ComplaintsforTripMasters

• Initial Complaint

  01/14/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On January 6, 2022 I booked a hotel through Tripmasters for a hotel room in *************** Resort for February 20 - 24th. The reservation was for four nights at the total price of $104.00 excluding incidentals. When booking the reservation, Tripmaster stated that payment would not be applied until the reservation was confirmed. On January 7th, I received a written confirmation from Tripmasters informing me that the reservation was confirmed. In addition, money was withdrawn from our bank account in the amount of $104.00. For payment in full.On January 13, 2022 I received an e-mail from Tripmasters that they would not honor the rate - due to some mysterious error. Apparently, a 3rd party whom Tripmasters is working with - rejected the reservation. They subsequently wanted additional monies for the hotel. This is considered bait and switch, as I do. Or believe it is right to renege on a confirmed reservation.I am uploading my travel voucher which provides a Confirmation number and the specific services that I paid for. In addition, I am providing the actual document where Tripmasters lists the Booking details with the Total Amount paid and the Total Amount Due. Under the itinerary details section - the rate and hotel is clearly noted as being confirmed.Under contract law, it is my understanding - when an offer is provided and accepted in due consideration of payment - a contract has been made. In good faith, I believe that Tripmasters should honor the rates that are posted on their website.I do not like businesses that do not honor their prices and I frown on businesses that use bait and switch tactics to obtain more monies from customers. Please mediate.Respectfully,******* A

  Customer response

  02/01/2022

  From: ******* ****** <*********************>
  Date: Tue, Feb 1, 2022 at 10:18 AM
  Subject: #********
  To: <**************@mybbb.org>
  
  Greetings *****,
  
  Please update my complaint with Tripmasters to acknowledge that they have worked with me to settle my complaint and I no longer have an outstanding issue with Tripmasters.
  
  They actually negotiated a fair rate regarding my hotel room rate request and am completely satisfied.
  
  Thank You,
  
  ******* ********

  Durham, NC ***********

• Initial Complaint

  01/13/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In September of 2019, my 4 friends and I booked a trip through TripMasters to go to Paris, France, and Barcelona, Spain. The trip included airfare to and from Europe (through ******** ********), and from city to city, as well as hotels for the entire trip. The trip was supposed to occur in March of 2020, but due to the covid-19 pandemic we were unable to go. We have tried rebooking trips several times, but each time we find out new information that was not disclosed prior and it prevents us from booking. For example, 2 of us tried to book a trip to The Bahamas and when we received the pricing quote, it was double the price of what was advertised on the website. We were also told that since the trip was booked at a contracted rate, we have to book a trip somewhere with an "available contracted rate. " Therefore they said we could not used the flight vouchers if we wanted to go to The Bahamans. This was very confusing to us. After several months of back and forth, and a lot of contradicting information, we were told today (1/12/22) that we could transfer our ******** ******* credits and book directly through **, and receive a full refund of the hotel vouchers from TripMasters. We were happy to have this news. However, when we called ** and asked to book flights from Chicago to San Francisco, they explained to us that since the original flights were to Europe and back, that we can only use the vouchers to fly to Europe and back. No one from TripMasters ever explained this to us. Our flight credits expire at the end of March of 2022, and today (1/12/22) we learned for the first time that we can only use these credits to fly to Europe and back. In a normal world, it would be very difficult to plan a trip to Europe within 2.5 months, but in today's world with new covid variants forming every few months, it is impossible. We would like a refund of the entire amount of money that we gave to TripMasters which is 7,685.59.

  

  Business response

  02/15/2022

  Dear BBB,

  We have reviewed ************************'s claim. The client along with other 4 travel companions booked a trip for March 2020 to Europe. As you can understand this trip has been greatly affected by the global pandemic of COVID-19. Therefore, we had to take action and cancel the booking. Along with the process, we negotiated credits and refunds to avoid financial impact to our clients.

