  If you’ve ever had to travel by air, then you’re probably familiar with flight delays and cancellations. Unfortunately, they’re an inevitable part of flying. Or maybe you got stuck in traffic and missed your flight. When this happens, what’s the first thing you do. For some, it’s to get on the phone with their airline to see if they can reschedule a new flight to get to their destination. But very few people have the customer service number memorized or saved to their phone. So, they’ll Google the airline’s number, and the next thing they know, they’ve paid five times the original ticket price and are still stuck at the airport without an updated flight.

  So, how does something like this happen? A couple of ways, actually. Typically, scammers will buy sponsored listings on search engines to have their fake phone number promoted over the official number. Or they pose as the airline and tell the search engine company that their phony number is the new customer service number.

  When a weary and frustrated traveler calls a scam call center, a scammer, posing as a customer service agent, will tell the traveler they can book them a new flight with no problem. Except, the new ticket costs multiple times more than the original ticket price. Then the scammers will either ask for your payment information, or they’ll ask for an unusual payment method like gift cards or cryptocurrency. As you can probably imagine, they’re not booking anyone a new flight, either.

  If you find yourself in this situation, don’t rely on search engines for phone numbers. Instead, go to the airline’s website and find their customer service number there. If you do call an unauthorized customer service number and the customer service rep doesn’t mention the airline’s name when answering your call, that could be a good indicator you’re talking to a scammer. Lastly, when flying, use a credit card whenever possible. Credit cards offer much more protection than a debit card.

   
• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on August 5, 2022 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: airline tickets, cancellations, Scams ( 1,386 ), traveling ( 15 )   

  BBB warns of Airline ticket scam 

  

  By Greg Collier

  The airline industry has yet to return to pre-pandemic conditions. Many of the airlines are still understaffed and overbooked, leading to record numbers of flight cancellations. As should be expected, scammers have their fingers on the pulse of the airline industry and are using the industry’s problems to the scammers’ advantage. It’s become such an issue that Better Business Bureau offices all over the country have issued multiple warnings about these scams.

  Most of these airline ticket scams start with where someone buys their airline tickets from. Scammers will set up phony websites or phony customer service numbers that promise discounted flight packages. The scammers will act like they’re booking a legitimate flight while taking the traveler’s money. After the transaction is completed, the traveler will receive a phone call from the phony travel company saying the flight has been cancelled, but they can be rerouted for an additional fee. That means the traveler has paid twice for a ticket that doesn’t even exist.

  The BBB warns that no legitimate airline or travel business would call back indicating an immediate price increase.

  In another scam, a traveler has a legitimately purchased flight ticket, but scammers will send out a text message posing as an airline, saying that the traveler’s flight has been cancelled when it actually hasn’t. The text contains a phone number to call which would connect the traveler to the scammers who promise to rebook the traveler for an additional fee.

  With any kind of travel arrangements, always do your research first. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it just might be. Look for online reviews of the company you’re booking your flight with if you’re not dealing with the airline directly. Also, be careful of emails and texts that claim to be rescheduling or rerouting your flight. Never click on any links provided or call any phone number listed in the messages. Instead, call the airline directly at the customer service number listed on their website.

   
• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on April 26, 2021 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: airline tickets, customer service ( 50 ), Scams ( 1,386 )   

  Cheap plane tickets could end up costing you a lot 

  

  By Greg Collier

  With many of the pandemic restrictions starting to be loosened, many people are looking to start traveling again. When people travel for whatever reason, they try to find the best bargain for their airfare. While this could lead you to getting a great deal, it could also lead to you being ripped off for airline tickets that may not even exist.

  If you’re looking to book a flight you might find various third-party websites and services that promise you a steep discount for airline tickets. However, the Better Business Bureau is warning consumers that they could be nothing more than scams. One version of the scam happens when you do a web search for an airline customer service number. Scammers often take out ads on the more popular search engines to try to get you to call them instead of the actual airline. They’ll take your money and send you a confirmation email but what they never send you are your tickets.

  In another variation of this scam, you’ll pay for tickets through a scam website or phony customer service number. The scammers will then contact you telling you that there’s been a price increase or an additional service charge is required. And you still never get any tickets. Legitimate airlines would never do this.

  If you’re planning to travel by air anytime soon, your best bet to protect yourself from these scams is to stick with the airline websites or well-known travel sites. You can still find some really good deals that also include lodging and car rentals. If you come across a deal that you think is just too good to pass up, research the service or website offering the deal before you give them any money. One of the best ways to do this is to put the name of the service or website in a search engine along with some additional search terms like ‘scam’ or ‘complaints’.

  As with most online purchases, a few minutes of research could save you from a lot of financial headaches.