With summer approaching, your Better Business Bureau is warning consumers on how to spot and avoid the "too-good-to-be-true" travel deals.
Consumers are contacting BBB to inquire about travel companies that promise great travel deals. These offers usually arrive unexpectedly in consumers' mailboxes, or over the telephone or Internet.
Typically, the consumer is told that they have won a "free" trip and must call a number to claim their prize. Or they were contacted by someone offering a travel club membership, allegedly worth thousands of dollars.
According to BBB experiences, some phony promoters have been known to take consumers' money, without providing the travel or trip that was promised. Other promoters advertise rock-bottom prices, but hide certain fees until the deal is sealed. Some promise luxurious accommodations and services, but deliver far less. Still others don't reveal that the deal includes an obligation to sit through a timeshare pitch at the destination. Finally, some promoters guarantee consumers that they can get a full refund if they decide to cancel the trip, but fail to make good on their promise.
BBB offers guidelines on how to protect yourself:
- Obtain the names, addresses and telephone numbers for the lodgings, airlines and cruise ships advertised in a vacation promotion.
- Get the details of the promotion in writing, including the refund and cancellation policy, before sending a check or providing credit card number information. If asked to provide a credit card or bank account number for verification or identification, your BBB suggests you reconsider. This information can be used to make fraudulent charges or debits to the consumer's accounts.
- Check with your BBB for a free Reliability ReportsTM on the business. Fraudulent travel deals can be hard to distinguish from legitimate ones.
- If you are tempted to respond to online travel solicitations, BBB recommends that you not judge the agency solely by the appearance of its Web site. Online travel scams are increasing in part because it is easy to disguise your identity in cyberspace.
For additional information and advice you can trust, start with bbb.org.
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