Reporting and disciplining unethical TA

[sultan_sfo]

Fully agree -- I am NOT an agent.

BTW -- we prefer a proactive agent who knows our tastes and will not let a good deal pass by if they are not able to get hold of us immediately.

 

/Sultan

 

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The majority of agents in my profession are hard working, educated, and very professional.

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[newmexicoNita]

The main point you are making is that the majority of TA's are unethical. I think you are right about that and people should be careful about using TA's. One should never use a TA unless doing so can give you a significant cost reduction.

quite the contrary, most agents are ethical and work hard for every buck we make. I will admit there are some that are not terribly knowledgable which is sad, they are order takers more than professional, experienced agents, but even they are not unethical. Even if we wanted to do something underhanded we have people overseeing what we do, and most of us wouldn't consider anything that was not totally above board.

 

I don't think people like you have a very good idea what service we do provide or how we are there to help in case of things not going well. Can we solve all problems? Of course not, but we do try. For you, an agent may not be of any benefit, but don't say we are unethical.

 

Nita

[owl61]

Helen, glad to hear you received your cc credit.

I am still bewildered by the failure of the honest TAs who have commented here to condemn the actions of my TA in clear and unequivocal terms. My TA failed to advise me that there had been a price reduction across the board and failed to consult with me on how I wanted to handle the reduced pricing, eg, upgrade to what level, etc. She surpressed the general price reduction even when she knew I was unaware of it. Later, she lied about the nature of the discount provided by the cruiseline.

I never said the majority of all TAs are unethical, but if you are all so darn ethical, how about just saying flat out that my TA acted dishonestly and unethically. Period. The hemming and hawing, the attempts to rationalize her misconduct, that I have read here underscore my suspicion that fierce competition has rendered many TAs ethically challenged. Their collective moral compass seems to be on the fritz. It would be amusing if it weren't so serious - a good reason for more states to enact consumer protection regulations specifically targeting the industry.

p.s. I choose the TA who gets me the lowest price. The level of service by low cost providers is all about the same - barely noticeable. I particularly am amused by the reluctance to advise customers what visas/docs might be required for the voyage. In fact, these internet TAs seldom initiate any communications other than to send an invoice.

[Jhawktx]

I don't think people like you have a very good idea what service we do provide or how we are there to help in case of things not going well. Can we solve all problems? Of course not, but we do try. For you, an agent may not be of any benefit, but don't say we are unethical.

 

Nita

 

What the OP describes is unethical and par for the course with TA's in general. Most of the problems on a booking are a direct result of incompetance on the part of TA's. TA's work very hard to get one piece of data correct, your credit card number. All other data is much more likely to get screwed up. You should generally use a TA in 2 cases:

1) you are a total boob yourself and need to rely on a TA who is also likely a boob but maybe not quite as bad as you are yourself

2) the TA can get you a significant cost reduction vs booking direct so it is worth taking the (significant) risk the TA will botch your reservation.

 

#1 above probably applies to about 2% of the population.

[newmexicoNita]

What the OP describes is unethical and par for the course with TA's in general. Most of the problems on a booking are a direct result of incompetance on the part of TA's. TA's work very hard to get one piece of data correct, your credit card number. All other data is much more likely to get screwed up. You should generally use a TA in 2 cases:

1) you are a total boob yourself and need to rely on a TA who is also likely a boob but maybe not quite as bad as you are yourself

2) the TA can get you a significant cost reduction vs booking direct so it is worth taking the (significant) risk the TA will botch your reservation.

 

#1 above probably applies to about 2% of the population.

I can't change you mind and that is your peragitive to feel as you do. I can guarantee you most agents and agency are not as you see them. Yes, we want you Credit Card, but you dont' have a clue as to what we really do. Sure, we have the easy clients, the ones who know what they want, even, in some cases, the cabin or room if it is a land vacation. We love those types, but we have those who have no clue or don't have the time research. I just spent several hours this week researching prices, cabins, dates etc for 4 different clients. Guess how many have booked? 1 and maybe a second.

Am I complaining? NO, this is my job and I love it. Yes, there are people who can do the same things we do; for them booking on their own is great unless there is a problem down the road. For the majority of those booking vacations a good agent is worth their weight in gold.

 

I understand your feeling about doing your own travel, I do not understand your flaming agents.

Nita

[Jade13]

The main point you are making is that the majority of TA's are unethical. I think you are right about that and people should be careful about using TA's. One should never use a TA unless doing so can give you a significant cost reduction.

 

 

:confused: :confused: :confused:

 

"The majority of travel agents are unethical", and "one should never use a travel agent"???