fandu

Don't know if this belongs here but mods please move to the proper forum.

Here is a what happened to me recently. Danielle form Flyhub contacted me and asked me to sell my miles on their website, flyhub.com. I was a bit apprehensive at first but then since I had her cell phone number, I thought they would be legit.

It has been more than 2 months now and they have yet to pay me. Everytime I called up in the beginning they said they sent a money order. Then they asked to deposit directly into a bank account. I opened a new bank account (since I only had online accounts) and gave them that account #. Still no money. Now Danielle has stopped answering my phone calls.

Oh and their customer service is a joke. They have some kind of an offsite agent who knows nothing and will only take down your name, number and a message. A quick google search showed me theie office address in San Francisco. Being close to that, I drove only to find out they no longer exist there.

I will be filing for my money in small claims court and also see if the local cops can help me. I am trying to read more on how to handle this since it never happened before.

mosu84

Incorporated in CA, but the corporation's status is currently suspended.



Good luck tracking these guys down. How many miles did you sell them?

Jaimito Cartero

Selling miles or awards is against the rules in every frequent flyer program that I know of. If caught many FF programs will lock your account. There are many fly by night places that rip off folks since there is little they can do if stiffed.

It's too bad you didn't research before you sent the miles.

artemis021

Selling miles is against the rules of ff programs; it is not illegal. The OP clearly is a victim of fraud.

You should contact the CA Attoney General's office and the FTC, but they will probably have the same problem you did, the inability to find them. And since they deal with all sorts of scams, they might be too overloaded to help you much.

mosu84

Yup. Although the OP should definitely have his or her frequent flyer account closed (although I doubt it matters since the account is empty anyway) or possibly be liable for civil damages, the OP didn't break any criminal laws and she/he is entitled to the money.

mahasamatman

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illegal

mosu84

you know what he means

Efrem

Selling miles isn't against the law, but using a ticket obtained for sold miles could be. It might run afoul of a California law that prohibits using a ticket for transportation in violation of its terms and conditions. This has been discussed elsewhere on FT. I don't recall if the lawyers and/or wannabe lawyers reached a conclusion as to whether it covers this situation, but it may be something to keep in mind.

tom911

Has the award ticket issued from your account been used yet? Do you have the information on who ticketed using your miles?

Keyser

sucks....its never a good idea to get into the selling & buying of miles to any 3rd party....

Evan!

Did the OP say their account is empty? Perhaps the OP sold 200K of a total balance of 300K. So if the account is closed by specific airline the OP would lose another 100K.

flyhub.com is still in business even if CA suspended their corporate status. I went to their website and on the home page I saw Customer Service Agents Are Available 24/7 At 1 877 435 9482. I called and a real person answered after 3 rings. First thing out of her mouth was "Thank you for contacting FlyHub. Are you looking to buy or sell miles today?"

OP, you stated that Danielle from FlyHub contacted you. How did she contact you? by phone? email? snail mail? I am curious as to how Danielle even knew that you had miles that you might want to sell. If she cold called you then someone out there is either giving or selling information about FFers - specifically their miles balance(s)! Do you have a points.com account? Do you use a miles tracking service like acruw.com, mileport.com, Tripit.com, mileageMANAGER.com, AwardWallet.com, etc?

Jaimito Cartero

As a WAG, I'd say that perhaps a Craig's list ad for selling miles, or some other public source was the method of their meeting.

I'd guess that the ticket was a few weeks out, hence why she was still talking to you and dragging their feet. As soon as the ticket was completed, no more contact.

PT Barnum, my boy, PT Barnum.

sbrower

In California it is a crime. I don't know of anyone ever being charged, but the law is on the books.

fandu

Yes I posted on craigslist to sell the miles. Danielle contacted me through email and then by phone. I have her phone number and I will be contacting the local PD on Friday (I am out of town) to see my options.

Yes Flyhub is still in business and the girl that answers the phone only takes the message and says she will forward to Danielle.

I will update on Friday after my visit to the local PD.

Steve M

That sounds like an answering service to me.