Online Travel Booking and Bidding Agencies - My Anger with Travelocity.. justified?

This is gonna be a rant. I will admit that as i start this thread.

Yesterday, I booked a RT flight on Travelocity. I provided them with US phone number AND valid email. 5 hrs after booking, i was on air traveling across pacific to ICN. Got a sim card at ICN, checked into hotel, turned my computer on, and what did i see? a cancellation of trip notice from travelocity for a trip that departs in 3 days!!!
3days!!


They said, hey we tried to reach you but u didn't pick up, so.. we cancelled it.

Now, i would have thought if they didn't reach me via phone, they could have sent me email saying hey call us within 24-48 hrs, or we are gonna cancel it.

they just.. cancelled it. that was it. hey u didn't pick up your phone, so we cancelled it, rather than a courtesy email.


Now the same itin cost 250 more, and i am wondering what my next move is. (besides buying new ticket before price jumps again).

called travelocity agent + their revenue protection department, and all they keep telling me is that once cancelled, they can't reinstate it.

great. do something about it for me! nop. nothing.


argh.

Assuming they needed to cancel it for a valid reason, I don't think they did anything wrong. You didn't pick up because you were on the plane, so they e-mailed you instead.

Did they tell you why they are cancelling it?

I understand that they can't reinstate a canceled ticket, but perhaps they can rebook you at the original price. Have you tried escalating your calls to a manager?

Assuming they needed to cancel it for a valid reason, I don't think they did anything wrong. You didn't pick up because you were on the plane, so they e-mailed you instead.

Did they tell you why they are cancelling it?



sorry if i wasn't clear. Sometimes travelocity likes to call to ensure it was really you who booked that flight.

MY ISSUE lies in that so they want to check if it was me? great. that's fine. but if i don't pick up my phone due to my travel, at least have the courtesy to email me and ask either to verify via email, or ask to call back within certain time frame, or we are gonna cancel.

not simply cancel because i didn't pick up my phone.


their reasoning was that i didn't pick up their confirmation call.


it's their procedural issue really, and i understand they want to limit fraud, but they should exhaust means of communication and verification, rather than cancelling after one phone call.

I understand that they can't reinstate a canceled ticket, but perhaps they can rebook you at the original price. Have you tried escalating your calls to a manager?



I tried. Its noon in Korea right now, which means past business hr back in the states. they told me to call during their office hour.

honestly, i had to rebook anyway.. at HIGHER price (different one. I hate playing this card, but really i would never book through travelocity again, especially when there are so many travel engines out there).

if they would compensate me for that diff, then i'd certainly change my mind.

their reasoning was that i didn't pick up their confirmation call.


In that case, this is quite ridiculous, and I would encourage you to write them a letter so there is a paper trail, and complain with the Better Business Bureau and Consumerist if you don't get a reasonable response.

Did you use a non-US credit card to pay for the ticket? A lot of companies are suspicious of foreign credit cards due to the high rate of fraud, so they will cancel transactions that they can't verify.

Please continue to follow this discussion in the Online Travel Booking Forum.
Thanks...
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

In that case, this is quite ridiculous, and I would encourage you to write them a letter so there is a paper trail, and complain with the Better Business Bureau and Consumerist if you don't get a reasonable response.


Thanks. I will be doing just that. It's ridiculous. Been too busy to escalate the issue with the travelocity's managers yet.

Did you use a non-US credit card to pay for the ticket? A lot of companies are suspicious of foreign credit cards due to the high rate of fraud, so they will cancel transactions that they can't verify.


No. It was my amex PRG (US).