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.

If you want to file a lost luggage claim with Blue Ribbon Bags, you actually have to report the luggage as missing. Otherwise, how can it be found?

What happened to his lost luggage? Blue Ribbon Bags knows

December 9, 2022October 13, 2022

Blue Ribbon Bags, a lost luggage tracking service, offers a $1,000 guarantee. If the company fails to find your lost luggage within 96 hours, you get the cash. That deal sounded pretty sweet to Vamsi Kosaraju, especially when his mother-in-law lost her bag on a recent flight.

The family patiently waited out the four days and then requested the $1,000 reward — which Blue Ribbon Bags swiftly rejected. Now Vamsi wants our advocacy team to investigate. So what’s going on here?

This tale is a bit hard to believe. But it points to Vamsi’s inherent misunderstanding of what this lost luggage tracking service can and can’t do. It should go without saying that if you don’t report your bag missing, it can’t be found. However, Vamsi insists that no one explained that basic premise to him. And he says Blue Ribbon Bags owes him $1,000 for the missing bag.

These travelers did not feel safe in her Airbnb.

If you don’t feel safe in your Airbnb rental, can you get a refund?

January 16, 2024October 12, 2022

What if you don’t feel safe after you check into your next Airbnb rental? That’s the frightening situation that confronted Ericka Wilson and her sister during a short vacation to Puerto Rico. They didn’t expect luxury, but they did expect to be able to lock the front door. When that wasn’t possible, they wanted to hit the eject button and get a refund.

So why was the refund request for their three-hour stay rejected? That’s what the sisters want our advocacy team to find out.

This Payless customer definitely didn't pay less for his recent car rental. The company made a giant pricing mistake on the vehicle's final bill.

Is this the most expensive car rental pricing mistake ever?

November 22, 2023October 11, 2022

Marvin Payne believes he’s uncovered the most expensive car rental pricing mistake ever, and I think you might agree. Several weeks after returning his most recent vehicle, he got the shock of his life — a $6,000 overcharge.

This consumer got caught in an online shopping scam.

How did I lose the credit card dispute after this online shopping scam?

February 19, 2024October 10, 2022

Before you do any more online shopping, you’ll want to read about the scam that just ensnared Susan Leipholtz. She paid an online “merchant” $129 through PayPal and received absolutely nothing in return. But getting blindsided by the internet thief wasn’t nearly as shocking as what happened next. That’s when Capital One sided with the scammer in her credit card dispute.

No, United Airlines will not refund your business class upgrade after you take the trip. So why is this passenger asking?

This United Airlines business class upgrade wasn’t worth $999. I want my money back!

August 21, 2024October 9, 2022

It’s not likely that any airline would refund a business class upgrade after a passenger completes the trip. But that’s precisely what Juli Talec says an employee of United Airlines promised to do before her recent upgrade.

Juli insists that she never intended to pay to boost her seat into the elite section of the aircraft. So why did she sign a credit card receipt for the business class upgrade at the United Airlines check-in counter?

That’s the $999 question of the day.

This is why you should never take a cruise with just a passport card

You should not cruise with just a passport card. This is why

August 23, 2024October 8, 2022

It’s never a great idea to cruise with just a passport card. If you’ve ever thought about doing it, you’ll want to read this cautionary tale.

Daniel Sellar’s cruise fiasco is an unfortunate example of what can go wrong if you decide to cruise with just a passport card. Things may go just fine. But you should consider what will happen if you miss the boat and need to take a flight to catch up with it. Because although you can cruise with just a passport card, you can’t fly anywhere internationally with one.

This traveler says she didn't damage her vacation rental unit and doesn't want to pay for the repairs.

I didn’t damage this vacation rental! Do I have to pay for it?

October 28, 2023October 7, 2022

Could you be falsely accused of causing damage to your next vacation rental — and be forced to pay for it?

Colleen McKenna is sure that the answer to that question is “yes.” She just returned from what she thought was a peaceful and uneventful stay in a rented condo in Hawaii. But the property manager says she and her husband caused significant damage to the vacation rental during a domestic disturbance. As a result, he charged her credit card for cleanup and repairs — several days after the couple’s departure.

Colleen says she has absolutely no idea what this man is talking about and believes it’s a scam. Now she’s asking our advocacy team to investigate.

What happens if a drunk driver demolishes your rental car?

A drunk driver crashed into my rental car but I got the $22,158 bill!

January 29, 2023October 6, 2022

Just days into Joe Vandetta’s recent Florida family vacation, a drunk driver crashed head-on into his rental car. Luckily, the hit-and-run accident didn’t cause serious injuries, and the Vandettas — bruised but otherwise unharmed — completed their trip as planned.

But the shock of getting smashed by an intoxicated motorist was nothing compared to the jolt Joe received a month later. That’s when Budget Rental Car sent a $22,158 bill — the cost of the vehicle damaged by the drunk driver.

Warning: Don't carry $158,000 in jewelry on your JetBlue flight. Here's why.

If you take $158,000 in jewelry on a flight and it goes missing, who pays?

October 5, 2024October 4, 2022

Traveling with $158,000 worth of anything is a risky endeavor. Rose Cohen found out just how risky when all her high-value jewelry went missing during her recent JetBlue flight.

She believes an organized crime ring targeted her, ultimately forcing her to gate-check the bag that contained the jewelry. Her theory? This move allowed the thieves to help themselves to her gems before the flight even took off.

Now she wants to know who is going to pay for her loss.

Never rely on a stranger's guidance about the ID you need to cruise.

Never ask a stranger what ID you need to cruise. This is why

March 1, 2025October 4, 2022

You should never rely on an anonymous stranger’s advice about the required ID you need to take your next cruise. Salvatore Friscia knows this all too well. While planning a vacation on Carnival’s Pride, he says an unidentified phone agent gave him the wrong information about the documentation requirements for the cruise. That guidance led him and his wife to show up for the cruise without the correct ID. As a result, the Friscias were denied boarding the ship and missed the entire cruise.

Michelle Couch-Friedman

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