6 ms·

Pretty much. Last time I rented from Hertz, with a corporate card, they wanted to run an "identity verification" on me, which I assume was basically some kind o

Pretty much. Last time I rented from Hertz, with a corporate card, they wanted to run an "identity verification" on me, which I assume was basically some kind of credit pull. They then told me that because the details from that didn't match the card (billing address, ZIP, etc., I guess), they could not rent to me. "When can I see a refund on my card?" I asked, as I pulled up Uber to go somewhere else (because I was not about to use my personal card, on principle with their behavior). "Sorry, prepaid reservations are nonrefundable". Uhh, no. You're not going to accept a reservation from me using a credit card, and then decide that my photo ID matching that credit card is insufficient, deny me a rental, and deny me a refund. That got sorted out, but took more than one call to Corporate.

raverbashing 5y ago
> but took more than one call to Corporate Or one call to your CC chargeback department, which would bite them more
- JohnWhigham 5y ago
  CC companies rarely actually charge it back from the offending business though, they just reimburse you. It's largely a cost of doing business.
- tdeck 5y ago
  During the early pandemic Singapore Airlines canceled my flight and gave me a flight credit. I went in circles with them and Orbitz saying I wanted my money back, to no avail. So I filed a chargeback with Capital One. The airline responded to the dispute saying the ticket I bought was non-refundable. I replied pointing out that means it's not refundable if I cancel, not that the airline can refuse service I paid for and not refund me. I also attached a recent notice from the DoT saying that airlines must refund customers in my situation, and that the specific practice in question was illegal. Capital One sided with the airline and closed my case. Guess you can't depend on chargebacks like I thought you could.
  - mnw21cam 5y ago
    That's what the small claims court is for.
    - hellbannedguy 5y ago
      Don't they cover themselfs with mandatory arbitration contracts?
  - CPLX 5y ago
    > Capital One sided with the airline and closed my case. Guess you can't depend on chargebacks like I thought you could. Yes people tend to have a slightly delusional view of how effective chargebacks can be based on limited experiences. If you're fighting with a small merchant like a local store or a non famous online merchant you're going to win basically every time. If you're fighting with a rental car company, an airline, a hotel chain, a household name company, or similar, it's an entirely different story. The interaction has much more to do with who's more valuable to the card issuer than who's right.
  - sofixa 5y ago
    Technically it was not the airline refusing service, there was a force majeure, and many insurances have explicit exceptions for stuff like pandemics, wars, etc.
    - lotsofpulp 5y ago
      If I was tdeck, I would contact US Dept of Transportation. There was specifically a special directive by US Dept of Transportation directing airlines to refund customers for any flights that were modified or canceled after pandemic restrictions started in Mar 2020. https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-issues-enforcement-notice-clarifying-air-carrier-refund https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-t... https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ticket-refunds https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ticket-refunds As of now, they even explicitly say non refundable tickets are refundable if airlines cancel: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/refunds https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer... > Non-refundable tickets - Passengers who purchase non-refundable tickets are not entitled to a refund unless the airline makes a promise to provide a refund or the airline cancels a flight or makes a significant schedule change. I am also confused how Orbitz would be involved in tdeck’s situation. Either they paid Orbitz, or they paid Singapore Airlines, but either way only one of them would be able to refund them.

raverbashing 5y ago

> but took more than one call to Corporate Or one call to your CC chargeback department, which would bite them more

JohnWhigham 5y ago
CC companies rarely actually charge it back from the offending business though, they just reimburse you. It's largely a cost of doing business.
tdeck 5y ago
During the early pandemic Singapore Airlines canceled my flight and gave me a flight credit. I went in circles with them and Orbitz saying I wanted my money back, to no avail. So I filed a chargeback with Capital One. The airline responded to the dispute saying the ticket I bought was non-refundable. I replied pointing out that means it's not refundable if I cancel, not that the airline can refuse service I paid for and not refund me. I also attached a recent notice from the DoT saying that airlines must refund customers in my situation, and that the specific practice in question was illegal. Capital One sided with the airline and closed my case. Guess you can't depend on chargebacks like I thought you could.
- mnw21cam 5y ago
  That's what the small claims court is for.
  - hellbannedguy 5y ago
    Don't they cover themselfs with mandatory arbitration contracts?
- CPLX 5y ago
  > Capital One sided with the airline and closed my case. Guess you can't depend on chargebacks like I thought you could. Yes people tend to have a slightly delusional view of how effective chargebacks can be based on limited experiences. If you're fighting with a small merchant like a local store or a non famous online merchant you're going to win basically every time. If you're fighting with a rental car company, an airline, a hotel chain, a household name company, or similar, it's an entirely different story. The interaction has much more to do with who's more valuable to the card issuer than who's right.
- sofixa 5y ago
  Technically it was not the airline refusing service, there was a force majeure, and many insurances have explicit exceptions for stuff like pandemics, wars, etc.
  - lotsofpulp 5y ago
    If I was tdeck, I would contact US Dept of Transportation. There was specifically a special directive by US Dept of Transportation directing airlines to refund customers for any flights that were modified or canceled after pandemic restrictions started in Mar 2020. https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-issues-enforcement-notice-clarifying-air-carrier-refund https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-t... https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ticket-refunds https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/ticket-refunds As of now, they even explicitly say non refundable tickets are refundable if airlines cancel: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/refunds https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer... > Non-refundable tickets - Passengers who purchase non-refundable tickets are not entitled to a refund unless the airline makes a promise to provide a refund or the airline cancels a flight or makes a significant schedule change. I am also confused how Orbitz would be involved in tdeck’s situation. Either they paid Orbitz, or they paid Singapore Airlines, but either way only one of them would be able to refund them.