MN
Michelle N
1 reviews | Active since Oct 2020
28 Oct 2020, 14:25
Travelstart is truly the worst. Save yourself the heartache.
I made a booking with Travelstart on 19th October 2020. The airline I booked with got in touch with me two days later saying that I should contact the travel agent to change my booking as they were cancelling one leg of the itinerary.
I got in touch with Travelstart (who for some weird reason do not have a phone number that works) through their chat option and thus began the games. It took longer than their reported 72 hours for the Schedule Changes team to get back to me and when they did, the options available to me were not feasible. They also said I could not get a refund on my booking despite it not being my fault that the booking needed to be changed.
If the airline has the issue, why would Travelstart have the flight options on their website? Similarly, if there are issues with airlines paying out refunds, why not advise clients about this beforehand?
Helpful (0)
Replies (7)0
Replies (7)
Travelstart's replyOfficial
28 Oct 2020, 15:51Good day Michelle
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.
I am really sorry to hear of the frustration with your experience. Please allow me the opportunity to address your concerns as stipulated above.
Due to Covid we are receiving high volumes of booking queries with many customers trying to get assistance. For this reason we have closed our phone lines temporarily and have opened up an online chat service where all our agents are able to assist all our customers quicker and efficiently.
Please be assured we have all hands on deck assisting our customers as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Travelstart is a registered third party supplier and acts as a search engine for good fares between the airline and the passenger. As Travelstart acts as an agent for the airline we are bound by all airlines rules and regulations, we need to quote according to the directives at the time and we are not able to override a decision made by the airline to amend the policy unfortunately. The Airline does reserve the right to amend this policy at any given time in order to accommodate aircraft changes, security reason and safety of passengers.
When making a booking on the website , the homepage has a banner that advises passengers to first check the covid regulations before making a booking. If passenger missed this on the homepage and went on to select their dates and routes, we provide another opportunity on the next page.
Once you open the page to view the important information when travelling under level 1, you would come across the Covid disclaimer that will very clearly explain the following:
Travelstart cannot be held liable for any operational changes, cancellations or consequential damages incurred by you, or any passenger in the booking, in the event that flights are not able to operate as planned, including any disruptions, cancellations or changes to planned schedules. Please note that in the event that a flight is disrupted or cancelled due to travel restrictions being imposed that each airline will have their own policy in this regard, which will apply to your booking.
The options that the relevant teams provided you with as alternatives are the only options offered by the airline. When there are schedule changes, passengers have more than 1 option available to them in order to make the changes as convenient as possible.
I understand you have connecting flights booked separately and if you are able to travel a day earlier you can still get to Nairobi on the morning of the 20December . These are the options you can discuss with the Schedule changes Team directly.
I do hope that this helps clarify some uncer*****y regarding making a booking with a particular airline on our website. If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to let us know.
Hope you have a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.
I am really sorry to hear of the frustration with your experience. Please allow me the opportunity to address your concerns as stipulated above.
Due to Covid we are receiving high volumes of booking queries with many customers trying to get assistance. For this reason we have closed our phone lines temporarily and have opened up an online chat service where all our agents are able to assist all our customers quicker and efficiently.
Please be assured we have all hands on deck assisting our customers as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Travelstart is a registered third party supplier and acts as a search engine for good fares between the airline and the passenger. As Travelstart acts as an agent for the airline we are bound by all airlines rules and regulations, we need to quote according to the directives at the time and we are not able to override a decision made by the airline to amend the policy unfortunately. The Airline does reserve the right to amend this policy at any given time in order to accommodate aircraft changes, security reason and safety of passengers.
When making a booking on the website , the homepage has a banner that advises passengers to first check the covid regulations before making a booking. If passenger missed this on the homepage and went on to select their dates and routes, we provide another opportunity on the next page.
Once you open the page to view the important information when travelling under level 1, you would come across the Covid disclaimer that will very clearly explain the following:
Travelstart cannot be held liable for any operational changes, cancellations or consequential damages incurred by you, or any passenger in the booking, in the event that flights are not able to operate as planned, including any disruptions, cancellations or changes to planned schedules. Please note that in the event that a flight is disrupted or cancelled due to travel restrictions being imposed that each airline will have their own policy in this regard, which will apply to your booking.
The options that the relevant teams provided you with as alternatives are the only options offered by the airline. When there are schedule changes, passengers have more than 1 option available to them in order to make the changes as convenient as possible.
