Complaint Review: Expedia - Nationwide

Don't Ever Use Expedia!

If you ever need to get a refund from Expedia because of an unexpected trip cancellation, good luck! My family and I were scheduled to visit Grand Bahia Principe Jamaica All Inclusive, from Sat. 7/12/2014 thru to Thur. 7/17/2014 using US Airways. This was booked through Expedia. Unfortunately, my 17 year old daughter had emergency surgery on 7/11/2014 they day before our trip and therefore we had to cancel. After a week of countless hours on the phone with their absolutely atrocious customer service department, I'm became extremely frustrated trying to get a refund for my trip. I sent a complaint to their online complaint form and you won't believe what it said. Here's a direct quote:

"We are truly sorry for the inconvenience this matter has caused you. We are unable to process refund requests via e-mail correspondence. In situations like this, it is imperative that we have you on the line while we research further on the case. As much as we would like to assist you with your concern, there are processes that we are restricted to do via e-mail correspondence. Please call us and have your itinerary number handy."

Not only did I not get a vacation that I already I paid for, but I’ve also incurred a tremendous amount of frustration trying to communicate with this company.

The following is a letter I sent certified to the CEO of Expedia (certified with confirmed receipt 7-21-14 1:27PM)). Today it is 7/25/2014 and still no response back from the CEO. As you read the letter below, you will see what I had to go through to attempt to get a refund. Conclusion? There is no convenient way to cancel a trip with Expedia. Don't Ever Use Expedia!

Letter to CEO of Expedia sent 7/18/14:

July 17, 2014

Subject: Expedia Complaint RE: Itinerary # 1717xxxxxxxx

Reference Case ID: S-794xxxxx

Dear President & CEO,

As you read the following letter, please put yourself in my shoes and ask yourself if you would ever use Expedia again for your family travel needs. Allow me to enlighten you on the most incredibly horrific customer service experience I have just received with your company.

My family and I booked a vacation package through Expedia and were scheduled to visit Grand Bahia Principe All Inclusive resort in Jamaica, from Saturday 7/12/14 thru Thursday 7/17/14 flying via US Airways. Unfortunately, my 17 year old daughter experienced a life threatening event and had to undergo emergency surgery on Friday 7/11/14, the day prior to our scheduled trip. While we were waiting for her operation, I attempted to cancel our trip on 7/11/14 by calling Expedia. Have you ever tried calling your own 877-787-7186 number? It’s quite a painful experience to say the least!

After 40 minutes of waiting to get someone live, I finally reached a woman on the line but unfortunately I didn't think to capture her name. She said she canceled my flight, but when attempting to call the Bahia Principe resort, the line dropped and I got disconnected from the call. Regretfully, your specialist never called me back even though she had my phone number from the itinerary number I provided. I had to call again and wait another 30 minutes to someone live. I finally reached Mandy Banks. She claimed my flight wasn't canceled by the previous person and that she had to do it again. She put me on hold and after 5 attempts to call the resort, she came back on the line and said the resort phone line was busy and she couldn't get through. She said not to worry, her supervisor would call the next day, 7/12/14 (the day we were supposed to arrive) and they would get it canceled for me. Since I called on 7/11/14, she said there should be no problem with a full refund.

On Monday 7/14/14 I called Expedia once again to find out status. After 20 minutes of wait time, I finally reached Kean. She said the supervisor never called the resort on 7/12/14. Kean then placed me on hold and attempted to call the resort. Once again, no answer. She decided to send an email to the sales manager of Bahia Principe, Amoi Leon. She gave me the email address so I could send a copy of our doctor’s note to the resort sales manager which I did. She told me to wait 48 hours then call Expedia to get the final resolution. I asked her why she couldn’t call me so I can avoid the long wait time trying to call into Expedia and she claimed that wasn’t their policy.

On Wednesday, 7/16/14 I called Expedia as instructed. Care to take a guess what happened when I placed the call? Yes, another painful 30 minutes of waiting to get through. I spoke to Poni. She also attempted to call the resort to find out what was going on. Apparently the sales manager wasn’t in yet. Poni informed me that the resort manager would return in 30 minutes and told me to call Expedia back in 30 minutes. I asked her why she couldn’t call me back instead to avoid the wait time. Once again, she told me it wasn’t Expedia’s policy. It was then that I asked to speak to her supervisor. While trying to find one and after being placed on hold for another 15 minutes, the line disconnected and I received a dial tone. 

As I painfully waited for 30 minutes to pass before calling back, I received a phone call from an Expedia supervisor named Zaria. She informed me that the email address that Kean sent on Monday was a wrong email address. There should have been a hyphen between the bahia and principe after the @ sign. She asked me to resend the email from Kean and send another email including the doctor’s note, which I did. Zaria told me she would follow up and that she would either call me back later in the day or send me an email notifying me of the resolution from the resort. Can you guess what happened next? Nothing! No response from either Expedia or the resort.

At this point, one might ask why I didn’t try calling the resort myself. The reason is simple. It’s not a toll free 800 number. It would have cost me $.43/minute to call Jamaica and therefore not a viable option. After all, I booked through Expedia and I would expect Expedia to help me resolve my issue. Adding to my misery is the fact that I am being penalized by the airline $200 per person ($600 total) for a trip my family never took.

Additionally, US Airlines claims that I have to use the ticket credit by March (when I purchased the tickets) not by 7/12/2014 when I planned on taking the trip. Therefore, it’s not really a 1 year credit from my trip date. Not only did we not get to enjoy a vacation that we already paid for, we have also incurred additional costs on top of what we paid for our trip not to mention the inherent medical expenses forthcoming.

Since I attempted to cancel within a 24 hour window and the fact that my daughter was hospitalized in an emergency room undergoing a serious operation on the day prior to my trip, I would expect that you would honor a full refund without any taxes, penalties or fees. Enclosed you’ll find a copy of the note from the surgeon who performed her surgery.

As of today, Thursday 7/17/14 (almost a week after my attempted trip cancellation) there is still no resolution to getting either a full refund from the resort or at minimum, a credit to use the resort for a future trip. No one from either the resort or from Expedia has followed up to address my concerns.

I assume that the name of your company comes from the word “expedient” which according to Merriam-Webster means: providing an easy and quick way to solve a problem or do something. Sorry, but your company doesn’t even come close to this definition. Expedia has provided only a minimal amount of effort to help us navigate through a scary, difficult and painful family situation. My experience with Expedia has shown me that you have an absolutely horrific and callous customer service department.

Your company is no doubt arrogant when it comes to good customer care. You are conveniently quick to take someone’s money for a trip, but you make it extremely painful to get it back especially when a life-threatening event forces a trip cancellation. The extreme wait time when trying to get a live person on the phone and the fact that there’s no way to email a complaint to someone who will listen is downright customer service abuse.

So let me ask you, do you think our complaint is justified based upon our experience with Expedia? Is this the quality of service we should expect from your company in the future? Would you accept this type of customer service yourself? If you were us, would you book another trip through your company? I presume not!

In closing, I’m still waiting patiently for a resolution from Expedia before I begin initializing a complaint with the BBB, State Attorney General, Rip Off Report, and various forms of social media! Unfortunately for you, I am not going to go away until you resolve this matter to my satisfaction!