Scammed by a fake UA call center {Consoldiated}
Nov 3, 2018, 2:05 pm
#76
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Posts: 10,970
Some thoughts/questions:
1 - as others have said, if the flight was covered under the waiver and actually cancelled, then the credit should still be there. [However, it sounds like this is not the case?]
2 - if UA really wants to look, I believe the system actually logs the IP address of the source that retrieved the PNR in the PNR history. UA should have some interests in going after these imposters
3 - sounds like OP went home on a different carrier and there are separate charges for ticket and agent? Can the other airline do something about this agent?
4 - what kind of confirmation e-mails did OP get on the cancellation and new booking?
I guess the lesson I learned is to put all my service providers in my phone so I don't mis-dial and get ripped off...
1 - as others have said, if the flight was covered under the waiver and actually cancelled, then the credit should still be there. [However, it sounds like this is not the case?]
2 - if UA really wants to look, I believe the system actually logs the IP address of the source that retrieved the PNR in the PNR history. UA should have some interests in going after these imposters
3 - sounds like OP went home on a different carrier and there are separate charges for ticket and agent? Can the other airline do something about this agent?
4 - what kind of confirmation e-mails did OP get on the cancellation and new booking?
I guess the lesson I learned is to put all my service providers in my phone so I don't mis-dial and get ripped off...
Nov 3, 2018, 3:16 pm
#77
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As for the credit, appears the OP was looking for a credit card credit or something else and was not aware of how canceled flight credit is handled on UA.
Nov 3, 2018, 4:30 pm
#78
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I doubt it's fraud, since they did book him tickets home. Most likely it's a slightly scummy travel agent. Their paid Google ad would pop up when you Google United, then the OP blindly dialed the number, and then freely gave his/her payment info and everything for the flight. If the travel agency did in fact cancel the United flights - we still don't know that - then that would prove that it wasn't a scam. Misleading? Perhaps, but he called them, and booked flights, and the tickets were real, and he got home on those flights. The agency booking fee sounds high, but that's why you don't use travel agents anymore.
I just Googled "United customer service" and the first page of links are all legit to united.com. OP, what did you actually Google, and why did you not just go to united.com to begin with?
I just Googled "United customer service" and the first page of links are all legit to united.com. OP, what did you actually Google, and why did you not just go to united.com to begin with?
Nov 3, 2018, 4:50 pm
#79
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So, if OP cancelled the flight BEFORE UA cancelled (but after the waiver was issued), then I guess OP would still not get a refund?
Nov 3, 2018, 5:02 pm
#80
Moderator: United Airlines
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But if they did, the OP would not automatically receive cash refund. However UA might extend the rebooking / change fee waiver --- there are too many missing facts to fully understand this situation.
Nov 5, 2018, 2:42 pm
#81
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Dulles, VA
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Posts: 2,757
. I'm betting that 1) his United flight was probably never canceled so he's out that credit. 2) He did book the new tix through a travel agent, and the price doesn't seem to out of the ordinary for what would have mostly likely been Y fares on very full flights (he's lucky he got a flight at all. 3) He probably did agree to the travel agent fees, since he states he was on the line for four hours. That's a very long time to get a flight booked.
He just sounds like a flyer who maybe got taken advantage of. But, he did get home when he needed to.
He just sounds like a flyer who maybe got taken advantage of. But, he did get home when he needed to.
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Nov 5, 2018 at 2:49 pm Reason: Discuss the issue; not the poster(s)
Nov 5, 2018, 4:29 pm
#82
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Nov 5, 2018, 6:09 pm
#83
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So appears OP confirmed the "cancellation"
Nov 9, 2018, 10:18 pm
#84
Join Date: Feb 2005
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Agreed, Chase Charge Backs Simple & Responsive
I've had two instances of using chargebacks with Chase, both involving very large charges. Both resolved in my favor. with absolutely no hassle at all. I guess we all have YMMV moments.
If I was charged multiple times by a shady merchant, I'd cancel that charge card pronto. My question is why did you keep this card available for misuse by a shady merchant?
If I was charged multiple times by a shady merchant, I'd cancel that charge card pronto. My question is why did you keep this card available for misuse by a shady merchant?
Thus i agree with the recommendation to file an on line dispute of the charge with a clear and detailed explanation of the FACTS, no embellishment, just simple and clear facts and rendition of the incident. You certainly may find yourself pleasantly surprised, but at worst you will have learned how to file a dispute with them on line and that can be a positive learning experience even if the end result is not as you would hope!