  This case has been assigned to one of our senior agent who handled this booking. As a travel agency, we have exhausted all of our resources by negotiating with our vendors ways to waive penalties and obtain the best option available for the client. Some of the services were booked under the non-refundable rate. These are services with special discounts, however non-refundable in case of cancelation or amendments.

  In regards to their travel credit with American Airlines, we were able to extend their flight credit two (2) times. First extension was granted until December, 2021. After negotiating with the airline a second time, we were able to extend their travel credit until March, 2022. ** voucher must be exchanged by: March 31st, 2022 (Extended -Originally was December 31st, 2021)Travel must be completed by: March 31st, 2022. NO EXTENSION will be granted.

  When our Customer Service team worked on this client's booking, we have stated the clients the following "Services which reflect specific vendor names may have some restrictions for rebooking. You will need to contact us for information regarding claiming those credits or exchanges." We have displayed the breakdown of each traveler's set of credits and exchange voucher options. 

  We have no control over what the airline has imposed as a condition for rebooking. In this case, their exchange option for flights were for traveling to Europe. This does not include regional flights within the ** as these are different contracted rates. 

  The clients decided not to travel. Therefore, the total refund amount of $ 2,095.15 which is the available refund for the clients will be credited to the original form of payment provided by ******************************* and **. *********************. By processing this refund we believe we were able to resolve the client's original request.

  We hope this helped clarifying the inquiry.

  Kind regards,

  Tripmasters

• Initial Complaint

  01/11/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  we booked with this company for Spain  tour & paid around $3500 for 2 people .our bag damaged by airline & Cordoba /Granada hotels did not provide air conditioner in rooms/turn heat on night & me /my wife sleep in hot rooms with sweating total 4 nights. I did complaint to front desk & they told me they got very less money for rooms where as I paid full & for good rooms .tripmasters unable to get refund from hotels as well as ****** airlines which I fly from JFK on 10/30/2021 I did complaint to airlines but as per them booking was done through tripmasters & can not accept my complaint.all proof was summitted to them .the agent ***************************** was rude & unprofessional. yelling me over phone /hang-up my phone call.

  

  Business response

  02/15/2022

  Dear BBB,

  We hope this finds you well.
  

  We are well aware of this client's complaint and we have done everything in our hands to assist this client. In regards to the damaged bag, we have advised the client airlines will always have a damaged bag section to file a complaint online. The client advised he did file a claim with ******.  We have also recommended him to file a claim with his insurance program as this was selected in the booking process. However, the client chose to cancel and obtain a refund for this and not file a claim for compensation. Tripmasters cannot be responsible of how the airline handles the client's baggage during their flights.

  We filed a claim to our suppliers in regards to our client's dissatisfaction during their stay in Cordoba and Granada. Despite our efforts, we were unable to obtain compensation. The client booked the most basic properties which may not meet the american standards. Some of these hotels will have the air conditioning centrally regulated only within the summer months of June to September. We as a travel agency, definitely understand this is a basic service that should be provided throughout the whole year. This is why we highlight our best picks throughout the booking process. Our picks are marked as *favorite* and we have a data team that is constantly updating the best hotel choices that will definitely meet our client's expectations. We hope this can help for future considerations.

  As per our Terms and Conditions, Tripmasters cannot be held responsible for hotel dissatisfaction. Our Terms and Conditions must be agreed to prior to booking a trip online.

  Due to the reasons stated above, we cannot provide the client with compensation and we have done everything in our hands to assist the client.

