Tour Travel Complaints - Travel Agent Complaints

Travel Complaints

There are various modes of transportation in India be it through air, sea or land. Indian transportation, due to its immense population, is one of the most widely used in the world.

For traveling within India people generally prefer to rent a car or travel via train or bus as they deem convenient. Ola and Uber are prime examples of this. These startups have skyrocketed and are one of most used traveling apps in the India.

Meanwhile, many people prefer to travel via plane as it saves times. For this they either book the ticket through the website directly or look for agents to do the same.

Apart from big names there are some private travel agencies in Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai, Kolkata etc, which try to lure customers by offering them lucrative discounts. Travel agent frauds are quite prevalent in India. The most common travel agent/agency complaints include refund not provided, hotel denying check-in, fake promises etc.

Travel complaints have a sense of urgency and responsibility attached to them because no one wants to board a late flight or wants to stay in low-quality hotel.

We all want our travels and trips to be smooth right from the beginning. And if something does not go as per our expectations, the mood gets spoiled!

Therefore, it brings a significant responsibility on the shoulders of the travel companies to solve the issues faced by their customers. One should only book their hotels/flights via trustworthy sites to avoid getting duped. However, sometimes even these reputed travel companies commit an error.

In this article, we have covered the common travel complaints that are faced by customers and how you can resolve them.

But first lets check out the famous travel companies in India

Famous Travel Companies in India

1. Make My Trip
Make my Trip is one of the leading online travel companies in India. In 2000 it was founded by Deepak Kalra and had its headquarters in Gurugram, Haryana.

They have more than 14 company-owned travel stores in India and have over 30 franchisee-owned travel stores in India. They also have offices in Dubai, Phuket, Bangkok, New York, Kuala, and Lumpur.

2. Yatra:
Founded by Manish Amin, Sabina Chopra, and Dhruv Shringi in 2006, Yatra.com is the pre-eminent Indian online travel agency. It is based in Gurugram, Haryana. According to the sources in 2012, Yatra became the second-largest online travel service provider company in India.

3. OYO:
Oyo rooms, popularly known as Oyo hotels and rooms and stylized as OYO, is the fastest and largest growing hospitality chain in India. They worked on the franchising and leased system, which fortunately turned out to be the best for the company. Founded by Ritesh Agarwal in 2013, OYO gained much popularity right from the beginning.

4. GOIBIBO:
Subsidiary of Make My Trip Limited, Mauritius Ibibo, is a travel organization in 2006 by Ashish Kashyap. In 2013 Goibibo made it among the top five most trusted e-commerce brands in India.

5. HappyEasyGo:
Happy Easy Go is one of the emerging online travel company founded by Boris Zha in 2017. In 2019 it became the second-largest online travel booking platform in India and had more than 10 million customer bases all over the world. It has its headquarters in Gurugram, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hong Kong, and Singapore. During late 2018 HappyEasyGo established its hotel business.

6. Thomas Cook:
Thomas Cook (India) Ltd has its headquarters in Mumbai and caters to all the travel related requirements from visas to foreign exchange. They established themselves in India in 1881 and expanded its business to all the nearby countries.

7. Clear Trip:
Clear Trip earlier was known as Clear Trip Travel Services Private limited is a universal online travel company established in 2016. It has its headquarters in Dubai and Mumbai. In India, they started with a vision of making travel simple by bridging the gap between the Indian hospitality and travel sector. It was founded as an air and hotel aggregator by Stuart Crighton, Mathew Spacie, and Hrush Bhatt.

8. Travel Guru:
Travel Guru is India’s leading and growing travel website. It offers flights, holiday packages, and hotels at the best prices; they aim to make your trip smooth and convenient.

9. Travel Triangle:
Founded by three IIT graduates Sanchit Garg, Prabhat Gupta, and Sankalp Agarwal. It is India’s first fully stacked Holiday Marketplace that connects verified travel agents and travelers. It was founded in 2011 and competed with companies such as Thrillophilia. It is a platform that is trusted by many.

