A TRAVELLER was stranded
in Australia after being told
the flight ticket he’d booked
through suspected fraudulent
operator, Globetravel (see TNW
November 30) and paid for a
month earlier was no longer
valid. The incident highlights
the dangers consumers and
agents face when booking
online through unknown
operators.
The traveller went on to
Cheapflights on September
29 and sourced a return
ticket from Johannesburg
to Melbourne, connecting
via Sydney on Qantas
for R10 000. The ticket
was booked and paid for
through Globetravel, which
sent through a payment
confirmation and flight
itinerary.
When the traveller requested
his actual ticket, Globetravel
sent through final confirmation
with a booking reference
number on October 5. Two
different confirmations were
sent, one from Globetravel
confirming a payment of
R10 192,58, and another
that appeared to come from
Qantas with a payment
amount of R15 386,23.
The traveller had not noticed
the discrepancy in the payment
amounts – industry specialists
speculate this is because
Globetravel sold fraudulent
discounted tickets to travellers
on its website and through
Cheapflights.
On October 30, the traveller
flew to Melbourne.
Two days before his
scheduled return, the traveller
checked his booking on
Qantas online and confirmed
with an agent from Qantas via
the online chat system that all
was in order.
However, on arrival at the
airport in Melbourne, he was
told by a Qantas duty manager
that his ticket was not valid as
the third party agent had not
paid for it, and he would need
to purchase another
one-way flight for AU$1 625
(R16 813).
As the traveller points out,
had he not been able to pay
for a one-way ticket he would
have been stuck in Melbourne.
Qantas declined to comment.
One airline specialist says
the situation may have arisen
as a result of scheduled BSP
payments. Had the traveller
flown before Globetravel was
due to remit, the airline would
at that time not have known
that the operator would default
on payment.
Phil Bloomfield,
Cheapflights’ global head
of Communications and PR,
says Cheapflights sources its
information using metasearch
technology. This means that
the content available on its
site could be pulled from
anywhere on the Internet.
Advocate Louis Nel says that
had an agent been the one
responsible for booking the
tickets through Globetravel,
there is a chance they could
be held liable for the missing
funds, however, he says this
would require proof that the
agent had neglected their duty
of care, by booking with an
operator that they suspected
might be untoward.