  Kind regards,

  Tripmasters

• Initial Complaint

  12/10/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I and my family vacationed in Italy in September/October of this year (2021).We engaged Tripmasters to book our trip: Booking # ******.We were scheduled to fly on ******** Airlines, but the "operator" was ***** Airlines; that means that we paid ******** (through Tripmasters), but that the actual airline we would travel with would be ***** Airlines. Upon on our arrival at ************************** to fly home we were told by ***** Airlines that they had absolutely no record of our having bought tickets to fly. We had paid Tripmasters for our tickets, but apparently they failed to notify ***** Airlines of our purchase. Luckily I had saved a screengrab of our purchase receipt for the tickets on my phone. Thus ***** Airlines acknowleged that we had indeed purchased tickets, but it said that, as they had not been paid for them, the only thing they could do was allow us to fly on "stand by." ***** said that only four seats remained available (the exact number of seats that we needed), and that if any of the seats were to be purchased before departure that we would not be able to fly. Instead we would have to return the next day, be placed on stand by again, and go through the process again; and we would not be given any credit for food, transportaion or lodging. By the grace of the gods no additional tickets were purchased and we were able to fly home, but we endured four hours of panic and worry in the mean time. Tripmasters response to my complaint to them was to claim that, because we made our flight, they had done nothing wrong. They offered us a one hundred dollar credit as a token gesture of compensation. I do not want their credit. What I want is for Tripmasters to acknowledge that they indeed did indeed do something wrong when they failed to notify ***** Airlines of our ticket purchase. I want them to explain how that failure occurred, and describe what steps they have taken to make sure that horrible mistake does not happen to other customers.

  

  Business response

  01/04/2022

  Dear BBB,

  We took the time to do the proper research with each department involved and the airlines (**/**) agency support desk to investigate further the issue. I would like to inform you that ******** ceased business on Sep 25th, 2021 as it was bought by ***** ********* *****, from Sep 25th to Oct 15th took part in all the transition between airlines affecting many reservations not being synchronized with other carriers such as **/**/** being part of their contract.

  This issue was not TripMasters fault, it was a problem between carriers synchronization with their reservation system. The reservation system is called ***, Airlines uses different GDS like *******/*****/*********/*******, and many more. Because of this type of transition, problems occurred not seeing each other tickets which was the actual problem on this particular reservation. We had sent tickets numbers to both carriers but Alitalia synchronization was disrupted by merging to Italo ********* ***** and that was when the problem arised.

  Also, I would like to explain; when airlines ceased operations no flights are guaranteed. Meaning, if you purchased a seat reservation and the flight is cancelled no refund will be processed. Being on a stand by does not guarantee space on the aircraft, I believe in this case the flight was not cancelled and was not at full capacity and that is why seats were able to be confirmed on spot.
  
  

  http://view.news-***************.************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
  
  https://************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

  We also were notified of this issue upon return of the trip, not allowing us to investigate or solve the issue at spot with the airline involved. Regarding our client's concern with future customers, we actually run ******* to detect problems when synchronization is on our end, Unfortunately, this issue came from ********, therefore, it was impossible to be detected. When we had cases reported we do action them right away, if your case was worked directly at the airport we cannot interfere as we can duplicate reservations and resolution can be affected. 

  We hope this helped clarifying the case.

  Kind regards,

  Tripmasters

  Customer response

  01/04/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Dear BBB:

  Tripmasters' explanation is nothing more than deflection and spin.

  Although it is true that ******** Airllines ceased operations approximately a week before our scheduled flight -- our tickets were purchased SEVEN MONTHS before the flight.

  That means that Tripmasters had seven months to notify ***** Airlines that we had purchased tickets to fly on their airline and Tripmasters failed to do so.

  If I had not saved a screengrab of my tickets purchase receipt on my cell phone, we would NOT have been placed on stand-by, because again, Tripmasters had failed to notify ***** Airlines that we had purchased tickets.

  We would have been completely stranded.

  The fact that we were able to fly, solely because I had luckily saved a screengrab of our ticket purchase on my phone, does not in any way obsolve Tripmasters of their deriliction of duty to inform ***** Airlines that we had purchased tickets to fly on their airline during the many months leading up to our travel.

