Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Smartfares's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

close

Find a Location

Smartfares has 3 locations, listed below.

*This company may be headquartered in or have additional locations in another country. Please click on the country abbreviation in the search box below to change to a different country location.

BBB accredited

Near

Country

USUnited States

Please enter a valid location.

Filter

• 

  Smartfares

  4545 Murphy Canyon Rd Ste 210 San Diego, CA 92123-4363

  
• 

  Smartfares

  Arlington, VA 22201

• 

  Smartfares

  PO Box 13 Vernon Hill, VA 24597-0013

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/01/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I bought an air ticket on ************************ on 02/01/2025 at 4:17p for my father. Somehow, I made a mistake on the date. So, I call them at 6:00p on the same day to change it. The website said it's Free 24 hours cancellation. But they ended up charge me $53 fee for cancellation because that's the fee charge. That's a scam, big scam! I'll never buy any air ticket from them and I'll pass the message to my community/family/friends.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/03/2025

  Dear **** He- Thank you for providing your confirmation code for your EVA ********* Taipei ticket purchase of the supersaver fare of $470.00 .Your refund was actually issued in full.  We regret ****** the agent you spoke with failed to see the ***** priority status on your booking and created this confusion. Smartfares contracts with carriers that have strict penalties beyond our control  it is precisely for this reason SMARTFARES .COM  does not state on the website or anywhere within the site a free 24 hour cancellation. However  as a ***** customer you are able to be refunded in full within 24hours If we are able to obtain waiver from the carrier .Again we apologize this was not conveyed to you on your call. As the refund was processed over what appears to be weekend non banking day , please allow a few business days for this to update you bankcard side. Thank you for letting us know and giving Smartfares this opportunity to identify staff that requires more training.  Please reach out if you need anything.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/04/2025

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
  
  Regards,
  
  **** He
  
   
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/17/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On Nov. 14, 2024 I booked a flight on ************************ for a one way ticket on Sun Country Airlines from ********* to *********** ******* to depart on February 12, 2025. The ticket price listed on their website was $251.30 and I booked online providing my credit card information for the $251.30. After booking, I immediately received an email saying that there was a problem with my reservation (Smart Fares Flight Reservation Code 9L0FSS) and I should call them immediately so they can help resolve the issue. I called and spoke with a guy named **** and he said that in order to complete the reservation, he needed another $112 so Sun Country would issue the ticket. I initially agreed and authorized them to charge my credit card for an additional $112. After thinking about it and doing some online research on Smart Fares and learning about their widespread fraudulent "bait and switch" tactics with other customers, I emailed ******************************* on November 14, 2024 and told him to cancel the entire reservation and not charge my credit card for anything. After arguing back and forth via email, **** finally emailed me and said the that the ********** Airlines Flight (Sun Country Airlines confirmation code T4V9FS) was cancelled and whatever was charged has been refunded. Today (November 17, 2024) I checked my credit card (********** through *********) transaction history and saw that the $251.30 was never charged but they still charged my credit card $122.00 on November 15, 2024. I have contacted Sun Country Airlines and the flight reservation associated with airline confirmation code T4V9FS has indeed been cancelled. Can you please compel Smart Fares to issue a $122.00 credit to my credit card to negate this fraudulent charge?

