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Review from Kathy P
1 star06/16/2024
In response to an email from smartcheapfares.com canceling my travel plans, I sent the following (edited to fit review requirements)To say that I was totally taken aback when I received a call from a representative shortly after having booked a reservation from American Airlines flight from DSM to *** would be an understatement. No where on the website does it say that carry on or checked baggage is not allowed with the fare quoted. A representative acknowledged that but was adamant that that was the case. She did offer to book me on two other flights - one for an additional $360 or another for an additional $200. I told the representative that this was a classic "bait and switch" and would not confirm the reservation under those terms - to cancel the reservation. I was told that the booking was non-refundable and non-cancellable and was hung up on. I never received a confirmation of the travel plan. I did alert my credit card company to the dispute. Days later, when I saw that the charge had been submitted, I promptly submitted my written dispute. The charge has been removed from my account and I have made other travel arrangements. Other agencies have been advised of the actions of smartcheapfares.com. I am hopeful that others do not have my same experience.Initial email from smartcheapfares.com:I hope this email finds you well. We regret to inform you that your upcoming reservation, with booking reference number 5521?, has been cancelled due to a lack of response on your part.We understand that you had availed of a discounted fare for your booking. However, it's important to note that such fares often come with certain restrictions and conditions. In this case, our records indicate that we required a prompt confirmation from your end to finalize your travel arrangements. Unfortunately, we did not receive any response within the stipulated time frame, resulting in the cancellation of your reservation.
Smartfares Response
06/20/2024
Dear Valued Client- We have no affiliation with SmartCheapFares, we are Smartfares.com Sadly this company is appearing to use a similar name . We have located this company online where they provide a contact number of ************. Perhaps the BBB can help you find a way to file a review or complaint with them in hopes of resolution. We regret this company is choosing to operate online with a name similar to ours.Review from Shurronda L
1 star06/14/2024
Scam Scam Scam! I booked a flight for myself my daughter and 4 grands, I set the dates and found the desired times to and from ******* to ***, in the time it took me to add all 6 names and ages which took maybe 8 minutes. I put all the payment information in and booked. I immediately noticed the mistake of leaving a day earlier and called within 2 minutes, I was told on top of what I payed for the fare it would be an additional $537.96 and I hadn't even add the luggage yet! Either pay that or loose $300 to cancel the reservation, on top of that the agent was rude and told me I should have confirmed, which I did when I selected the flight! I used this site from my job discounts forum. They will never get my business again and i'm going to make sure to be vocal in any and every way about them as I am reading all of the complaints here. The cancellation/change process and price is not listed within their listed, the agent acknowledged that tooIm FURIOUS! And as far as having to add a star rating they actually deserve a negative rating 1 star is too many.Review from Bonnie T
1 star05/29/2024
Total Scam! Had a bad feeling, and should have trusted that feeling. Attempted to book a one-way flight. I received an email immediatedly with a (4) digit Booking Reference Number. The email noted: We are handling your reservation and will send you a confirmation email once the booking is confirmed and a ticket has been issued. Please note that your purchase will be completed only when the ticket has been issued. Fares are not guaranteed until ticketed.In case of fare change, schedule change or change in availability of seats, we will contact you and offer alternate options.In case of payment authentication failure, you may receive a call or an email from us within 24 hours for payment verification. In this case your e - tickets will be sent post card verification only. The **************** Representative advised me that my ticket price did not include a carry-on and they only way for me to check a bag was to upgrade to "Basic Economy" for an additional $300....just to check a bag! Then, said my ticket was already printed and can only be picked up at the Airport Check-in. Called my Credit Card Holder to reject the charge [was not yet even pending]; Called the Airline, they had no info on any flight booked for me. Now, I am joining the others in SHOUTING from the rooftops, "This is a SCAM!"Review from Gabriel G
1 star05/11/2024
I purchased a round trip for 4 passengers, but after paying, I received a confirmation for only 3 tickets of one flight and no tickets of the return flight.I immediately sent a mail and tried contacting the 24/7 call center (no answer).It took them a week to address my many mails, but by then I had already bought all tickets again.My request for a refund is flatly ignored.Review from Mahmoud E
1 star04/30/2024
smartcheapfares, is a scam comp . i was about to be a victim . price given , is not real . customer service is big ZERO.dont allow them to victimize uReview from keith l
1 star04/27/2024
They tried telling us we couldnt take baggage and a carry-on unless we upgraded to economy+ which is 1500 to upgrade. They wouldn't Refund or cancel the flight. The united air line website says we can bring a bag and a carry-on, it just needs to be checked in. Then they tried to lower the amount after me hanging up they called us back instantly with a low low price of 1100. We declined and said we will keep the basic economy package and then he said something about how that wasn't possible so i hung up and here i am. So if they do charge me i will be reporting this as bank fraud and getting a lawyer to *** them.Review from Katy R
1 star04/21/2024
You buy a ticket from them and they expect you to spend more money on the ticket you purchased from there site.They stole 175 dollars from me after paying ****** for the ticket.Then 4 days later they return the money and pocket the 175 for themselves.Im devastated they need to be taken down and stop scamming people.Review from Be C
1 star03/22/2024
I will never use SmartFares again. I don't care what savings they offer.The online booking process was as straight forward as any other site, but the costumer service was awful. I had made a typo in the reservation and called to change it (within 1.5 hours of making the booking) and was told there would be a $90 to correct the typo, was kept on hold for a long time and then was laughed at when I asked about the astronomical fee being able to be waived since I was within 24 hours of booking and could just cancel the tickets without a charge. I was lied to, the agent tried to convince me that I'd have to pay a fee to cancel and wouldn't get all of my money back - not true when it's within 24 hours. Additionally, the agent told me the $90 fee was set by the airline. The agent also told me they would call me back later that day to follow up and help me when I got so frustrated I said I'd call back later if I wanted to make the change. The agent waited until the 24 hours had passed and then finally called me, texted me, and emailed me to see if they could help me make the change to my reservation - conveniently after I could no longer cancel the reservation without penalty. Crazy thing, I called the airline directly and they were able to fix the typo immediately without any fee at all because I had made the booking within the past 24 hours.I'm appalled by the poor service and trying to implement false fees and false threats. What a scam.Review from Thuyngoc A
1 star02/19/2024
This website is a total scam. Any positive reviews must have been written by the company itself. I booked a trip from ****** to ******* four months in advance. Two days before I was supposed to leave, I noticed with no help from SmartFares that one of my connecting flights had changed and the connection could not be made. I called them and was told that I would now have to pay a change fee. What could I say so I did. I called practically every minute for the next two days waiting for confirmation and got excuse after excuse. SmartFares never provided a new flight. I asked for a full refund and was told that everything would be refunded except the change fee and the tax. The tax, the government charge for goods or services rendered, when there was no ticket? The change fee when there was no changed flight? And then I was told I would have to wait two months to get my refund. It has been three and today after me constantly asking, I was told that the airline is denying me a refund. The airline that never provided a ticket? Scam! Do not be fooled.Review from Diane B
1 star02/16/2024
I tried to cancel a flight less then 24hrs of booking. They wanted to refund me $203USD of the $345USD I paid. Essentially charge me $142 fee to cancel. I asked to speak to a supervisor his name is ********. He chuckled on the phone and was condecending. Cheapoair is a much better third party site that will refund you in full if canceled within 24hrs. That goes for booking directly through airlines as well.
Customer Review Rating
1.41/5stars
Average of 232 Customer Reviews
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