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Michelle Couch-Friedman

Consumer reporter and ombudsman columnist

Michelle Couch-Friedman is the founder and CEO of Consumer Rescue. She is a journalist, consumer advocate, travel writer, mediator, and former psychotherapist. Michelle is also the travel ombudsman columnist for The Points Guy, contributing author at Fodor's Travel and previously served as the executive director of the nonprofit Elliott Advocacy. During her six years managing that organization, she resolved thousands of cases for troubled travelers and other consumers. You can read hundreds of 5-star reviews Michelle earned during her service to the nonprofit on Great Nonprofits. Michelle is a public speaker, and her expert guidance has been cited in the Washington Post, MarketWatch, Consumer Reports, Travel & Leisure, the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Popular Science, CNN, CNBC, Boston Globe, CBS News, National Geographic, Travel Weekly, Reader's Digest and more. You might even catch Michelle on TV reporting on a situation. :) Professionally, Michelle is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and the American Society of Journalists and Authors (asja). Today, she continues to spend as much time as possible fiercely defending consumers and traveling the world. Contact her at Michelle Couch-Friedman or on Linkedin, Twitter or Facebook.
This Las Vegas Airbnb rental was a bust! Snake eyes! Awful vacation rental and illegal.

My Las Vegas Airbnb rental was a gamble I lost. Can you help?

When Mary Scholtz planned a trip to Las Vegas, she was not anticipating that her biggest gamble would be on her Airbnb rental. Unfortunately, this thoroughly unsatisfactory illegal Airbnb rental was anything but a winner, and now Mary wants a complete refund. Can we help?

expired green card problems, travel nightmare, detained in Mexico

This is how an expired green card created her worst travel nightmare

What’s the worst nightmare that could happen if you land in Mexico with expired travel documents? Kush Kanna’s wife recently found out in a most unpleasant way. She thought she was heading for a relaxing tropical vacation in Costa Rica with her family. Instead, she ended up detained in Mexico after authorities rejected her expired green card and Indian passport.

Now Kush wants to know who will pay for this awful travel nightmare.

Hint: He isn’t going to like the answer.

If you’re about to travel internationally, take heed. Customs and immigration agents abroad will not overlook expiration dates on your travel documents, so you shouldn’t either.

This passport mistake caused a travel disaster that cost this family nearly $20,000!

This simple passport mistake ended in a $17,766 travel disaster. Here’s how

Ted Kelly says his wife made a simple passport mistake last year that snowballed into a $17,766 travel disaster.

The couple had never heard of the Schengen area or its passport requirements for U.S. citizens. However, when they attempted to check in for their business-class flight to Italy, a Lufthansa representative quickly explained the facts. Ted’s wife’s passport didn’t have the required 90-day validity from their return date, and the airline denied boarding to the couple.

Complaining about getting the worst view on the cruise and asking for a refund after a voyage through Norway.

I got the worst view on the cruise ship! Can I get a refund?

Sevil Macmot found the view from her guaranteed oceanview cabin aboard Costa Cruises Mediterranea stunningly terrible. She says her dream vacation was ruined when the cruise line assigned her to the cabin with the worst view.

Now Sevil wants to know who selected her for this disappointing cabin with the worst view — and why.

Oh, and she wants a refund, too. But is that a reasonable request?

Hertz sent a customer to collections after it offered him a goodwill gesture. The car rental began and ended in Seattle, Washington.

Can Hertz give a goodwill gesture and still send you to collections?

Hertz customer Aaron Baird made a costly mistake during his last car rental. Because he returned the vehicle to the wrong location, the car rental giant slapped him with a $780 upcharge. Ultimately, in the spirit of positive customer relations, Hertz offered Aaron a goodwill gesture and erased the debt.

Lesson learned, and all was well – or so Aaron thought.

A few weeks after Hertz offered the goodwill gesture, a different department within the company resurrected the invoice. That Hertz team sent Aaron’s account to collections and put him on the Do Not Rent (DNR) list.

Norwegian Cruise Line's ship Epic. The couple in this article was denied boarding the cruise.

This cruise ship passenger arrived just in time — to be denied boarding!

Could a cruise ship passenger be denied boarding even if they have all of the required documents for sailing?

Lee Bolland says he knows the answer to that question is “Yes” because it happened to him.

Last fall, he and his wife planned to cruise through the Mediterranean on Norwegian Cruise Line’s Epic. The couple flew to Spain to begin their adventure, and all was going well — until it suddenly wasn’t. At the port, NCL employees shockingly denied Lee boarding and abandoned the couple there.