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/22/2024

  Thank you for letting us know your experience and for providing the booking code. . Finance has pulled your records and shows no charges, all funds released.  We  regret Sun Country airlines failed to confirm your booking. Websites do not have control over whether the airlines confirms a booking. We wish we did.  Additionally .Smartfares includes  low cost carriers  that often other sites do not, and we allow the lowest end fares to pass through  The trade  off is these carriers  can fail to confirm a bit more frequently  that higher priced  carriers. F this occurs you will see the failure to confirm message you refer to, instead of a confirmation E ticket email.The best we can do is provide a staff to check the travel agent systems manually to  see what fare will confirm offline..Often this is higher , or the airlines would have automatically confirmed the online fare.    This is simply an option born out of clients not wanting to return to the online process.  The failure rate  of these carriers is monitored closely, we can and have, blocked an airline from passing through their content if the failure rate is high. When we do clients are often upset we no longer are offering the lowest fares.  Online fares as you no doubt know are dynamic, what fails today may confirm tonight .  There is no bait and switch, this is actually a costly process and our business model is all fares to confirm online.  We are  concerned your experience with the agent was poor , we are pulling the call recordings and will take appropriate action  after they are heard.  In the meantime we will have the escalations team send you written confirmation of your refunds. Thank you for your time.
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/18/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I just left a complaint. This is how it started. I booked a flight to ****** for $388 then they said if you dont get your ticket within 24 hours call I did then they wanted to 200 more dollars so I could carry my luggage on, I knew that was wrong. I said no I called the next day then they tried to tell me I was on standby because I paid such a low airfare told him I could not do that. I had to be theyre the date I selected then they told me I had to pay $500 to get a seat which was basic. I told him no way I could not afford that then I asked to talk to a manager she was doing the same thing wanted $500 then she went down to $422. This is all added onto my **************************************** to do it and I absolutely told him no, then I told them they need to put their rules so we could read them before you actually book the flight they show nothing. It only says when you tap on the price luggage not included get that then you should be able to tap a place to add the luggage is that at me? Theyre very deceiving trying to get more money out of you and actually I went to the same airline booked. My flight paid $741 for first class. There was plenty of seats on that airplane so I was totally lied to and I just want my $388 back. I dont think this company should be allowed to do this. The sit and you scare tactics and keep upping the price so you can have a seat , which they lied about to be told I was on standby because when I went to Book, theres plenty of seats like I said in my comments when I posted it on the B&B, Im contacting our attorney general and ************ because to me what theyre doing to people is so wrong. Ive booked on Priceline. Ive booked on Expedia before. Never have. I had this problem , and they will not let you talk to anybody, but Im gonna call today and see how far I can get

  

  Business Response

  Date: 08/19/2024

  Dear Ms. ********;  
  We are anxious to pull the booking records and any associated  phone calls We do not find a booking under your name as its spelled here,  under the email or phone contact. These are generally the points of data that will retrieve records easily. Do you have a booking confirmation code,  ours are generally 6 characters.  If you look at your emailed confirmation it should be there in RED below our blue bar logo ( Smartfares with a gold check ***** I hope this helps you locate the code . If you have other names on the booking or used a different email to make the booking please let us know. We regret we have no resolution yet , we first do need to find the booking.  We are standing by for your response-

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/16/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I spent $1498.98 on 2 plane tickets from ************* To ******. My booking # is 4EN5p7 purchased in June 10 2023. They double charged my payment. Total spent $2979.96. They said my first card did not go through and I gave them a second card but they charged both. Ive been waiting for a refund this whole time. Emails and phone calls and no money back yet. Its frustrating, and it really feels like a big scam. They say I cant contact the refunds department directly. I feel helpless every time I call their customer service team. I can no longer get a refund with my credit card company because of the time that has passed.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 08/22/2024

  Dear ********************************* *******; 

  Thank you for letting us know the situation. As you know by now, we have asked ******** to reach you to find a alternative reimbursement method . We thank you for providing a ****** account to process your reimbursement. The funds transfer of $1498.98 has been processed earlier this week. You will be receiving a notification if you have not already. We did investigate this situation ,it appears this reimbursement was continually refunded, closing the books on it, until you called in advising you did not have it, apparently there was issues with the card accepting the funds , and this was not picked up properly which we deeply regret.  Please accept our apologies . 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/12/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  THIS LETTER WAS SENT TO ITALIAN AIRLINES THIS MORNING.SmartFares Reservation Code:8FQNDZAirline Confirmation Code(s):Alitalia : 34YNBF Traveler(s):***************************** Ticket Number(s):Document ************* The flight has been canceled by your company due to the situation in *******I spoke to the agency SMART FARE where I bought the tickets and they told me that they only received authorization from you for 1400 Canadian dollars, even though I paid 1860 Canadian dollars.I think they're lying.Can not such a serious company as yours, whose services I used for many years to give your partners permission to cheat me!If this agency is selling your tickets, then you gave them permission to do so.That means you're responsible for everything that happens to my money.I ask you to get in touch with them as soon as possible (which you have if they are selling your tickets) and instruct them to immediately repay the amount I paid them.Sincerely ***************************** I WANT A FULL REFUND PLEASE HELP ************ SmartFares Reservation Code:8FQNDZAirline Confirmation Code(s):Alitalia : 34YNBFTraveler(s):***************************** Ticket Number(s):Document ************* Itinerary:******* INTL, ******* ON(YYZ) to *********, ****(FCO)Alitalia # ****DEPART08/14/2024 04:40 PMARRIVE08/15/2024 07:15 AM *********, ****(FCO) to ******************* INTL, ******** YAFO(TLV)Alitalia # ****DEPART08/15/2024 09:10 AMARRIVE08/15/2024 01:30 PM ******************* INTL, ******** YAFO(TLV) to *********, ****(FCO)Alitalia # ****DEPART08/28/2024 02:30 PMARRIVE08/28/2024 05:15 PM *********, ****(FCO) to ******* INTL, ******* ON(YYZ)Alitalia # ****DEPART08/29/2024 10:15 AMARRIVE08/29/2024 02:05 PM

