matticusbond

I have a wedding this summer in the UK, and I offered to help some of my groomsman most impacted by covid with their flights by using some of my points. I shopped around, comparing BA, VS, UA...everyone. I was shocked to find that BA was consistently coming in cheaper than the rest of the field in terms of points (off peak), and only slightly behind UA in terms of taxes and fees.

On the flight selection page of the avios booking flow, I was getting a fare quote of 32,500 Avios, and $320.93pp. Very, very doable. Contacted the 3 groomsman, all of whom were elated at the price, thus enabling them to attend the celebration.

Went to book the tickets, clicked next to start the checkout process and, right before my eyes, the price practically doubled to $598.27, without any explanation. I played around with different flight combinations, thinking perhaps that might do something - but the same thing every time. 320 jumped to 598. (for reference, it's an lax-lhr route).
Called the gold line -- woman on the other end of the phone didn't have a care to spare in the world. Initially tried to tell me that website must be busted because the 320 is the fare for a one way ticket (which is not quite correct) before ultimately saying "tough luck."

Filed a complaint with BA - frankly this feels extremely deceptive (false advertising?) and pretty predatory. If I had transferred points from Amex/CapOne/etc only to learn the price was double the quote, I'd be screwed. BA took the longest they've ever taken to respond to my complaint. And finally, when they got back to me, it was a big fat Ż\_(ツ)_/Ż. Not our problem, nothing we can do. Call the support center.

Look - I've seen the fare quote and the final quote shift before by a few dollars (which, I still don't understand...surely they should know how much their stuff should cost and be able to fairly and accurately represent those costs to their customers). But never by this much. And no ones willingness to take responsibility or problem solve is angering. And the fact that I've contacted two different teams, and the website is still showing customers this experience is nonsense.

This is the final straw for me. I've been a very loyal BA customer for basically as many years as I've been flying. But lying to customers, either on purpose or by accident, and not taking responsibility for it is unacceptable. Not that they care

Tl;dr: BA providing significantly wrong fare quotes (perhaps intentionally). Doesn't care. No one takes responsibility. Loses a lifetime customer.

TTmex

I cant comment on why the price changes from one page to another but surcharges on ex-USA have long been eye wateringly high.

TTmex

For which cabin is this? I ran a search for one way LAX for WT and got Avios plus 75 quid. Dropped to 66 on the payment screen

corporate-wage-slave

Yes it would be good to have some specifics on this, not least because we may be able to come up with some more creative solutions. So routes and dates.

There is a well known factor that the flight selection screen doesn't show accurate figures, the second screeen, with the formal quote, is the one by which to be guided.

guv1976

Doesn't BA allow for a free cancellation up to 24 hours after purchase? If so, why not go ahead with the purchase and see what amount is actually charged?

In addition, I would take screenshots of all relevant price quotations. Since this is for a trip to the U.S., U.S. DOT regulations might also apply. See this guidance from the DOT re: disclosing the full price of a ticket:

https://www.transportation.gov/indiv.../buying-ticket

Filing an informal complaint with the DOT is pretty easy, and typically gets a prompt response from the airline:

https://www.transportation.gov/airco...umer-complaint

Prospero

Yes, BA.com is not accurately quoting the taxes/fees/charges when I select the flight.

The example below is for a one way LAX-LHR in World Traveller

Provisional quote:



Then the confirmed quote

matticusbond

Hey folks -

So here's the itinerary I was looking at. Its in WT.



Fascinating side note:
Before posting this to FT a few hours ago, the site was quoting 320 and then 598.
Now the site is quoting 660 and then 598.

corporate-wage-slave

The cash fare (basic) is US$892, so the Avios price quoted there is indeed not worth doing, you would be better buying the ticket outright, albeit with reduced flexibility.

With a UK BAEC membership, this becomes Ł150 + 60k Avios, or to get something more comparable, Ł350 + 32.5k Avios. The best price point is Ł510 + 11.4k, though if a flexible ticket has no utility then a cash ticket is still a better bet (US$892 = Ł665). If you don't mind a LAX-CPH-LHR routing, you can get the cash fare down to Ł491 / US$660 on United, who have a more congenial routing via Vancouver and Air Canada for Ł554 / US$743. SFO is cheaper than LAX on these dates.

Globaliser

We have long warned about the first of those pages. It is not a price quote, and it is frequently inaccurate. You only get a proper price quote when you move on to the second of those pages. The note "You will see exact cost after you click 'Continue'" hints at that, although it could be more explicit that those numbers are not to be relied on.

guv1976

I do wonder whether that practice -- at least when applied to flights to/from the U.S. -- complies with U.S. DOT airline advertising rules.

Ldnn1

I’d disagree that ‘it is not a price quote’. After all it says ‘Total Price’ and quotes a price. I’d call that a quote.

Yes it says the exact cost is on the next page, but frankly if the exact price has absolutely no bearing to the price shown on the selection page, there shouldn’t be a price shown on that page.

lhrsfo

Being based in London I sort of have to use BA as it has a virtual monopoly, but this is an excellent example of why I hate them. Another being vouchers which are deliberately unusable as they can’t be used online and BA won’t answer the phone.

cauchy

Looks like BA has been fined $40k for this before -- https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/eo-2016-3-9

guv1976

And, indeed, there was a thread in this very forum about the complaint in that case some years ago. In fact, the complainant in that case, then-Professor Edelman, even joined the discussion at the time. See this post, et seq.:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/24189419-post50.html

MSPeconomist

Deleted.