I understand you have connecting flights booked separately and if you are able to travel a day earlier you can still get to Nairobi on the morning of the 20December . These are the options you can discuss with the Schedule changes Team directly.
I do hope that this helps clarify some uncer*****y regarding making a booking with a particular airline on our website. If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to let us know.
Hope you have a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Travelstart's reply28 Oct 2020, 15:51
Official
Good day Michelle
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.
I am really sorry to hear of the frustration with your experience. Please allow me the opportunity to address your concerns as stipulated above.
Due to Covid we are receiving high volumes of booking queries with many customers trying to get assistance. For this reason we have closed our phone lines temporarily and have opened up an online chat service where all our agents are able to assist all our customers quicker and efficiently.
Please be assured we have all hands on deck assisting our customers as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Travelstart is a registered third party supplier and acts as a search engine for good fares between the airline and the passenger. As Travelstart acts as an agent for the airline we are bound by all airlines rules and regulations, we need to quote according to the directives at the time and we are not able to override a decision made by the airline to amend the policy unfortunately. The Airline does reserve the right to amend this policy at any given time in order to accommodate aircraft changes, security reason and safety of passengers.
When making a booking on the website , the homepage has a banner that advises passengers to first check the covid regulations before making a booking. If passenger missed this on the homepage and went on to select their dates and routes, we provide another opportunity on the next page.
Once you open the page to view the important information when travelling under level 1, you would come across the Covid disclaimer that will very clearly explain the following:
Travelstart cannot be held liable for any operational changes, cancellations or consequential damages incurred by you, or any passenger in the booking, in the event that flights are not able to operate as planned, including any disruptions, cancellations or changes to planned schedules. Please note that in the event that a flight is disrupted or cancelled due to travel restrictions being imposed that each airline will have their own policy in this regard, which will apply to your booking.
The options that the relevant teams provided you with as alternatives are the only options offered by the airline. When there are schedule changes, passengers have more than 1 option available to them in order to make the changes as convenient as possible.
I understand you have connecting flights booked separately and if you are able to travel a day earlier you can still get to Nairobi on the morning of the 20December . These are the options you can discuss with the Schedule changes Team directly.
I do hope that this helps clarify some uncer*****y regarding making a booking with a particular airline on our website. If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to let us know.
Hope you have a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide us with your feedback.
I am really sorry to hear of the frustration with your experience. Please allow me the opportunity to address your concerns as stipulated above.
Due to Covid we are receiving high volumes of booking queries with many customers trying to get assistance. For this reason we have closed our phone lines temporarily and have opened up an online chat service where all our agents are able to assist all our customers quicker and efficiently.
Please be assured we have all hands on deck assisting our customers as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Travelstart is a registered third party supplier and acts as a search engine for good fares between the airline and the passenger. As Travelstart acts as an agent for the airline we are bound by all airlines rules and regulations, we need to quote according to the directives at the time and we are not able to override a decision made by the airline to amend the policy unfortunately. The Airline does reserve the right to amend this policy at any given time in order to accommodate aircraft changes, security reason and safety of passengers.
When making a booking on the website , the homepage has a banner that advises passengers to first check the covid regulations before making a booking. If passenger missed this on the homepage and went on to select their dates and routes, we provide another opportunity on the next page.
Once you open the page to view the important information when travelling under level 1, you would come across the Covid disclaimer that will very clearly explain the following:
Travelstart cannot be held liable for any operational changes, cancellations or consequential damages incurred by you, or any passenger in the booking, in the event that flights are not able to operate as planned, including any disruptions, cancellations or changes to planned schedules. Please note that in the event that a flight is disrupted or cancelled due to travel restrictions being imposed that each airline will have their own policy in this regard, which will apply to your booking.
The options that the relevant teams provided you with as alternatives are the only options offered by the airline. When there are schedule changes, passengers have more than 1 option available to them in order to make the changes as convenient as possible.
I understand you have connecting flights booked separately and if you are able to travel a day earlier you can still get to Nairobi on the morning of the 20December . These are the options you can discuss with the Schedule changes Team directly.
I do hope that this helps clarify some uncer*****y regarding making a booking with a particular airline on our website. If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to let us know.
Hope you have a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
MN
Michelle N's updateReviewer Update
29 Oct 2020, 10:35Morning Lee-Anne,
I did check the banner on the homepage. It had everything about travelling during Covid19. Useful information but still not the reason I am in this predicament. ET or Malawian Airways cancelled one leg of my journey and now I can't get a refund on my booking. Which means I now have to incur further costs to adjust my itinerary. The booking team has also not yet been in touch with quotations for adjusting my flight. So as it stands, I have neither a flight booked nor my money back.
