cyl90089

hello all, this is my first time posting here. I am looking to travel to Hong kong this summer, and i got a deal from an "airline consolidator." (i got his contact on Craglist because he posted there) I wonder whether it is a safe transaction? I have talked twice with him, and apparently the way it works would be he would send me a confirmation code from UNITED, then i would call united to confirm my seat, and then i will wire the money to him via paypal.

Is it legit since i can wire the fee with paypal instead of with Western union, and we have talked twice?

6rugrats

Welcome to FT! That said, you would be absolutely crazy to do this, and I hope your post is not serious.

No, it's not a safe transaction. What do you mean by "wire the money through via Paypal"? AFAIK, you cannot wire money through Paypal. You can use a credit card/debit card or instantly transfer from your checking account. Don't do it. This person can make a reservation for you, give you a valid confirmation number, take your money and then cancel the reservation. You'll never be able to trace or find them again. Why do you think speaking with someone makes them "legit"? Most liars can talk just fine.

RUN, RUN, RUN. Don't even consider completing this transaction, unless you like sending money to strangers and receiving nothing in return. Buy your ticket directly from the airline.

cyl90089

Thank you for your reply. I thought paying with paypal would be safe,no?

gsforfree

Wirelessly posted (Verizon BlackBerry 9630: Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9650; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.8+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/6.0.0.719 Mobile Safari/534.8+)

Paying with paypal is safe as in they cannot see your credit card number.

PayPal does provide means of getting refunds for fraudulent transactions as far as eBay, but it does not mean that you'll get your money back if he cancels said tickets.

There are, however, more notable UA consolidators listed around this board.

realest

What about if the said tickets are non-refundable? if i pay with paypal first,then he book a non-refundable ticket for me ,does that sound a safe transaction?

cyl90089

can you give me the list of consolidators for a tix from Seattle to HK? please

Campath

Why do you want to use a consolidator. Book the tickets yourself.

cyl90089

because i am on a low budget travel plan

colmc

I will sell you a solid gold car. Please PayPal me the money.

People can say anything...

tcook052

So low you can afford to lose it? I agree with the the others that based upon what you've said there's no way I would do what you're considering.

hawaiian4

iwould not go with some on craglist. you never no it might be a scam if th price is to good. why not check airlines web sites most have package deals then something go's wrong you have will have a better change to get it fixed than some one on craglist.
if you do go with craglist make sure you have tickets in hand and in your name before sending any money.

Romelle

A safer budget plan could be to bid with Priceline. You won't know the airline or the schedule, but your money will be safe and you will really get a ticket.

Would you mind posting a little more about your trip - origin and possible dates?

Your "consolidator" is definitely not safe.

Try www.kayak.com, www.expedia.com, www.orbitz.com. Also the airline sites themselves sometimes have sales not available elsewhere.

FYI - I'm seeing some $1167 United fares in July. How does that compare with your "consolidator" offer?



Romelle

gsforfree

Try this (no guarantees):

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...ug-2010-a.html

WilcoRoger

So your strategy is to send the money first and then hope he'll book something for you? How exactly is that safe?