Customers asked to use alternative payment methods with PayPal or make a bank transfer to beneficiary in London
Last week a third-party air ticket distributor surprised many by offering flights all over the word for stunning prices.However, it all looked too good to be true.
The website displays travel deals with major regional players such as Qatar Airways, Etihad and Emirates airlines for unbelievable prices.
An unnamed source from one of the airlines named says the site should be put under the scanner, as no contractual agreement has ever been signed between the third-party travel distributor and the carrier.
[Click here to read Etihad's online auction]
“We deal with third-party travel distributors, but on a contract basis only. We have never heard of this distributor and we do not have any relationship with it. They are not permitted to sell tickets on our behalf,” the top airline's source says.
The identity of the website is being withheld at this point in time pending further investigation.
After payments were made and e-tickets confirmed, travellers have been unable to confirm the booking with the respective airline and are thus not entitled to the flight they thought they had booked for.
From that point on, communication with the web-based travel agent seems to be impossible.
An Indian resident of Abu Dhabi named Rajkumar writes that he had booked tickets for his family to fly from Abu Dhabi to India with a well-known regional airliner. However, upon calling the airliner, the bookings could not be confirmed and the ticket number was unfamiliar to them.
Another duped traveller named Elaine from Oman describes how she booked a ticket with a leading regional carrier, only to find out afterwards that the e-ticket number could never be genuine, as it did not match the digits characteristic of that airliner.
Customers tempted by the incredibly low prices are asked by the travel site to use alternative payment methods due to a technical problem with PayPal.
“I paid through Western Union on May 3, 2012, money that I had borrowed from the bank in order to pay for these tickets,” writes Elaine from Oman.
Other travellers were asked to make a bank transfer to a beneficiary located in London.
After the payment is made, customers receive an e-ticket on which all details are mentioned, and confirmation of the flight can be seen on the website.
Source: http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/travel-alert-agent-sells-incredibly-cheap-air-tickets-online-2012-05-14-1.458601
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