I can not and would not recommend Travelstart to anyone.
I did check the banner on the homepage. It had everything about travelling during Covid19. Useful information but still not the reason I am in this predicament. ET or Malawian Airways cancelled one leg of my journey and now I can't get a refund on my booking. Which means I now have to incur further costs to adjust my itinerary. The booking team has also not yet been in touch with quotations for adjusting my flight. So as it stands, I have neither a flight booked nor my money back.
I can not and would not recommend Travelstart to anyone.
MN
Michelle N's update29 Oct 2020, 10:35
Reviewer Update
Morning Lee-Anne,
I did check the banner on the homepage. It had everything about travelling during Covid19. Useful information but still not the reason I am in this predicament. ET or Malawian Airways cancelled one leg of my journey and now I can't get a refund on my booking. Which means I now have to incur further costs to adjust my itinerary. The booking team has also not yet been in touch with quotations for adjusting my flight. So as it stands, I have neither a flight booked nor my money back.
I can not and would not recommend Travelstart to anyone.
I did check the banner on the homepage. It had everything about travelling during Covid19. Useful information but still not the reason I am in this predicament. ET or Malawian Airways cancelled one leg of my journey and now I can't get a refund on my booking. Which means I now have to incur further costs to adjust my itinerary. The booking team has also not yet been in touch with quotations for adjusting my flight. So as it stands, I have neither a flight booked nor my money back.
I can not and would not recommend Travelstart to anyone.
Travelstart's replyOfficial
29 Oct 2020, 12:42Good Day Michelle,
Thank you for your reply and I do apologise for any inconvenience and frustration caused for your flight schedule change.
We try our best to make travel simple and ensure that our customers are satisfied.
With our industry there are various factors that may affect flight time changes, which the airlines & travel agent have no control over. This could be weather related, international airspace agreements, statistical data or technical issues etc
Airlines therefore cannot guarantee their timetables and this is the reason the IATA Conditions of Contract was drafted - which basically stipulates that airlines guarantee to transport clients from A - B but do not guarantee their time tables. Each airline also has their own Terms of Conditions and procedures where schedule changes and delays are concerned.
Looking at your booking an email was sent on the 27 October providing options, however no response was received.
We are only able to offer options as per the airlines directives. Our schedule changes team have also reached out to the airline for an alternative flight option on an alternative date.
Due to high volumes of queries and airline working on skeleton staff there will be a delay in receiving a response from the airline. However once they have received feedback they will be in touch via email.
Please be assured it is not the intention of the airline to inconvenience their passengers. However I do understand the frustration this might have caused.
If you have any other questions let us know and we will be happy to assist where possible.
Regarding a refund option your booking has been sent through to our refunds team who will look at the airlines directives and be in touch via email.
Kind Regards,
Travelstart,
Thank you for your reply and I do apologise for any inconvenience and frustration caused for your flight schedule change.
We try our best to make travel simple and ensure that our customers are satisfied.
With our industry there are various factors that may affect flight time changes, which the airlines & travel agent have no control over. This could be weather related, international airspace agreements, statistical data or technical issues etc
Airlines therefore cannot guarantee their timetables and this is the reason the IATA Conditions of Contract was drafted - which basically stipulates that airlines guarantee to transport clients from A - B but do not guarantee their time tables. Each airline also has their own Terms of Conditions and procedures where schedule changes and delays are concerned.
Looking at your booking an email was sent on the 27 October providing options, however no response was received.
We are only able to offer options as per the airlines directives. Our schedule changes team have also reached out to the airline for an alternative flight option on an alternative date.
Due to high volumes of queries and airline working on skeleton staff there will be a delay in receiving a response from the airline. However once they have received feedback they will be in touch via email.
Please be assured it is not the intention of the airline to inconvenience their passengers. However I do understand the frustration this might have caused.
If you have any other questions let us know and we will be happy to assist where possible.
Regarding a refund option your booking has been sent through to our refunds team who will look at the airlines directives and be in touch via email.
Kind Regards,
Travelstart,
Travelstart's reply29 Oct 2020, 12:42
Official
Good Day Michelle,
Thank you for your reply and I do apologise for any inconvenience and frustration caused for your flight schedule change.
We try our best to make travel simple and ensure that our customers are satisfied.
