Non Refundable Flight

Grumpy_chap

Hola365 said:

The police are indeed in a position to confirm that and they are investigating as of yesterday. And my lawyer is already on the case. We’ll see what happens.

The Police are investigating and will not provide any further updates so as not to prejudice any criminal case that may follow.

Your Lawyer will pursue any civil claim you may have.

There is nothing anyone can add in a public forum as no-one here will have all the level of detail that the Police and / or your Lawyer have access to.

Takenononsense

just just wanted to share my own experience with Cheapfly Shop this weekend;
went online, spotted return flights to NZ with Qatar, good times and duration so booked. Got the email saying the transaction was pending but should have e-tickets within 48hrs. 4 hours later got the phone call to say what I had booked didn’t include meals or baggage. I told the guy I had flown that route with Qatar on many occasions and said they don’t do the flight without both. He then said the flights weren’t available and I would have to book something else with them. I said no, just refund (although payment t was still pending) but he said no, it wasn’t possible. He became annoyed and talked over me when I insisted on a refund so I ended the call. I did the usual and got in touch with the bank who said they couldn’t do anything until the payment had gone, then I would have to dispute the payment ! 

I got in touch with Citizens Advice, and I’m so glad I did ! They were absolutely fab, the guy talked me through all that I needed to do and sent a letter format to fill out and send to them (which I did via email and recorded & signed for post). He also told me to request a subject access report for the phone call, which I added to the email and was insistent that I sent everything ASAP which I did. Luckily a few hours later I had a very apologetic email telling me the pending payment had been cancelled (I checked the bank and it had). I can’t praise the citizens Advice service enough. I know my situation isn’t as bad as others as thankfully my money didn’t leave the account but I am sure had I have not had this help and insistence that I act quickly it would have. 

I just wanted to post in the hope that this may help anyone else that ends up in this situation but companies like this need to be stopped. 

Georgielin

Takenononsense said:

just just wanted to share my own experience with Cheapfly Shop this weekend;
went online, spotted return flights to NZ with Qatar, good times and duration so booked. Got the email saying the transaction was pending but should have e-tickets within 48hrs. 4 hours later got the phone call to say what I had booked didn’t include meals or baggage. I told the guy I had flown that route with Qatar on many occasions and said they don’t do the flight without both. He then said the flights weren’t available and I would have to book something else with them. I said no, just refund (although payment t was still pending) but he said no, it wasn’t possible. He became annoyed and talked over me when I insisted on a refund so I ended the call. I did the usual and got in touch with the bank who said they couldn’t do anything until the payment had gone, then I would have to dispute the payment ! 

I got in touch with Citizens Advice, and I’m so glad I did ! They were absolutely fab, the guy talked me through all that I needed to do and sent a letter format to fill out and send to them (which I did via email and recorded & signed for post). He also told me to request a subject access report for the phone call, which I added to the email and was insistent that I sent everything ASAP which I did. Luckily a few hours later I had a very apologetic email telling me the pending payment had been cancelled (I checked the bank and it had). I can’t praise the citizens Advice service enough. I know my situation isn’t as bad as others as thankfully my money didn’t leave the account but I am sure had I have not had this help and insistence that I act quickly it would have. 

I just wanted to post in the hope that this may help anyone else that ends up in this situation but companies like this need to be stopped. 

Hi thanks for the advice as we are in the same position! Citizens advice sent me a template link but the wording wasn't really right for my circumstances no matter how much I tried. Any chance you could post the template you used please?

Chief_Investigator

Have the same problem with Cheapflyshop co uk - After so-called online booking, no e-ticket issued, request for several hundred pounds more,  for so called standard economy ticket with baggage allowance. 

Just wanted to ask the other poster, who contacted citizen's advice -  did you actually receive a refund from Cheapflyshop co uk  ? - as I have also requested one...

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Their Trustpilot reviews couldn't look more suspect.

Exodi

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Their Trustpilot reviews couldn't look more suspect.

I thought exactly the same - all the reviews look extremely suspicious.

I filtered the reviews by most recent to see how far back they go and went scrolling to try a review by someone with more than 1 total review.

I stumbled across 'Gary Cross' and looked over his last two reviews - I don't think I even need to say why I raised my eyebrows, see below. Me thinks Cheapflyshop has spent a pretty penny buying reviews...

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Exodi said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Their Trustpilot reviews couldn't look more suspect.

I thought exactly the same - all the reviews look extremely suspicious.

All the positive reviews read the same, they all name the person the "reviewer" dealt with at customer service.

Their website can't be reached on my browser, not sure if it's gone? 

Exodi

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Exodi said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Their Trustpilot reviews couldn't look more suspect.

I thought exactly the same - all the reviews look extremely suspicious.

All the positive reviews read the same, they all name the person the "reviewer" dealt with at customer service.

Their website can't be reached on my browser, not sure if it's gone? 

Which I now understands is a tactic by paid for services to build credibility - though I was surprised that they just make up names of staff!

Still up for me - https://www.cheapflyshop.co.uk/

eskbanker

Exodi said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

All the positive reviews read the same, they all name the person the "reviewer" dealt with at customer service.

Which I now understands is a tactic by paid for services to build credibility - though I was surprised that they just make up names of staff!

I can understand some types of businesses seeking credibility by emphasising customer-facing personal service and so on, but if I was in the market for cheap online flight bookings, I think I'd be happier if the whole transaction was concluded without having to deal directly with any staff at all, rather than having to engage with named individuals to discuss anything!

MikeWhite

Exodi said:

Which I now understands is a tactic by paid for services to build credibility - though I was surprised that they just make up names of staff!

Still up for me - https://www.cheapflyshop.co.uk/

Not a very credible front page!