Business Class Consolidators

[mikebsxm]

Questions on Business Class Air fare consolidators.   I have used HAL's Flight Ease many times, and received reliable flights at good prices.  Never a problem with cancellations.  But now, even Flight Ease prices are crazy high,  $6000 per person round trip US East coast to Venice.   I have seen many ads for companies that offer Business Class airfares and amazing discount prices, by consolidating.  They ask for your trip dates and they will call or e-mail a price back a few days later.   Are they reliable ?  Do they cancel and just give you part of your money back ?   If it was a land vacation, a few days delay would be a pain, but it could be handled.  For a cruise, missing the ship would be a disaster, missing the initial days at sea and possibly the first port.  Has anyone had experiences, good or bad, with the many fare consolidators ?  Or is the old saying accurate, "If it's too good to be true, then it probably is".

[LHT28]

You need to check the refund policy  of the one you are dealing with 

Some will give a small refund of what you paid  & some are non refundable

 

 

[Zach1213]

1 hour ago, mikebsxm said:

Or is the old saying accurate, "If it's too good to be true, then it probably is".

 

It is. Steer clear of these consolidators. Many (most?) of them operate by purchasing miles from people, and then re-selling them to others. For example - Consolidator ABC buys American Airlines miles from Joe A, and uses those miles to book a reward seat on American Airlines that they then sell to you. Sounds great, right? But...American Airlines clearly states this is against their rules, and if they catch that you've been involved in this scheme, they can (and do) cancel your ticket with no recourse. Then, try getting your money back from Consolidator ABC. Good luck. 

 

They're cheap for a reason - what they do is often against the rules of most airlines. 

[LHT28]

There are also  companies that have a relationship with some airlines 

They buy tickets at contracted  then sell to Travel agencies  for  a net  "net price" who will add  their profit to your ticket

 They are still cheaper than booking direct  but the  cancellation fees  etc  are not that good  should you need to cancel 

[6rugrats]

No, no, no.  Consider this fact; planes are flying full and airlines do not sell discounted business class tickets to consolidators.  Most of these companies purchase frequent flier miles and then book you tickets using another person's miles.  This is against the rules of every airline's frequent flier program.  Airlines track this carefully, and if they catch these tickets, they will cancel them, leaving you stranded.  I can look at your ticket and see exactly where it was purchased.

Read the the terms and conditions of the company you are considering purchasing from.  Many of them now have a clause that if this happens, you are not due a refund.  Go the air travel forum on Tripadvisor and read about these companies.

I would never consider using such a company.

Edited September 24, 2022 by 6rugrats

[Gardyloo]

Around five years ago my laptop was stolen (right off my kitchen table, but that's another story.)  By the time I managed to change all my passwords etc. the thief had cracked my American Airlines frequent flyer account and had pretty much emptied it - around 350,000 miles.  

 

I contacted American they started to try to trace the stolen miles, and eventually found they'd been sold by the thief to a "consolidator," one that's still in business.  (Send me a PM if you want to know the name - I won't post it on an open forum for fear of the post being deleted.)  

 

The mileage broker ("consolidator") had redeemed my miles for three separate tickets on Cathay Pacific, in business and first class, which they then sold to passengers at a "discount."  One of the tickets had already been used by the time American traced the activity; the other two were canceled pre-flight.  A friendly AA agent broke protocol to tell me that one of the canceled tickets had been intercepted when the passenger was at the departure gate in Hong Kong - about to board a flight to Toronto.  

 

The two passengers who had their tickets canceled were out thousands of dollars; whether they got paid back by the "consolidator" is unknown.  

 

AA eventually restored my miles.  I asked what if any actions they'd taken against the mileage broker and they said none; they weren't able to prosecute any illegal actions since the purchase of the miles from the thief was arms-length.  When I talked to the local police about identity theft resulting from my stolen computer, the response was that they had no resources to follow up on such incidents, which were becoming commonplace.

 

So moral(s) to the story:  protect your data, and DON'T play around with "consolidators."

[em-sk]

15 hours ago, 6rugrats said:

No, no, no.  Consider this fact; planes are flying full and airlines do not sell discounted business class tickets to consolidators.  Most of these companies purchase frequent flier miles and then book you tickets using another person's miles.  This is against the rules of every airline's frequent flier program.  Airlines track this carefully, and if they catch these tickets, they will cancel them, leaving you stranded.  I can look at your ticket and see exactly where it was purchased.

Read the the terms and conditions of the company you are considering purchasing from.  Many of them now have a clause that if this happens, you are not due a refund.  Go the air travel forum on Tripadvisor and read about these companies.

I would never consider using such a company.

 

When the OP used the word consolidator, I think they were referring to the flight booking office of the cruise lines.  I don't think any of the major cruise lines are playing around with buying frequent flyer points.  The cruise lines are major buyers of flights are they likely have negotiated deals on business and first class.   However, since these are not fares offered to the general public we just don't know the details of what conditions are on the ticket.  

 

The airlines will discount business/first class.  For corporate accounts the discount can be substantial.  

 

If the OP is in fact talking about these companies that are trading points, I agree completely best to stay far away from them.

 

[6rugrats]

7 hours ago, em-sk said:

When the OP used the word consolidator, I think they were referring to the flight booking office of the cruise lines.

OP said, "I have seen many ads for companies that offer Business Class airfares and amazing discount prices, by consolidating."

They were talking about shoddy third party ticket brokers.

 

Edited September 25, 2022 by 6rugrats

[mikebsxm]

I'm the OP on this.  I was referring to the many ads seen bragging about 50% or more off on business or first class airfares.   I have used HAL's Flight Ease many times and I always get an airline Record Locator code after booking, and in most cases, I can see my reservation on the airline's website.  I can also do seat selection and get boarding passes.  The cruise line's air programs are totally legit.  But thanks to the many responses I received above, I will definitely stay far away from the "Air Fare Consolidators".