Dec 11, 2018, 11:23 pm
#85
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OP: It is complete {redacted per FT rules} that Chase won’t start a chargeback for you. You were charged a hefty agent fee by a company posing as United Airlines. If that isn’t fraud I don’t know what is. Call Chase back and keep calling them back until you get someone competent enough to understand what transpired and have them submit the chargeback for you.
This is why I always like Amex where you can submit a chargeback by yourself online and you don’t have to deal with the mindless drones on the other end of the phone.
This is why I always like Amex where you can submit a chargeback by yourself online and you don’t have to deal with the mindless drones on the other end of the phone.
The first time ($299), I thought it was a one-off and there was no reason to cancel the card because it wasn't a case of a stolen number, and Chase said that because I authorized the charge, they couldn't do anything. (No help at all for services not rendered.)
The second time ($399), I was very annoyed, and Chase insisted that because I didn't have a cancellation for their service (even though I wasn't aware I had signed up for a subscription), they couldn't do anything. I made sure I got a cancellation in writing (even though it was dated AFTER the second charge), but Chase lost all their goodwill with me. I still didn't cancel the card, because I thought with a cancellation in writing we're all good now... right?
The third time ($299) was last week. The company changed their name but I recognized it from the authorization (even though it posted under a different merchant's name). I am currently in the middle of correspondence with Chase and actively seeking other credit cards. While UA is still my primary carrier, they don't have any other credit card providers, so my current choices are something from Citi or something from Amex. (Leaning towards Amex Plat.)
(This is not a MileagePlus or UA problem, this is a Chase problem, so I figure if we want to go further on this one, I should go start a new thread...)
The second time ($399), I was very annoyed, and Chase insisted that because I didn't have a cancellation for their service (even though I wasn't aware I had signed up for a subscription), they couldn't do anything. I made sure I got a cancellation in writing (even though it was dated AFTER the second charge), but Chase lost all their goodwill with me. I still didn't cancel the card, because I thought with a cancellation in writing we're all good now... right?
The third time ($299) was last week. The company changed their name but I recognized it from the authorization (even though it posted under a different merchant's name). I am currently in the middle of correspondence with Chase and actively seeking other credit cards. While UA is still my primary carrier, they don't have any other credit card providers, so my current choices are something from Citi or something from Amex. (Leaning towards Amex Plat.)
(This is not a MileagePlus or UA problem, this is a Chase problem, so I figure if we want to go further on this one, I should go start a new thread...)
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Dec 12, 2018 at 12:41 am Reason: merging consecutive posts by same member
Feb 20, 2019, 11:50 am
#86
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: China
Programs: OZ*G, Nexus, APEC
Posts: 122
Scammed by a fake UA call center
This is quite embarrassing for me, I'm normally very vigilant and never fall for these kind of scams.
Recently I needed to re-book the return leg of an international ticket. Instead of checking the UA reservations phone number from their website, I did a Google search for "united reservations number". I guess these scammers somehow managed to temporarily get a ranking for this specific search phrase. It showed the phone number (855)387-0231 on the top snippet of the search results.
So I called this phone number and they pretended to be United Airlines and took all the information needed to access my booking on the UA website. I told them that I needed to re-book the return leg of my ticket, but I wasn't sure of the date yet. They told me I could cancel the booking for a $200 fee and then call back later to re-book and only pay the fare difference (if any). I thought this was strange because normally the re-booking fee is charged when you re-book, not when you cancel. But I have never done this with UA before so thought maybe that's how they did it.
Then they told me they would send me an email to confirm the cancellation of my booking and that I needed to reply to the email to confirm that I agreed with the cancellation.
When I called the real UA number to re-book the ticket, they had no record of this $200 payment and told me that I still needed to pay the re-booking fee (which is actually $191). This is when I realized that I was scammed.
Upon checking this email more carefully, it was made to look like it came from UA, but the sender was [email protected].
I filed a dispute with my credit card company, but I assume that they will use the email that I replied to as proof that I agreed with their $200 charge. I guess they will say that they charged me $200 for the service of accessing my booking on the UA website and cancelling my reservation for me.
I did some research to find out more information about this company. They seem to be running multiple websites and phone numbers to scam people.
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/flightszoom.com
The merchant name from my credit card statement:
TRAVEL AGENCY, IL 222013862
I did a whois look up on the domain name flightszoom.us, which their email was sent from. Here is what I found.
Registrant Name: V Shushil Kumar
Registrant Organization: Traveloes UK Ltd
Registrant Street: 199/17 Lindsay Road
Registrant City: Edinburgh
Registrant State/Province:
Edinburgh Registrant
Postal Code: EH6 6ND
Registrant Country: uk
Registrant Phone: +44.07411213054
This appears to be the company that owns this domain name, which is a travel agency registered in the UK.
