Complaint Review: Expedia.com - Los Angeles Internet

My significant other and I wanted to take a trip to end the summer to Cabo San Lucas. 

Since we are the thrifty type, and don't like to waste money in a bad economy, we booked many, many weeks before the trip. We got an excellent rate (ironic), to the Riu Sante Fe all inclusive hotel.  Our flight to Cabo San Lucas was on Alaskan Airlines.  And our return flight was on Mexicana (now also very ironic).  We paid somewhere in the neighborhood of 1200 dollars for everything, excellent right?  Not so fast.

Expedia booked us on two airlines.  Alaskan and Mexicana. Somewhere along the lines, many weeks after we booked our trip, Mexicana Airlines died and went into bankruptcy. Not only were we not informed by Expedia, which I expect as a consumer, but we were treated unfairly, dealt with like we weren't worth anything to them, and got the run around. I have never been treated so badly as a consumer as I have with Expedia.com. 

Beware, once they get your money, they are done with you.

Ok, so here is what happened.  Thanks to a friend, before we went on our trip, I get a phone call from a concerned friend that he thinks my airline that is coming back from Cabo San Lucas is out of business.  I am shocked.  No one told me, no one called, no one emailed from Expedia.com, so I freak out and I call them. 

Mind you, I am extremely busy and don't have time to play customer support games, so I call them on my own time to try to figure out what the issue was.  This is the amazing part.

I am a customer, I expect the service provider to take care of me and honor the rates that I paid.  I am told that this will not be the case, and now, just a few days before my trip, they are going to be so nice as to charge me a hefty increase in the rate that I initially booked as a smart consumer to move me to another airline. 

I explain to them that I WILL NOT be paying for this, and that they will pay for difference.  As a consumer, they have the responsibility to make this right to me. I play phone tag with them for over an hour as i get "accidentally disconnected", from a phone that I've never had a dropped call from.  I demand to speak to a supervisor, and am eventually connected to a lady named "TILLY", who calls a different airline and gets me "booked", and that everything is "taken care of" and I will not incur any other fees.  Ok, great, we are OK right?  Expedia.com has taken care of me!  Not so fast!

So, we go on our anniversary trip, we have a good time.  Great hotel, TERRIBLE FOOD!  Besides the point, the problem here is with Expedia and their incompetence.  The day I am supposed to leave from Cabo to the airport, I call Expedia to make sure that everything is ok, expecting to hear that we are confirmed, again!  Not so fast!

Expedia has stranded me and my girlfriend in Mexico!  They did not have us booked as we were confirmed by "Tilly".  Instead, I am told that I did not book a return flight.  I am completely livid at this point.  I did not book a return flight?  I work in Los Angeles.  I'm going on vacation, I've checked every box, and told every person I've talked to, which I am sure is all recorded, and hopefully I will subpoena for the small claims case.

So, longer story short, Expedia stranded myself and my girlfriend in Mexico.  Here is where it gets the best.  I can go home, but I'm going to have to purchase two first class seats at my own expense or I can just become a Mexican.  That's basically what they told me.  They have no remorse.  They are not sad that they messed up my reservations.  I can pay out of my own pocket, full rate first class tickets, or I can basically stay in Mexico.

They offered no recourse.  No apology.  I am attempting at this moment to chargeback with my bank and explain to them what happened.  If not, I will file a small claims suit against them.  We have counsel for my company, and I can do this with no effort or fees.

Stay away from Expedia.  They don't give a rats *&*%$# about you.  Trust me.

Since I am in search engine marketing I am planning to put up a review site, (which is protected since the story is true, and i can prove it).  I'm going to PDF the small claims docks and shoot that site a ton of free backlinks and make sure that it gets some nice traffic.