Beware fares that seem too good to be true – you could end up out of pocket and without a ticket

Eva Jaz writes

On Sept 6 I was supposed to fly from Martinique to Paris with Iberia. I booked the flight through Omega Travel, which sent me a flight-change notification in August. The only difference I could see was a different flight number.

Omega said I should call to confirm I was happy. I tried many times but nobody answered. A week before I was due to travel I checked Iberia’s website which showed my flight departing on time, operated by OpenSkies. 

When I arrived at the airport in Fort-de-France my flight was not listed. I had no luck contacting Omega from the airport. I needed to return to London (I had a train booked from Paris) so I had to buy a new ticket. This cost £870 with Air France. The original had cost only £83.71.

On my return I contacted Omega Flightstore, which said that any claim must be addressed direct to the airline or through my travel insurance. 

There has been no response after my complaint to Iberia. I am still out of pocket for both tickets. What legal rights do I have as Omega Flightstore says it has an Atol licence? 

Gill Charlton replies

Omega Travel ceased trading on Nov 12. Its huge debt combined with its continual flouting of ticket-sale rules had led to both its Atol licence and its IATA accreditation being suspended in September. This meant that Omega couldn’t amend, refund, revalidate or reissue tickets. 

There is no claim under the Atol scheme as yours is a flight-only booking and not a packaged holiday. As you paid by credit card, there is a chance that you will be repaid for the unused Iberia ticket under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. If this doesn’t work, Iberia, which cancelled the flight, should give you a refund – if the airline was actually paid by Omega. 

Unfortunately there is no refund due for the new ticket. This is a separate contract and your travel insurance policy does not cover the cost of replacement flights in these circumstances. 

I was surprised to see Omega selling a one-way ticket from the Caribbean to Paris for as little as £83.71. This is a ridiculously low fare and too good to be true. 

Any readers who have outstanding holiday or flight arrangements with Omega Travel should contact the suppliers or airlines involved directly.

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