  

  Business Response

  Date: 08/19/2024

  Dear Ms. *************************** cancellations are very frustrating. Thank you for your patience while we pulled records from finance. It appears the airline cancelled on  11 August, our finance office reversed your charge August 14th. No processing or refund fee has been deducted.  This was a reversal; a complete refund. As mentioned on our site we charge in US Dollars, if there is a discrepancy in the amount you received it may be due to currency conversion service charge by your bank. We unfortunately have no control over airlines cancellations or schedules or individual banks processing fees. We recommend contacting your bank at the management level, asking for a waiver or a more favorable exchange rate to offset the fee.  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/20/2024

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.

  I realize you only have two choices, but I want you to punish them! I described the situation in detail in my second appeal to you, but I couldn't find my second message in my file.
  Many people have suffered from them, they should be checked for registration.
  If I had not frightened them by contacting you, I would still not have my money back.
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************
  
   

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/25/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Date of Transaction:The first communication regarding the refund occurred on July 11, 2023.Amount of Money Paid to the Business:USD ****** for a baggage charge.What the Business Committed to Provide Me:The business committed to refunding USD ****** to my card for the baggage charge incurred due to their error.Nature of the Issue:A request for a refund for aa addotional baggage charge that I has to paid due to an error made by SmartFares.Whether or Not the Business Tried to Resolve This Problem:The business initially indicated that they submitted the refund request on August 11, 2023, with an expected reflection in the bank account/card within 1-2 billing cycles. As of October 4, 2023, they requested additional details to process the refund via PayPal due to delays. I provided my PayPal details on October 4th, 2023. Regardless noumerous mails and requests they still did not send me a refund.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/26/2024

  Dear *************************************;  

  Thank you for letting us know  the backround and booking details it made this a fast investigation. Finance confirmed you are absolutely correct , to our deep regret. First, and most important this has now been processed successfully to the PayPal account you provided previously. This was a baggage reimbursement caused by incorrect data from the baggage software provider. As a result the refund was to be processed by the provider and therein lies the confusion . They had assured us many times this was done, it appears when pressed for a confirmation by our agents they were   re-requesting the *********** and this caused your having been asked to re-send your details and on and on. At this point we  issued the refund to you and we will take it up with the vendor. We apologies this was not escalated to the proper department to get this to you sooner, we are going to fix that process. We will have our escalations team send you a written confirmation via email of the PayPal transfers shortly.  Thank you for letting us know so clearly what occurred. 

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/26/2024

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************************
  
   
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/20/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I booked 5 ticket++of westjet airlines ( ********* - ******* ) when the time of booking i can check the confirmation from westjet website ( they is airlines confirmation number together with ticket number) Purchase on June 4,2024 Yesterday July 19, i check again with Westjet Airlines - the confirmation no longer valid anymore ~ been called smartfare manytimes they said they will call back but they never call , I even asking them if its a scam and they said no, but never call back.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/22/2024

  Dear ********************; 

  We apologize Friday you were not able to reconfirm with WestJet system, theirs along with many other airlines were impacted by the systemwide software outage . Notes on your booking now show you have since spoke with our office and have the correct WestJet code for your December flights and you are aware all is confirmed.  Thank you for your patience these last couple of days we can imagine this was frustrating . 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/23/2024

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  The case of solve, I got a new confirmation number.

  thank you 
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************************
  
   

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/12/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I need help with a travel agency Smart Fare. I booked a ticket which was supposed to be for $156. Well this company charged my card $277. 78 and I told them to cancel the flight because I was not going to pay $120 extra. Can you please assist me I spoke to their agent and it was stated he was doing it at the time we were speaking yet he would not give me the chargeback number. I spoke to someone in their billing department named ***** who stated it take 20 days which is not the policy for credit card refunds. ***** states the refund will be issued before 7/15 which I dont believe because of the three different lies I have been told. Can you please assist me I can be reached at ************.Sent from *********************** **************************

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/15/2024

  ****************-

  We are anxious to pull your booking and have finance standing by to check the refund process. What email did you use to make this booking? ***************************** does  not locate correspond with a booking, if this is the email used please let us know the reference code or passenger names, etc. to help us locate the booking and the refund. Thank you .