10. Travelocity India:
It is rated as one of the best online travel portals in the world and perfectly caters to the local needs of the people by launching specialized programs. In India, they cater to both business and leisure requirements.

Types of Travel Complaints

1. Tickets canceled, but money is not refunded:
One of the significant problems that are being faced by customers of major travel companies is that they cancel the tickets, but money is not credited to their bank account. This is the most common issue faced by almost all the consumers in cities like Pune, Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru.

During COVID-19 times, many have reported on the internet that they have booked tickets, and they got canceled due to the pandemic. However, the companies did not refund the amount. Either they are saying that they have refunded the amount, or instead, they are offering a credit voucher.

2. No refund for flights canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic:
Due to the global pandemic, suddenly, flights were canceled. It was reported by customers of many major travel companies that they did not get their refund; however, the airlines did return the full booking amount. Many customers were upset because the travel companies did not inform them about the refund from the airlines.

3. Partial refund for the flights canceled due to COVID-19:
Many customers reported that they did not receive the full amount of flights they booked pre-corona. However, airlines have refunded the entire amount, but travel companies did not credit the whole amount; instead, they deducted a certain amount without giving any valid reason.

4. No refund against booked packages:
Many planned trips in June assuming that pandemic will end, but in the wake of current times, still, the tourism industry is on hold.

As people booked packages for traveling and now are requesting for a refund, but many companies are simply denying it.
However, many customers are disturbed with it because, in these uncertain times, they are struggling so much to get their refund.

5. Unable to connect with customer care service:
Many customers from significant travel companies face this very issue when they contact the customer care, they are not entertained, or their complaints are not correctly handled.

Many faced this particular issue while they were contacting the customer care, and their complaints were not appropriately welcomed or they were not able to connect with them.

6. Fraudulent booking agents:
Many travel companies have their booking agents, but some fraudsters just dive in and cheat people.
Many customers from significant companies, including Make My Trip and Yatra complained that they had been cheated by fraudsters in the name of these companies, and they have demanded a refund from the company.

7. Rescheduling of flights due to COVID-19:
Due to Corona pandemic, many people had to reschedule their flights, but travel companies are not helping them or are not considering their request.

8. Over billing by travel companies:
The most common types of complaints regarding Ola and Uber include over billing issues and not returning the left item in the cab. But you can try contacting the customer care number of Ola which is 098842437 and customer care of Uber which is 1300091272.

How to resolve travel complaints?

1. File support ticket/send an email:
You can always contact travel companies through their official website by going to their contact us section and by sending them an email. Customer service emails of some leading travel companies are:
Yatra- support@yatra.com
Make My Trip- care@makemytrip.com
Happy Easy Go- cs@happyeasygo.com
Clear Trip- customersupport@cleartrip.com
Goibibo- travel@goibibo.com
Travel guru- service@travelguru.com

2. Call Customer support:
One of the perfect ways to directly come in contact with the travel company is by contacting it through phone call for customer support. All these well-known travel companies have a 24*7 working customer care number which helps in resolving complaints as they value customer feedback. The customer care number of some of the leading travel agencies and hospitality companies in India are :

Cox and Kings Customer Care Number - 1800 209 0400
Thomas Cook Customer Care Number - 1800 209 9100
Club Mahindra Holidays Customer Care Number - 044 6695 3435
Expedia Customer Care Number – 800-319-4834
Yatra Customer Care Number - 0124 3040500
Goibibo Customer Care Number - 1800 208 1060
Makemytrip Customer Care Number - 1800 102 8747
Travelguru Customer Care Number - +91 92111 77444
Oyo Customer Care Number - 093139 31393
RedBus Customer Care Number - 1860 121 2102

3. Report to the airlines/hotel directly:
As we have seen above, many customers have reported that the airlines and hotels have issued a refund, but the travel companies have not refunded the money in the bank accounts. It is always better to contact the airlines or hotels directly if the companies don’t issue a refund by time. You can contact the airlines and hotels by calling them on their customer care number or by sending the email.

4. Send Legal Notice:
Consumers can send legal notices to travel company in case it is unable to resolve his complaint. It is one of the efficient ways to handle the issue legally. Check below to know how to send a legal notice to travel company?

