CONSUMER ADVOCACY - Page 14 of 22

Travel club in Mexico, blue ocean and green palm trees with boats on the water

Post-vacation regret: Here’s why you should never impulsively join a travel club

May 31, 2025April 26, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

By all accounts, Sabrina Cousins’ trip to Puerto Vallarta was amazing. She had such a wonderful time that she ended her stay by purchasing an expensive Palladium Travel Club membership. But back home, Cousins quickly came down with a terrible case of post-vacation regret. And she wants us to help pull her out of the travel club mess into which she and her husband find themselves.

But is that possible?

Cousins is just one of a long string of consumers who contact our advocacy team in a panic after returning from vacation with an unplanned timeshare or travel club contract in hand. She discovered, just like the others before her, that these agreements are easy to sign, but breaking them isn’t.

Alaska Airlines aircraft, airplane in the sky

Alaska Airlines denied boarding to me by mistake! Who will pay for this?

May 12, 2025April 22, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Stepping up to the check-in counter of Alaska Airlines, new mom Jisu Lee wasn’t expecting any problems. She was well-prepared for the grueling 20-hour journey ahead, flying alone with her infant from Seattle to Auckland via Vancouver. In New Zealand, her parents were excitedly waiting to meet their granddaughter for the first time.

Lee had anticipated almost everything – except the possibility of being mistakenly denied boarding by a confused agent of Alaska Airlines. That error caused the trip to morph into an expensive four-day travel nightmare for the frazzled mother and baby.

Now Lee is hoping Consumer Rescue can help. She’s asking Alaska Airlines to admit it made an error refusing to allow her to board the flight. She also wants the airline to repay her for all of the additional expenses she incurred as a result of that mistake.

But what is the real reason that Alaska Airlines denied boarding to Lee and her child? That’s the question of the day.

Elderly people enjoying the outdoors, New rules for Medicare Advantage plans will benefit seniors, colorful outdoor scene with active seniors.

How could new Medicare Advantage plan rules reduce problems in the program?

September 4, 2023April 19, 2023 by Abe Wischnia

New rules may finally reduce the problem of Medicare Advantage plans that deny patients treatment. They also could temper the content of those annoying Medicare Advantage commercials on TV.

NCL denied boarding Norwegian Spirit, cruise ship on the ocean, Norwegian Spirit

I flew to New Zealand and got denied boarding my $8,154 NCL cruise!

July 14, 2024April 14, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

What if you flew 7,500 miles to take an NCL cruise only to be denied boarding at the pier? It happened to one stunned couple. Here’s their story.

As Erin Beztilny’s flight from Vancouver touched down in Auckland last month, she could hardly contain her excitement. She and her husband were about to embark on a much-anticipated dream cruise aboard NCL’s Norwegian Spirit from New Zealand to Australia.

At least that was the plan. But that isn’t what happened.

A U.S. passport on top of a white and brown world map

Need a new passport fast? This is how to do it

June 23, 2025April 7, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Imagine your entire family is excitedly packing for your first international adventure since the beginning of the pandemic. You’ll soon be on your way to the Caribbean to relax and enjoy some sun and tropical drinks.

Or will you?

The traveler in this tale neglected to look at his passport’s expiration date until a few nights before his family’s trip. That’s when he was shocked to discover the document had expired – two years ago!

But no worries, he thought. Consumer Rescue could surely help him.

Why was this guy so confident about that, you might ask.

Well, that’s the embarrassing part of this story.

An advertisement for a long term rental on TripAdvisor turns out to be a scam.

I lost $1,721 in the “TripAdvisor” long term rental scam!

April 24, 2024April 4, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

TripAdvisor is not in the business of long term rentals, so if you come across one on the site, it’s surely a scam. But first-time apartment hunter, Haley Cline was unaware of this fact.

When a friendly “TripAdvisor-approved owner” emailed her about a spectacularly discounted year-long rental, no alarm bells went off. The scam only came into focus after Cline sent her initial $1,721 deposit via Bitcoin to the online predator.

This is a stovetop, boiling water in a pot

Why was I charged $500 for stealing a stove from my hotel room?

November 30, 2024March 31, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Laura Fernandez just got charged $500 for stealing a stove from her Home2 Suites hotel room. However, this accusation has two big problems. First, she says there was no such appliance in the suite and second, she’s not a thief.

But the management of the franchised property didn’t let those little details get in the way. Two hours after Fernandez checked out of her hotel room, they swiped her debit card for an extra $500.

And she called the police to file a robbery charge against the hotel.

Now she’s hoping that Consumer Rescue can get her $500 returned and clear her name.

What’s going on here?

My American Airlines flight was on time. How did I arrive on the wrong day?!

June 23, 2024March 21, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Evan H. made an embarrassing self-ticketing mistake on American Airlines that caused him to miss a business meeting. His time zone confusion led him to take a flight to Hong Kong that landed as scheduled but one day too late.

So why is he contacting a consumer advocacy organization about this blunder?

He says American Airlines did not inform him of the significant time zone changes (and date changes) involved in flying from Dallas to Hong Kong. As a result, he wants compensation of an undetermined value from the airline.

Norwegian Cruise Line's newest ship: Prima, a cruise ship on the ocean, Prima, NCL, cruising, sailing.

Did Norwegian Cruise Line really cancel this family’s cruise over a $112 transfer?

January 3, 2025March 17, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Norwegian Cruise Line recently gave Evangelia Koumanidis some awful news about her family’s much-anticipated sailing aboard its brand-new ship Prima. In a baffling email, NCL canceled their fully paid $4,657 cruise – citing nonpayment.

Confident that this cancellation was a simple clerical mistake that Norwegian could quickly correct, Koumanidis called the cruise line.

That’s when an NCL agent informed a stunned Koumanidis that there was no mistake. The cruise line had canceled the family’s trip 21 days before departure over an unpaid balance.

But there was worse news on the horizon. That same NCL agent coldly explained that when a passenger’s cruise is canceled over an unpaid balance, no refund is owed.

Now an incredulous Koumanidis is hoping Consumer Rescue can convince the cruise line to reconsider its decision. She’s certain that her cruise was paid in full and that NCL made a $5,000 mistake.

But what is really going on here? (March 24, 2023 Update)

Timeshare property, beach house, colorful tropical location.

Timeshares and travel vacation clubs: What to know before you join one

May 31, 2025March 16, 2023 by Stephanie Patterson

Buyer’s remorse. That describes too many consumers who get talked into spending thousands of dollars on a timeshare or travel vacation club, only to find that it is not right for them. They are now locked into a long-term commitment of ever-increasing fees and need help figuring out what to do.

This article will help you determine if a timeshare or travel vacation club is right for you and how to weigh the benefits and risks of membership. And if you are a timeshare owner wanting to get out of your contractual agreement, we have some suggestions.

Fraudulent companies targeting the timeshare resale market have multiplied over the last several years. We’ll help you recognize what is a scam and what is legitimate.

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