Sunday, June 28, 2009

HotWire.com- You SUCK!


So battling with any company is never fun, but this time its just really really getting under my skin. I purchased my flight ticket for BlogHer through HotWire.com and I thought I was getting a really good deal, thought that I was being well informed and smart. But BOY OH BOY, was I ever WRONG. Out of curiosity of course, I've watched the prices of my flight drop.... and then drop some more... and of course, I'm thinking, being a competitive industry, wouldn't HotWire want to maybe make a price adustment, like some other companies do, with my ticket so that maybe I'll come back as a return customer?

Now of course, the price of my flight has gone back up to just about that I paid for it, but the original dispute was easy. I asked if I could simply switch to an earlier flight home on the same day, and the response was, "No, not unless you pay $150 to switch as well as the price of the new return ticket." At the time, the difference in what I paid and what the price was, was right around $150. Really? You can't just put me on an earlier in the day flight and take the $150 difference in price and put that to it? There was no willing to change ANYTHING at all by Hotwire. They seemed rather annoyed that I was even ASKING to change something.

Needless to say, many more exchanges of emails back and forth and I'm still sitting on my same flights, paying the same amount and unhappy.

Someone please tell me what commercial it was where I saw that if someone books the same flight as you for less, they mail you the difference... I can't remember, and you bet your ass I'll be using them in the future instead. You lost me Hotwire.com, forever.

5 comments:

Leslie M. June 28, 2009 at 2:52 PM  

Good to know! You mess with Casey you mess with me! And I am an informed consumer or try to be like you also.. Word of mouth....Stinks to be Hotwire.com! If I EVER EVER need to book a flight to anywhere you can bet anything I wont be using Hotwire.. bunch of customer NO-Service minded Louses!

Leslie
LeslieVeg@msn.com
http://leslielovesveggies.blogspot.com/

Unknown June 28, 2009 at 6:07 PM  

Hotwire, just like all other travel agencies does not make the rules of the ticket you purchased. Those rules are made by the airline you purchased the ticket from. Hotwire has no choice in the matter. The service that Hotwire provides in a booking service. Your contract of transportation is with the airline. Many of the items you mention as making you unhappy are part of the original terms and conditions you agreed to and frustrating as they may be (and I hear you they are frustrating) it would not have mattered if you purchased your ticket through any other service - you still would not be able to change your ticket to fly on another flight with no change fee and you still would not be able to get a refund for the difference when the price of the flight goes down. Frankly, do you know any industry that does that? If you buy a television and the price goes down a few months later - do you get a refund?

CaseyDeuce June 28, 2009 at 6:33 PM  

I've made it a point to not reply to comments made on a post through the comments, I prefer to do it via email, but ORR, your "profile unavailable" leaves me no choice.

I could care less if my issue is with the airline. Why are there price match guarantees and refunds through SIMILAR BOOKING SERVICES if flights are booked at a lower price. Surely the airlines aren't refunding the difference if its only ONE similar site that's doing that?

Here's my point. I contacted Hotwire.com and dealt with their customer service who seemed as if talking to me was a COMPLETE AND UTTER INCONVENIENCE. I believe in GOOD, shit, I'm not even asking for outstanding, CUSTOMER SERVICE.

And no, I don't bitch if the price of a TV comes down a few months after I buy it, BUT, none of the stores that sell that TV offer a difference refund if that were the case. Do you understand what I'm saying?

The consumer perks dealing with one booking service vs. another are way more then I would have expected and if I would have known, I wouldn't have used HotWire to start with. Its just like purchasing something at a store that offers a "rewards card" versus one that does not.

Pricousins June 29, 2009 at 10:35 PM  

I can't remember the name of that site either but I do know what you are talking about.

Nice job Orr... now you done pissed Casey off.

Unknown June 30, 2009 at 10:12 AM  

I just went through the same thing this morning. :(

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