  Regards,
  
  ****** ******

• Initial Complaint

  11/15/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I booked a travel package to Morocco & Paris in the amount of $3,761.30 on 2/720. The booking Code was ******. On 8/20/20, Tripmasters ("TM") cancelled my trip and refused to give me a refund. TM ONLY offered me the below future travel credit and said that I could rebook at a later date. ********* International flight - $1,554,98 -***** *** ***** regional flight - $713.58 -************************** - $339 -******************* - $316 -**** Hotel in Paris- $837.74.In 6/2021, I began the process of rebooking my travel. My new booking code is ******. When I was rebooking, TM said in order to rebook the below services that I would need to pay an additional fee. - ***** *** ***** - TM made me pay an additional $399.70 - ************************** - TM made me pay an additional $240.79. On 11/2/21, ***** *** ***** cancelled my regional flight and I requested that I receive a refund for the full amount that I paid for the flight, which at this point is $1,113.28 ($713.58 + $399.70). TM told me that I would only be refunded $798. I then had to book a new flight via *** ****** for an extra $421.28. On 11/13/21, ********* cancelled my flight into Morocco and said that they could not book me on an alternative flight. TM said that I could request a full refund. On 11/1521, TM emailed me and said that they would not refund my flight. TM said they would only give me a refund of $733.49 and a future credit for $2,462.80, but that I would also be penalized $241, so my refund would be reduced to $492.49. TM said in order to not be penalized in needed to rebook the cancelled flight with a new carrier and pay an additional $6,113.26.Since 2/2020, I have paid a total $4,494.79 for this trip. The trip and my flights have been cancelled through no fault of my own, but TM has refused to give me a full refund. And they continue to impose penalties on me, and I just keep losing money. I believe TM is defrauding me out of my money. I want a full refund of $4,494.79!

  

  Business response

  12/20/2021

  Dear BBB,

  We hope this finds you well.

  We received a claim from *************************** regarding a refund for the unused services with Tripmasters. We have informed the client that a refund has been issued.

  We have issued the refund to the client as follows:

  Refund $-641.50already processed on card ending in **** on November 30
  

  Refund $ *******to be processed on card ending in ****
  Refund $ 332.48        to be processed on card ending in ****

  PENALY: $ 241.00

  When booking online, clients have the option of selecting special discounted prices for the services offered. These are non-refundable. This means no refund can be issued if cancelled or amended. Our Fulfilment department is currently working towards a waiver, however, we cannot guarantee a refund will be issued.

  Therefore, we believe we have complied with the client's request to refund the trip as agreed to by contract. Additionally, we're taking a step beyond to waive the non-refundable service selected by the client during the booking process.

  Best regards,

  Tripmasters

  Customer response

  01/23/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  Regarding the $655 for booking #******, Tripmasters said the client was unable to travel due to COVID-19 outbreak. What Tripmasters is refusing to acknowledge and take responsibility for is that Tripmasters (not me) initiated the cancellation of the trip. At the time of cancellation, I requested a refund, but Tripmasters refused. The hotels were nonrefundable only if I cancelled or made a change to the trip. That did not happen. In this instance, Tripmasters was the one that cancelled the trip, so they should provide me with a refund. It is unethical for a travel agent to cancel a clients trip and then say the trip is nonrefundable and pocket the clients money.
  

  Regarding the $241 for booking ******, this additional fee was for a hotel, and Tripmasters failed to provide detail regarding how I again had no choice but to pay the additional cost. Tripmasters booked this hotel using Expedia. I spoke to the hotel and asked them if they would rebook my reservation at no additional cost. The hotel said that they absolutely would rebook my hotel for no additional cost, but that Tripmasters first needed to provide them with my hotel voucher. Tripmasters actually failed to get my hotel voucher from Expedia, so because of this, the hotel would not honor the original price of my reservation and required an additional payment of $241 to rebook the reservation. Instead of Tripmasters taking responsibility for failing to get the hotel voucher and covering this additional cost on my behalf, Tripmasters told me that I had to pay the additional $241 and if I did not pay it, I would forfeit all the money that I had already paid towards my hotel. So, I had no choice but to pay the additional amount. 
  

  As you can see, Tripmasters has very unethical and irresponsible business practices, and I have said multiple times that I will not be satisfied unless I get a full refund. 
  

  As I have told Tripmasters, if this matter is not resolved through the BBB process, I will file a lawsuit against the company and let a judge decide the outcome. 
  

  Regards,
  
  ***************************

  

  Business response

  02/04/2022

  Dear BBB,

  In regards to the client's claim, we understand the client is frustrated with the outcome provided. 
  

  In the initial booking, Tripmasters had no choice but to cancel all the trips that were affected by the pandemic and this was no easy task. Had we not cancelled the booking in time, the client would have incurred in much higher penalties. Because we were able to act fast, we have minimize the penalties. We do not believe our actions were unethical as our main goal was to alleviate our clients' financial loss.

  As we worked on the client's rebooking, we have used the credit of $ ******** to confirm the new services for her new trip abroad. As stated in our terms and conditions, If for some reason, a hotel fails to confirm, we will advise the client as soon as possible with alternatives. The credit card will not be charged until we receive the client's approval. Hotel ************************** had a price increase which we do not have control over at the time. As previously stated, we advised the client with the new price and waited for her approval before confirming the reservation. The client accepted the conditions and we proceeded to confirm the service.

  Our accounting team has also prepared the documentation needed for *****************'s insurance claims as you will see attached in the e-mail. Both bookings have been protected with an insurance policy selected by the client.

  Once more, we regret the client's frustration with our outcome. However, no refunds will be provided as these are penalties that are needed to be paid to our vendors. 
  
  Best regards,

  Tripmasters
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/08/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Booking ******. We had to cancel a trip to France due to the pandemic. We are trying to rebook the trip and get different information from each representative we speak to. Our credit was $4511.16. On Sunday the representative gave us a price of $5599.38 for 2 round trip business class plane tickets and 10 nights in a 4 star hotel. We have already paid the difference in cost. We got a messaage saying that that the hotel had to be changed due to inavailability. Last night, the same hotel would cost 1K to $2K more than we have already paid for a different class of room. A three star hotel they recommended would have cost over $1K more in addition to what we have paid. I spoke to someone today to ask about changing to 5 nights (we have points at a hotel chain that we can use for the other 5 nights). The representative informed me that it would cost us the same for 5 nights at the "new" 3 star hotel as we had been told it would cost for 10 nights at the first 4 star hotel. While we understand that sometimes changes must be made, we certainly expect that we will be offered a comparable hotel for a comparable price. Every intereaction with a representative has resulted in a price that is $1K - $2K more. This is extremely frustrating and we feel that we are being lied to or scammed about the costs. The representatives have offered no explanation for the huge price difference and say that's just what it costs now.

  

  Business response

  11/23/2021

  Dear BBB,

  We hope this finds you well.
  

  Upon checking the customer's complaint today, it seems the client was already able to create a new booking with one of our senior agents. Booking #****** traveling to Paris for 10 nights on September 24, 2022. Total package price is $4,917.22. We apologize for any dissatisfaction our clients may have experienced during the process. However, prices are very dynamic and will always depend on when the trip will depart and the availability of the suppliers and airlines involved at the time.
  

  We believe this has already been addressed and resolved. However, if there is anything else we can assist, do not hesitate contacting us, we will gladly help.
  

  Kind regards,
  

  Tripmasters

  Customer response

  12/07/2021

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: We believe that the company "waited us out" and ignored out concerns.  This is the only correspondence we received from them regarding our dissatisfaction with our experience - even our expressed concerns were not addressed in a timely manner.  Although most of the agents we spoke to were courteous, it is very difficult to deal with people who are simply reading from a script.  There were questions that they could not answer, and they seemed to be ill equipped to find the best offer for us.  Other travel services will generally look at several options to present to the customer, but this agency presented one option at a time.  When we asked to speak to a Manager, we were told we could not.  Even though we did book another trip, were are very unhappy and would never use this company again.
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************
  

*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. ↩