Step 1: Firstly, get a legal notice drafted by a lawyer.
Step 2: Check it properly and make sure it is signed by lawyer.
Step 3: Keep a copy of it for future purposes.
Step 4: Send the legal notice to travel company by registered post.
Step 5: Keep the slip or delivery report for evidence.

5. File consumer forum case:
Consumer forum deals with consumer complaints and you should approach consumer forum if you feel that your rights as a consumer have been violated.

If travel company is not responding to your complaints even after sending legal notice by a lawyer then you should file a case against it in a consumer court.

Here is how you can file a case in the consumer court?

Step 1: Intimate the aggrieved party via legal notice.
Step 2: Draft the consumer complaint
Step 3: Attach all the relevant documents and proofs to support your complaint.
Step 4: Select the appropriate court for filing the complaint.
Step 5: Pay the prescribed court fee that is required to be paid along with the complaint.
Step 6: Submit the case along with the affidavit & fees in the court.

If you feel uncomfortable doing all this yourself, then you should use Voxya to file a complaint against travel company. We will send Legal Notice and prepare Case for filing in consumer court. We, at Voxya, are generally receiving more than 100 travel consumer complaints every month.

Most Common Issue Reported for Travel Complaints

Money deducted, Ticket not booked

No Refund

Booking canceled

Customer care not responding

Bad hotel booked

Misbehavior by staff

Fraudulent Booking agents

Fake Club membership sold

Train canceled without knowledge

Booking dates changed

Room was not clean

Cab did not arrive on time

Cab driver canceled the trip

Issue in Refund (Goibibo) ^Open

I have booked a bus ticket from Pondicherry to Bangalore on **th Nov **** but that ticket is not generated and the amount is debited from my account I have raised a complaint to customer care they asked me to share all the transaction bank stat...

Dec 17, 2019 by Mohamed Azarudeen

Incorrect fare charged on Uber Go (UBER) ^Open

On Dec. **th I took Uber Go from Andheri to Nariman Point and the estimated fare shown was ~Rs. *** including the toll fee as Uber by default shows the route through the Worli sea link. However, I asked the driver to not take the sea link and i...

Dec 13, 2019 by Jyothi

Club Holizone Refund not initiated by club holizone (Club Holizone ) ^Open

I was called to provide free tour coupon *N/*D but in a resturant of dwarka, delhi: . Shahroj khan- tried all efforts to showcase all fraud pictures and tried to sale the tour. He misrepresented and misguided and duped me ***** rupees and fr...

Dec 12, 2019 by Niraj kumar

Package not delivered (Embor Klamet Tour Operator) ^Open

I have paid an Advance of ***** for Meghalaya tour by an tour operator Embor Klamet. Now ** days before tour he has stopped responding to call,messages or mails....

Dec 12, 2019 by Aranta Naidu

Tour cancelled amount not refunded (Ezii Tours) ^Open

Subject: fraud of **,*** rupees by “Ezii tours” company of Maharashtra. Name of the company by which I booked the trip: Ezii Tours Reference : Travel triangle website Address of the company: ***, *rd floor, blue nile building, LBS road ...

Dec 10, 2019 by Priyanka kharbanda

Booking not confirmed post payment (OYO TOTAL HOLIDAYS ) ^Open

I booked a holiday package for * people, for December with OYO total holidays. The package was booked * months in advance. The **% payment was made by me in the first week of booking. The remaining was to be paid ** days prior travel. At this p...

Dec 09, 2019 by Kanika kashyap

Tour package not booked (Wishyourholiday) ^Open

On * Dec ****, the company has taken an **** advance amount for flight booking and now they are not responding. They are not even picking up my call. You can contact me on ***** *****...

Dec 07, 2019 by Yatin kalaria

Trip to mauritius by travel triangle (Travel Triangle ) ^Open

Hi, we are a travel agency from Chennai, arranging package tours to several destinations. One of our regular guests requested us for Mauritius * Days and * nights trip. Since we do not have a service network we approached the travel triangle....