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/27/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I had booked a low fare one way online airfare for my wife to fly from LA to ************** for 5/21/2024. At the time of making the reservation, there was nothing mentioned about luggage since it was for Southwest Airline, who let you carry on one luggage and check two bags for free. After several days later, which is today (5/16/24). SmartCheapFares called me about restrictions on carry on luggage and if she needs to check her luggage, it will be an additional $232.00 just to check her bag to fly home. This was not mentioned when I booked the flight or I would have just booked with Southwest instead of going thru them for a cheap flight. This is costing me more money going thru them than directly thru Southwest. They have credited my account and my wife have not taken the flight yet and they are still looking to get more money out of me, just for her to fly home with her luggage. Can you please help me with this because I now have to find a way for my wife to get home from LA now. They claimed that it was on the website, which it was not and now they are calling me about the restrictions to have me pay more money. I would have just booked with Southwest directly instead of going thru them for the flight, if I thought I was saving money. Can someone please help me with this and warn other about this company.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/02/2024

  Dear **********************- I am not sure why this complaint was not received earlier,  please accept apologies.  We are not SmartCheapFares , we are Smartfares and we have no relationship to SmartCheapFares.  We did run a search  to see if we had any bookings under your email provided here and we do not. We understand unfortunately this website SmartCheapFares chose to copy a similar name as ours , its very frustrating. Perhaps the BBB can assist you in locating this business , all we could find for you is their phone number ************ and email [email protected], which no doubt you already have. We regret we were not able to be of more assistance and wish you good luck locating these people.   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/07/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I am writing to file a formal complaint against an online hotel booking vendor named LBF Travel, which was utilized by Travel Powered by Mondee. My experience with this company has been extremely troubling, and I believe it is important to bring their unethical practices to your attention.The issue arose when I booked a reservation through Travel Powered by Mondee for the ************ in ***********. Following my stay, I encountered problems with the reservation and requested a refund from the hotel management. The management at the ************************ confirmed that a refund was issued to LBF Travel for the unused portion of my reservation.However, LBF Travel proceeded to harass me after I opened a dispute with my credit card company, ************ regarding the charge. Despite providing evidence of the refund issued by the ************************************************ persistently contacted me, demanding to recharge my card and threatening further action.Furthermore, LBF Travel deceitfully informed *********** that they had not received any information regarding a refund, despite my documentation proving otherwise. This deliberate misinformation from LBF Travel led *********** to deny my dispute and refuse to honor the refund owed to me.In addition, I attempted to contact Benefit Hub Travelsupport regarding this matter, but LBF Travel refused to respond to my inquiries.The conduct of LBF Travel is deeply concerning and constitutes harassment, deceptive business practices, and a breach of trust with their customers. I urge the ********************** to investigate this matter thoroughly and take appropriate action against LBF Travel to ensure that they cease their unethical practices and adhere to industry standards.Thank you for your attention to this serious issue.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 06/18/2024

  Dear **************;

  Thank you for your patience , apologies for delay in this response, we only recently received notification of your case from the BBB and are grateful the BBB admin sent us an email notification. Thank you for  your screen shots they helped us investigate more quickly . This was booked through Benefit Hub. LBF Travel does not have any bookings for Benefit Hub, they are not one of our customers. We did confirm this is a group  customer of Mondee ********************** Company. We  reached out to the Mondee customer service manager and provided your details on your behalf.  Today we received this response below;

  "Thanks for highlighting this case, We have identified the issue with this case and from a chargeback standpoint we accept this case now since the customer's right refund has been provided.
  Thanks & Regards. Thanks & Regards Pradeep "

  We have asked them to contact you directly and we hope you have a speedy resolution now that the proper channels have been identified. .Thank you.