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/SC543286/
The director of this company is an Indian national by the name of Vivekanand SUSHIL KUMAR, who is also the director of 5 other UK registered companies (some of them are travel related).
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/o...I/appointments
So far I have reported this to UA by sending an email to [email protected] and have also made a complaint on the FTC website https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov.
Any suggestions on what else I can do to report or expose the activities of this company / group of companies?
Of course I realize it's my own fault for falling for this scam. I should have got the UA phone number directly from their website rather than a Google search. And I should have looked at the email more carefully before I replied to it agreeing to the $200 charge. My only goal now is to bring as much exposure as possible to this company that is scamming people by impersonating UA staff.
Recently I needed to re-book the return leg of an international ticket. Instead of checking the UA reservations phone number from their website, I did a Google search for "united reservations number". I guess these scammers somehow managed to temporarily get a ranking for this specific search phrase. It showed the phone number (855)387-0231 on the top snippet of the search results.
So I called this phone number and they pretended to be United Airlines and took all the information needed to access my booking on the UA website. I told them that I needed to re-book the return leg of my ticket, but I wasn't sure of the date yet. They told me I could cancel the booking for a $200 fee and then call back later to re-book and only pay the fare difference (if any). I thought this was strange because normally the re-booking fee is charged when you re-book, not when you cancel. But I have never done this with UA before so thought maybe that's how they did it.
Then they told me they would send me an email to confirm the cancellation of my booking and that I needed to reply to the email to confirm that I agreed with the cancellation.
When I called the real UA number to re-book the ticket, they had no record of this $200 payment and told me that I still needed to pay the re-booking fee (which is actually $191). This is when I realized that I was scammed.
Upon checking this email more carefully, it was made to look like it came from UA, but the sender was [email protected].
I filed a dispute with my credit card company, but I assume that they will use the email that I replied to as proof that I agreed with their $200 charge. I guess they will say that they charged me $200 for the service of accessing my booking on the UA website and cancelling my reservation for me.
I did some research to find out more information about this company. They seem to be running multiple websites and phone numbers to scam people.
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/flightszoom.com
The merchant name from my credit card statement:
TRAVEL AGENCY, IL 222013862
I did a whois look up on the domain name flightszoom.us, which their email was sent from. Here is what I found.
Registrant Name: V Shushil Kumar
Registrant Organization: Traveloes UK Ltd
Registrant Street: 199/17 Lindsay Road
Registrant City: Edinburgh
Registrant State/Province:
Edinburgh Registrant
Postal Code: EH6 6ND
Registrant Country: uk
Registrant Phone: +44.07411213054
This appears to be the company that owns this domain name, which is a travel agency registered in the UK.
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/SC543286/
The director of this company is an Indian national by the name of Vivekanand SUSHIL KUMAR, who is also the director of 5 other UK registered companies (some of them are travel related).
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/o...I/appointments
So far I have reported this to UA by sending an email to [email protected] and have also made a complaint on the FTC website https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov.
Any suggestions on what else I can do to report or expose the activities of this company / group of companies?
Of course I realize it's my own fault for falling for this scam. I should have got the UA phone number directly from their website rather than a Google search. And I should have looked at the email more carefully before I replied to it agreeing to the $200 charge. My only goal now is to bring as much exposure as possible to this company that is scamming people by impersonating UA staff.
Feb 20, 2019, 12:00 pm
#87
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associ..._Travel_Agents
Feb 20, 2019, 12:04 pm
#88
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: San Francisco/Sydney
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https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unit...-ua-agent.html would be a worth a read. Likely a different company, but similar story.
You can try a charge-back, but the problem is potentially that the agency can claim that you called them, and they have a fee for assisting non-customers in such a situation, so the fee was justified.
You can try a charge-back, but the problem is potentially that the agency can claim that you called them, and they have a fee for assisting non-customers in such a situation, so the fee was justified.
Feb 20, 2019, 12:08 pm
#89
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: China
Programs: OZ*G, Nexus, APEC
Posts: 122
Report to UK association of UK Travel Agents
https://www.abta.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associ..._Travel_Agents
https://www.abta.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associ..._Travel_Agents
Feb 20, 2019, 12:10 pm
#90
Join Date: May 2016
Location: SLC
Programs: United Gold, Hilton Silver, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 768
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unit...-ua-agent.html would be a worth a read. Likely a different company, but similar story.
You can try a charge-back, but the problem is potentially that the agency can claim that you called them, and they have a fee for assisting non-customers in such a situation, so the fee was justified.
You can try a charge-back, but the problem is potentially that the agency can claim that you called them, and they have a fee for assisting non-customers in such a situation, so the fee was justified.