Travel question: Cheap flight deals – is there a catch?

Q I’ve found some incredibly cheap flights from Heathrow to Nashville next June through an online travel agent: £296 return. It’s half the fare quoted direct by the airline. How can a middleman sell these more cheaply than the airlines? Is there a catch?

Calum M

A Online travel agents have their place. As you found, they can often undercut prices available direct from airlines. Another advantage is that they offer itineraries that the airlines won’t offer themselves. For example, when I needed a cheap one-way flight from Toronto to London, the best deal available through fare-comparison websites was £140 on Air Canada to Amsterdam and British Airways onwards to London – a fare, and a routing, simply unavailable direct from the airlines. So I booked with Tripsta, a Greek-based online travel agent which has since gone out of business. (Many agents have websites with a co.uk suffix, even though they are based abroad.)

Why would airlines choose to undercut their own fares? Because they know that selling cheap, heavily restricted tickets through third parties can help them to fill seats that would otherwise go empty.

But there are all kinds of pitfalls to avoid. First, the “bait and switch” technique where you are told that the fare has increased above the figure quoted when you booked. With real-time pricing this should simply never happen; if it does, then demand an immediate refund (followed up, if necessary, with a call to your card issuer) and book with someone else.

Next, is baggage included? With even British Airways and Virgin Atlantic selling their cheapest seats without a checked baggage entitlement, it is essential to be aware what exactly you are buying apart from the flying. And heaven help the online travel agent customer who needs to make any changes. Online travel agents typically respond to a request to change, say, a misspelt first name or the return flight date by insisting the passenger must cancel with no refund and pay again.

For these reasons, I use online travel agents only when the saving is worthwhile; if the airline is offering a deal for only an extra £20 or £30, I would personally pay the extra to make subsequent dealings easier. And before you book online, it is always worth calling an “analogue” company such as Trailfinders, Travelbag or DialAFlight; they often have access to good deals, too, and a reputation for excellent customer care.

Every day our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles a reader’s question. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder