Never had a problem or a situation and I have used many of the internet travel based sites. That's not to say a situation can or can not occur in the future.

GoTravel,

the reason so sketcky is, I think, b/c this is a post by a student writing a term paper, or as swaymock thinks a journalist, or maybe he just realized that his travel site quotes prices per person and just bills separately. I bet we never hear from him again (at least with any useful details).

The tone of the OP's posts sounds suspiciously similar to that of the "seasoned traveler" who posted here a couple of weeks ago, introducing him/herself by implying that he/she was going to give us woefully uneducated-in-travel heathen the benefit of his/her experience. Then we never heard from him/her again.

Something about the tone of the post sounds quite fishy to me...to anyone else? Some je ne sais quoi. I have a feeling Editor Doug chiming in may have scared the varmint away.

OO, I don't think any of the posters have to do anything with the OP not giving any details. I suspect, there were none to begin with!

And who said it's a journalist looking for help with his/her article... may be true as the school is out, so it's not some high schooler with an assignment.

netizenbane-

The price of admission for information on this forum (and our cooperation) is authenticity.

Please tell us your details. It's time for you to level with us!

Or a student who is going to a year round school and consequently is attending school during this period of time.

Anyway, I agree, someone that is hoping to gain "something" from posters..imagine he is a tad dissapointed.

I agree - this sounds like someone trying to write some sort of article, and rather than being straightforward, he or she is trying to pretend to be a fellow traveller. I hate those types of tactics.

FainaAgain, I don't know where you are, but here if you flunk a class you take it again in the summer. But you're right: there are probably NO details.

Oh, I forgot about summer schools :) Luckily, in my family nobody needed them!

FainaAgain, Having read another post of yours, it's obvious you didn't need summer school since you are smart enough to live in San Francisco.

Tampatramp, you don't have to be smart to live in San Francisco, just RICH

Wow!

Why such animosity people?

This has been a serious ordeal for my fiancee and I that has caused nearly $600 more than it was supposed to and I was simply trying to see if anyone else has had such issues!

Myer - your queries are all correct indeed. Thank you for caring enough to request more specific details.

That, and the fierce pride some of you seem to have in this community are a good sign; to me, this means that you all have a stake in the advice and discussion that goes on here.

Many of you are correct in some of your assertions, the first of which is that you certainly are not my "dear friends."

My apologies for attributing such nomenclature to a community I am still merely a guest in. I meant only to espouse a friendly tone.

So. Pleasantries aside (sort of), down to business: there are many questions and some down-right accusations. Understandable.

Especially if people often visit these forums merely to gripe for the sake of griping or to tarnish a company's name in a single place (as if that would make any difference).

Allow me clarify a few points...

To each of you who misunderstood or thought that my complaint could be a case of skimmed fine-print, unrealstic deal expectations or some attempt of contract fraud on my part, let me say this: it is none of the above.

And to those of you who mistook my story examples as anecdotes of my own: understand that they are not.

I was NOT assigned a flight to an incorrect country, I do not have an issue with Priceline's bidding and I certainly did not make the mistake of skipping out on the purchase of extra insurance. Those were merely examples meant to elicit responses and perhaps to generate thoughts of past experiences. So please stop criticizing what you're interpreting as foolish acts on my part.

(By the way djkbooks: the rainout insurance does indeed exist. I happily suggest that you look into it.)

The situation is, as Myer very specifically posted, that I was indeed charged twice for the exact amount the day after booking my trip:

*Purchased a honeymoon vacation package for two people.
*Was charged once for the package (two-thirds was booked on a credit card, one-third on my debit card)
*A day later, was charged a second time for the debit card amount of just-under $600.
*Both times the package was for two people -- yes
But this point I am rather unsure of from the billing perspective. The travel company says that its records indicate only one charge, while my bank account indicates two identical charges that are both attributed to the travel company.
*I did indeed contact the travel company and explained the double charge.
*They have indeed refused to make any kind of adjustment!
*The debit card is linked to a bank account (of course), so I also contacted the bank.
*The bank insists that the travel site must remove the charge and the travel site insists that, if there even IS any double-charge (because they deny it), that the bank would have to handle it!

Other details:
The double-charge resulted in an overdraft of my bank account...for the very first time in the history of my relationship with my bank.

I explained this additional circumstance to the "customer service" representatives at the travel company in the hopes that it would help them understand why I needed this problem addressed and solved expeditiously.

Unfortunately, I received no such service.

I was not only bounced back and forth between departments (customer service to package reservations to billing) but I was even misdirected, somehow, to customer service at Hotels.com.

I requested a phone audience with a supervisor and, after continued attitude and unprovoked disrespect from the service rep, was granted such audience with a manager who obviously heads the Customer Dis-Service Department.

I was further berated, told I was lying, told that my request was unreasonable and finally dismissed under the pretense that I should fax in my bank account record indicating that the charge occurred twice and then to simply wait because "we'll call you."

They might as well have said that the "check was in the mail," of course.

Four hours and two more calls later, I finally learned that they did indeed receive the fax that they so graciously decided NOT to call me back about and that the person who reviewed the bank record determined that there was no second charge of the same amount!

Even though the numbers are very explicit and even though they each have source-indicators that specifically spell out the company's name.

Upon learning this (by calling them and querying further, not by receiving the promised return call), I quickly re-faxed the record and followed up with yet another call a short while later.

At this point, I was told that they simply cannot do anything about this problem. Furious, I contained myseld and respectfully asked for yet another supervisor.

After recounting the story yet again, this supervisor finally told me that they would, again, "look into it and call me back."

This was what I was left with after hours of calling the travel site and my bank to try to resolve an extra charge of $600 that was charged erroneously on my debit card and therefore directly to my bank account.

The supervisor apologized and said that she could not do anything else about it. At this point, I threatened to cancel the trip and initiate a chargeback and all she had to say was, "if you want to do that, then go ahead."

I just couldn't believe that what seemed like a reputable company was treating a (repeat) customer this way. It was a simple transaction that went awry. Unfortunately, "awry" in this case was a matter of $600 that, I might add, I did not have! This extra charge over-drew my account, put me in the negative and resulted in a couple of hundred more dollars in overdraft fees from my bank!

Thankfully that side of things has been resolved because the bank understands that I am in a dispute about this.

But how can a travel site purport itself as a "discount travel" source and then turn around and double-charge a client without remorse or rectification?

That's it people. What other questions do you have? Any other denunciations or criticisms?

If you can remember after this long trail of posts, I never asked for advice or even pity. I merely asked if anyone else has had any problems booking with these online sites.

Using phrases like "achieve justice" was my mistake. There's no hidden agenda here, hence my willingness to provide all information you have asked for.

I meant no disrespect to your forum or your community and I would appreciate it if you could each try to recognize that at this point and disperse with the antipathy.

My apologies that my first post in this discussion forum came off as shady. I meant (and mean) no harm. I was merely looking for some friendly correspondence and to indeed seek the comfort of shared experiences.

If that is not the case, so be it. Fair enough. If no one else has had these problems then you have indeed answered my original query.

Thank you all for the advice you have shared about resolving this issue. Each and every piece of that advice has been followed and is geniunely appreciated and I hope to have this resolved soon.

In the meantime, I hope to quell your concerns by answering any futher questions you have - with no agenda other than clearing my name in this place and assuring you all that I'm not some phantom journalist or student hiding behind the anonymity of the internet.

Best wishes for many happy returns to you all.

Norden, believe me, one doesn't have to be rich to live here. We came to USA with $500 cash, $4,500 in debts, family of 4 (2 children) and started with welfare.

The city is on rent control, the longer you live, the more cheap ways of living you learn, like where to buy cheaper veggies, clothing, free events.

Yes, if you expect to start a rich life, big house, eating out every day, bars and Nordstrom, yes, you have to be rich. If you can live a modest life, one salary is enough.

p.s. - I've only been to San Fran once (for my aunt's wedding) but it was beautiful and I had a spectacular time there. I hope to one day reach financial straights to be able to move there (without government assistance, if possible!). And cheers to you for making that happen...couldn't have been easy!

Sorry for your troubles. Hope you get it solved. Next time use a credit card. I would never book anything with a debit. I could be wrong but I think you have more protection with a credit card. You can always pay off the credit card immediately if you don't want to carry a balance.

The advice to always pay for travel with a credit card is good. I have always been able to get good, timely resolutions to problems with the credit card companies - everything from being double charged by venders to fraud. I can't say the same when dealing with my checking account. Whenever there is an issue, it is always a hassle to deal with.

I am sorry this happened to you, it is frustrating.
Dupe charges will and do happen, usually upon seeing the duplicates on your statement, the vendor removes immediatley. No agency or comapny is immune from them happening, it is how they handle it that may set them apart. But if they do not see it, more investigation is necessary.
Ask your bank for the approval codes, times, dates of each transaction. Are they the same ?
Try and conference call with an Acct rep from the travel company. The travel company will have a batch list of all credit card charges made each day, they usually run at midnight, so each individual transaction would be noted. If the travel company does not show the second transaction, there is a chance the bank posted it twice, debit accounts usually hold an identical amount, then drop one in 1-3 business days, leaving you with the one charge, it is possible they goofed too.

Good luck !

Thanks netizen. That is all I asked for was an account of what actually happened.

I would DEMAND a conference call between the bank and Expedia customer service.

Find a sympathic someone at your bank who will stay online until this is resolved.

I had a similar experience with Expedia or Orbitz and the fault was my own.

Fortunately I got someone from my bank who stayed on the phone with me in a conference call to Expedia or Orbitz until it was cleared up.

Many thanks! Perhaps booking travel using debit vs. credit deserves its own thread. That is extremely useful information.

Much appreciated! :)