Dec 07, 2019 by Thirunavukkarasu S

Flight cancelled by Jet airways (Makemytrip) ^Open

Booking ID: NN************* via make my trip. I have done booking on Feb *, ****, at *:** PM. To and Fro from Belgium to Bangalore. Jet Airways flight had canceled. To date, after doing multiple follow-ups I received no refund. Could you hel...

Dec 03, 2019 by Praseetha MS

Itinerary not delivered in full (Travbond) ^Open

I booked my Dubai trip through travbond in May **** i.e. almost * months in advance (for four adults) for my travel on **th Nov. ****. Air tickets I arranged myself. The deal was finalized for Rs. *.** Lacs. for * Nights trip. I was a...

Dec 03, 2019 by Narender Kumar

Refund not received for Railway ticket (IRCTC and SBI) ^Open

PNR no:********** Transaction I'd:*************** Cancellation I'd:*************** Not refunded yet ...

Dec 03, 2019 by Satyendra Singh

Refund of flight cancellation (Ease My Trip Private Limited) ^Open

On November **th, **** the company canceled my flight booking. My PNR number is HNWPR. I lost *****, they didn't make any alternative arrangements also. ...

Dec 02, 2019 by MANJUNATH T

Did not show the places mentioned in the itenary (Sharma Travels) ^Open

I booked wayanad family trip package from a franchise of make my trip: sharma holidays, First, I booked for coorg package and later when I asked if I could change the location they suggested wayanad and took *,*** as cancellation fee. I agreed...

Dec 01, 2019 by Priyanka Bollaboina

Ola Ride paid driver but ola cab raised bill and harrasing for payment (Ola Cab Ola Money) ^Open

I booked ola cabs on **nd October **** for Airport, I paid driver cash Rs ***/- + some tips. After ride over I got sms that I used zipcash, if not send us email and call. I did both. I got complaint number . Next day the closed complaint w...

Dec 01, 2019 by Bhupendra Banodhe

Faulty and unsafe car pushed to me risking my life (Zoom Car India Pvt Ltd) ^Open

Booking id JPS**OYD*. Trip Date- */**/**** Place - Hubli I was given the car ford ecosport whose tyre burst midway during driving. Which ultimately caused an accident and thrashed a truck at around **.** pm in a very deserted Highway near ...

Nov 29, 2019 by Akash shetty

Amount Not Refunded (Oyo) ^Open

I have booked the hotel on ** oct **** by using OYO and done online payment. when i was trying to checked in that hotel that hotel is refused to checked-In than oyo promissed that they will refund my money. i have sent them so many mail all t...

Nov 26, 2019 by Rishi Singh Rajawat

Zoom car charging a fine with false claim (Zoom Car) ^Open

Sir, I booked a zoom car on **th November **** and checked all documents of the car including RC prior to taking the car and returned the car on the same date with all documents. But now after payment, they are emailing me that RC is not presen...

Nov 25, 2019 by GOPAL SINGH

Ola cabs Overcharged by OLA Cab driver which was not the same driver which was shown in the OLA app (Ola cab delhi NCR) ^Open

I have been registering complaints with OLA cabs from last * week but the actions taken by there safety team is not up-to the mark. The driver partner which got us the ride was not the same which was shown in the app.The driver also took us fro...

Nov 23, 2019 by GAURAV KANSAL

Didn t allowed to Checked In at Hotel Booking through Goibibo (Goibibo and OYO) ^Open

On **/**/**** I have booked Oyo ***** Hotel Aerosky Residency through Goibibo. I have fully paid total amount of Rs. **** and got the Invoice from Goibibo as booking confirmation. I reached hotel on *:** PM and shown my booking detail to the m...

Nov 22, 2019 by Sabyasachi Banerjee

Pathetic Management Services (Oyo) ^Open

First of all the loss from the incident is not only economical but its a mental hassle too. The concern are with * of my bookings. Booking IDs BRHL**** & WJZA**** were not allowed check in at the hotel in Mussoorie nearly at * pm being an odd h...

Nov 21, 2019 by Nishant Singh