Holidaymakers scammed by ‘too good to be true’ online deals, says Which?

Online travel agents attracting customers with ‘too-good-to-be-true’ budget deals have been discovered inflating prices and demanding further additional payment.

A Which? Travel investigation found cases of prices rocketing during the booking process, while other customers have received phone calls demanding more money under the threat of cancelling bookings just hours after they made a payment.

Other sneaky tactics used by companies include the sale of unnecessary add-ons. Gotogate is one of the worst offenders according to the investigation, with a list of 11 "extras".

These include a "platinum support" package costing £19.90, which guarantees customers will have their queries responded to quickly, and a bag tracking service through a company called Blue Ribbon costing £9, which can be bought directly from Blue Ribbon for just £3.80.

Gotogate also charges customers £39 for the US ESTA Visa, a document that can be purchased for just $14 (£11) directly from the US government website.

“Our business is based on offering our customers the cheapest available air fare,” Gotogate told Which?. “We then offer several add-on products so they can customise their trip.”

The suspect tactics don’t just apply to extras, however. Holidaymaker John-Michael Clow used Gotogate to book a flight to India that was almost £200 cheaper than other flights he had looked at.

Upon arrival at the airport, Thomas Cook informed Mr Clow that his ticket was invalid and that they had notified Gotogate that there was a problem with the ticket at the time of booking.

When Mr Clow contacted Gotogate, they refused to accept responsibility and would not help him.

After eventually securing a refund from Gotogate, the company deducted £17 as a "refund fee". It took Which? Travel getting in touch for the company to accept liability, stating that it had made a mistake "due to human error". The company refunded the cost of booking a second flight and issued compensation of just over £300.

Gotogate told Which?: “We have many customers and, of course, make mistakes now and then. When that happens, we try to correct the mistake as soon as possible and compensate if necessary.”

A woman who booked an urgent flight to Canada through Checknfly, meanwhile, was sent a message the following day asking her to call and confirm her flight. When Mrs Hughes did so, she was told that if she didn’t pay a further £79, her flight would be cancelled.

When Which? contacted Checknfly it refused to accept responsibility, saying that the price had increased by £160 while she was making her booking. Checknfly said: “We were ready to bear half the loss and requested that Mrs Hughes pay £79 in order to secure the flights. When she refused we processed the full refund back onto the card she paid from.”

Travellers are advised to research companies thoroughly before parting with any money and to opt for established, reputable brands; prices that seem too good to be true often are.