Flight Aggregators Listing Deals On OzBargain Should Provide Details Of Travel Agency

Gav on 23/03/2019 - 15:47
Last edited 23/03/2019 - 17:52 by 1 other user

Admins/Mods, I'd like to propose that OzBargain puts a stop to flight aggregators (I Want That Flight, etc.) withholding information about who consumers are actually purchasing from… in titles and descriptions.

e.g. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/446153

The consumer is NOT purchasing from IWTF, nor the airline directly. They're purchasing from often obscure travel agencies - Aunt Betty using a promo code in this instance.

We've seen through Bestjet just how dodgy travel agencies can be. We shouldn't allow for hiding of their details in "bargain" posts, just as we have special restrictions for eBay (ABN, etc.)

Either:

• Don't allow flight aggregators to post bargains… use forums instead; or
• Insist that the travel agency purchased from be in title & descriptions… for multiple, split the "bargain"

• 

  Hybroid on 23/03/2019 - 15:49

  +1

  Seems pretty clear where you're clicking onto: https://i.imgur.com/xfsXNEF.jpg

  • 

    Gav on 23/03/2019 - 15:50

    +1

    You shouldn't need to click through to their site to find out.

    • 

      Hybroid on 23/03/2019 - 15:52

      +4

      They get paid based on referral commissions. That's literally their business. Same for Skyscanner, Kayak etc…

      I think you'd be hard pressed to convince people that Aunt Betty is an 'obscure' travel agency. They're basically same company as Flight Centre and deemed to be reliable.

      You can always just go to those travel sites directly or the airlines direct. I don't think you'll win this argument.

      I'm not a fan of aggregators either in general but difficult to argue they can sometimes bring up deals and discounts you wouldn't be able to find otherwise.

      • 

        Gav on 23/03/2019 - 15:57

        And I'm sure OzB doesn't want to encourage clickbaiters. They are not the end business you're dealing with - scotty et al. need to think about what they're encouraging, and the best place for them if allowed on here. That's my 2c anyway. Debate away.

        • 

          altomic on 23/03/2019 - 22:53

          +1

          @Gav: clickbaiters are quickly exposed and negged.

          aggregate sites are good as they show a comparison of price from a variety of sites.

• 

  whooah1979 on 23/03/2019 - 15:51

  withholding information about who consumers are actually purchasing from

  Are these service providers required by law to disclose this information to their customers?

• 

  WreckTangle on 23/03/2019 - 16:03

  +1

  Actually I sorta agree with OP that the travel agency purchased from should be in title, i too have seen a number of great iwtf deals but after researching have been put off by the risky agency selling the ticket. What a waste of time.

  • 

    Moderatorneil on 01/05/2019 - 15:38

    Bit late to the party but I'll answer.

    The OTA (online travel agency) often varies between dates and destinations. So it's not always BYOJet or Expedia or the next day it could be a completely different OTA with the cheapest price. It would be misleading to put one company in there when it is multiple companies that sell the product.

    after researching have been put off by the risky agency selling the ticket. What a waste of time.

    As you said you believe some of the OTAs are "risky" hence why you have the option to buy with an Australian based reputable provider like Expedia, Aunt Betty, BYOJet

• 

  thatonethere on 23/03/2019 - 16:30

  +1

  Maybe just post the link direct to the Travel Agency's deal? The aggregators won't like that of course.

  • 

    Moderatorneil on 01/05/2019 - 15:40

    Most of the OTAs don't have the ability to link directly to dates/destinations, only the front page which is why the aggregators are popular. As stated before, the price can fluctuate between OTAs depending on origin/destination, dates, currency drops/rises etc.

• 

  Gav on 26/04/2019 - 11:46

  Another example: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/452999

  ~$600 difference between airline and "travel agent".

  Staff have been silent.

  • 

    Clear on 26/04/2019 - 22:19

    As have you. Where is your comment pointing this out in the deal?

    • 

      Gav on 27/04/2019 - 18:43

      Hi Clear, this issue spans numerous "bargains", which is why it's posted here in the forums. I report the deals, which you won't see.

      • 

        Clear on 27/04/2019 - 19:11

        +1

        How are people supposed to know that they're getting ripped off if there is no one to tell them in a deal? Do you think they see those deals and somehow know about this?

        As far as I can see your reports haven't changed anything.

        • 

          Gav on 28/04/2019 - 16:45

          @Clear: Reports are reviewed by Mods & Admins. How they act on those reports is up to them. They've chosen to allow them to date, sometimes editing title. I don't run the site so I can't make the decisions. What I can do is report posts, and start threads like this. Instead of armchair commentating, maybe you should act too?

          • 

            Clear on 28/04/2019 - 16:54

            @Gav: You're the one who has made a forum post about it since you clearly have an issue with it and not me.

            All I'm simply suggesting is that if you think people are being ripped off then say so in the deal? Otherwise how else are people going to know? They won't.

  • 

    Moderatorneil on 01/05/2019 - 15:41

    Staff have been silent.

    We had other issues to deal with and didn't see this thread. No conspiracy.

• 

  Moderatorneil on 01/05/2019 - 15:42

  The issue with these aggregators are that it isn't always BYOJet, Expedia, Blah who offers the deal. The OTA (online travel agency) often changes between dates, destinations etc, that's why it's not feasible to mention 1 OTA in the title. E.G. Sydney one date could be BYOJet, another date Expedia, Melbourne could be Aunt Betty. It's not feasible to list every single OTA in the title. At the end of the day, the product (aka flight) is the same that is being sold on behalf of the airline.

  Most OTA's don't allow for linking directly to the deal. Those that do like BYOJet require a lot of fiddling with the URL to get it right (e.g. not a copy and paste job). This is why aggregators like IWTF, Skyscanner, Momondo are useful as they show all the fares from different sites.