Money saving flights too good to be true?

stirling54

I am in the process of booking flights to Ireland through Aer Lingus. Clicked on a promo link and was directed to 'Cheapoair' - Aer Lingus flights £234.76 all in, Cheapoair £133.54 all in!!!
Does anyone know if this is genuine - their website looks all ok.

callum9999

stirling54 wrote: »

I am in the process of booking flights to Ireland through Aer Lingus. Clicked on a promo link and was directed to 'Cheapoair' - Aer Lingus flights £234.76 all in, Cheapoair £133.54 all in!!!
Does anyone know if this is genuine - their website looks all ok.

It's a genuine website. As to whether the fare is correct or not, I'd have to see it to make a judgement.

bagand96

I'd be very sceptical if an agent can provide a flight that much cheaper than the airline direct. I have no experience of cheapoair but wonder if they're the sort of company where you'll get a phone all the next day "sorry that fare wasn't available, if you pay us another £125 we can complete your booking"

Try your dates on kayak.co.uk and skyscanner.net and see if any other agents are quoting prices anywhere near that. If cheapoair are the only one then I'd suggest something doesn't add up!

Voyager2002

I had a good experience buying a flight from this agent a few months ago: buying directly from the airline would have cost significantly more, while buying from a more reputable agent would have cost a few pounds more. I took care that (i) I knew there was good availability on my flight so the 'price increase after booking' trick was unlikely to work, and (ii) I paid by credit card, a card that I know from past experience is good about chargebacks. I booked early in the morning, so there was plenty of time that day for the agent to confirm the flight and for my details to enter the airline booking system.

However, if you read Cheapo-Air's T and Cs (many of which would not be legally enforceable) you will see why I do not feel that they can be trusted. Had they not confirmed my booking within a reasonable time I would have cancelled and asked my card for a charge-back, and ignored their ridiculous contract term that asks customers to agree not to request charge-backs.

In short: if you do decide to use them book in plenty of time and check availability elsewhere; pay by a good credit card, and if the price changes after booking be very clear that you will not accept any increases.

Oh: and after booking they sent me lots of SPAM, even though I had asked them not to provide further information.

callum9999

bagand96 wrote: »

I'd be very sceptical if an agent can provide a flight that much cheaper than the airline direct. I have no experience of cheapoair but wonder if they're the sort of company where you'll get a phone all the next day "sorry that fare wasn't available, if you pay us another £125 we can complete your booking"

Try your dates on kayak.co.uk and skyscanner.net and see if any other agents are quoting prices anywhere near that. If cheapoair are the only one then I'd suggest something doesn't add up!

You're definitely right that you need to be skeptical, but the price difference can be legitimate (how they get hold of them that cheap I have no idea though!).

I booked a flight with AirFastTickets earlier in the year that was about £100 less than the cheapest I could find directly with BA and I received a booking reference straight away that worked directly on the BA website and didn't have any issues at all.

It worked out doubly in my favour when they accidently charged my card $300 instead of £300!

Westin

You're definitely right that you need to be skeptical, but the price difference can be legitimate (how they get hold of them that cheap I have no idea though!).

Well in the case of Airfasttickets, probably by simply not paying the airlines for a large number of tickets! Didn't they recently have their IATA licence revoked in the UK before going bankrupt a few months later?

Glad it worked out for you however callum9999 when you travelled.

jpsartre

Lots of complaints about Cheapoair. That doesn't mean you can't get a bargain from them but be aware of the risks.

callum9999

Westin wrote: »

Well in the case of Airfasttickets, probably by simply not paying the airlines for a large number of tickets! Didn't they recently have their IATA licence revoked in the UK before going bankrupt a few months later?

Glad it worked out for you however callum9999 when you travelled.

The UK branch did, but I booked via the US branch which I believe is still going strong.

MiraculousM

go to a flight centre. they price match and are a reputable company.

callum9999

MiraculousM wrote: »

go to a flight centre. they price match and are a reputable company.

Their price matching policy doesn't include cheapoair, but it's worth a shot anyway. There's always the chance you'll get a particularly nice agent (or one who hasn't read the small print!).