With our industry there are various factors that may affect flight time changes, which the airlines & travel agent have no control over. This could be weather related, international airspace agreements, statistical data or technical issues etc
Airlines therefore cannot guarantee their timetables and this is the reason the IATA Conditions of Contract was drafted - which basically stipulates that airlines guarantee to transport clients from A - B but do not guarantee their time tables. Each airline also has their own Terms of Conditions and procedures where schedule changes and delays are concerned.
Looking at your booking an email was sent on the 27 October providing options, however no response was received.
We are only able to offer options as per the airlines directives. Our schedule changes team have also reached out to the airline for an alternative flight option on an alternative date.
Due to high volumes of queries and airline working on skeleton staff there will be a delay in receiving a response from the airline. However once they have received feedback they will be in touch via email.
Please be assured it is not the intention of the airline to inconvenience their passengers. However I do understand the frustration this might have caused.
If you have any other questions let us know and we will be happy to assist where possible.
Regarding a refund option your booking has been sent through to our refunds team who will look at the airlines directives and be in touch via email.
Kind Regards,
Travelstart,
Thank you for your reply and I do apologise for any inconvenience and frustration caused for your flight schedule change.
We try our best to make travel simple and ensure that our customers are satisfied.
With our industry there are various factors that may affect flight time changes, which the airlines & travel agent have no control over. This could be weather related, international airspace agreements, statistical data or technical issues etc
Airlines therefore cannot guarantee their timetables and this is the reason the IATA Conditions of Contract was drafted - which basically stipulates that airlines guarantee to transport clients from A - B but do not guarantee their time tables. Each airline also has their own Terms of Conditions and procedures where schedule changes and delays are concerned.
Looking at your booking an email was sent on the 27 October providing options, however no response was received.
We are only able to offer options as per the airlines directives. Our schedule changes team have also reached out to the airline for an alternative flight option on an alternative date.
Due to high volumes of queries and airline working on skeleton staff there will be a delay in receiving a response from the airline. However once they have received feedback they will be in touch via email.
Please be assured it is not the intention of the airline to inconvenience their passengers. However I do understand the frustration this might have caused.
If you have any other questions let us know and we will be happy to assist where possible.
Regarding a refund option your booking has been sent through to our refunds team who will look at the airlines directives and be in touch via email.
Kind Regards,
Travelstart,
MN
Michelle N's updateReviewer Update
05 Nov 2020, 14:54Update: 05/11/2020
I have rep**** twice now to the emails sent to me from Travelstart about my rebooking options and have tried to get in touch with a customer service agent all week. I still haven't heard back. I was told that getting a refund is not an option and now I can't get my rebooking options sent to me either. This is frustrating! I need to sort this out so I can sort out my other flights.
I have rep**** twice now to the emails sent to me from Travelstart about my rebooking options and have tried to get in touch with a customer service agent all week. I still haven't heard back. I was told that getting a refund is not an option and now I can't get my rebooking options sent to me either. This is frustrating! I need to sort this out so I can sort out my other flights.
MN
Michelle N's update05 Nov 2020, 14:54
Reviewer Update
Update: 05/11/2020
I have rep**** twice now to the emails sent to me from Travelstart about my rebooking options and have tried to get in touch with a customer service agent all week. I still haven't heard back. I was told that getting a refund is not an option and now I can't get my rebooking options sent to me either. This is frustrating! I need to sort this out so I can sort out my other flights.
I have rep**** twice now to the emails sent to me from Travelstart about my rebooking options and have tried to get in touch with a customer service agent all week. I still haven't heard back. I was told that getting a refund is not an option and now I can't get my rebooking options sent to me either. This is frustrating! I need to sort this out so I can sort out my other flights.
Travelstart's replyOfficial
05 Nov 2020, 16:30Hi there Michelle
Thank you for email and feedback.
I am sorry for the delay in response from the Schedule changes Team. I have checked the booking and see that they have emailed you today, advising that there is still no response from the airline on if they authorize waiver of fees for your requested date. I also note that they have been sending follow ups to the airline as well.
We understand it can be frustrating to wait for the information, however we need the information and flights to be authorized by the airline before we can proceed.
As soon as they have an update they will revert back to you.
Wishing you a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Travelstart
Thank you for email and feedback.
I am sorry for the delay in response from the Schedule changes Team. I have checked the booking and see that they have emailed you today, advising that there is still no response from the airline on if they authorize waiver of fees for your requested date. I also note that they have been sending follow ups to the airline as well.
We understand it can be frustrating to wait for the information, however we need the information and flights to be authorized by the airline before we can proceed.
As soon as they have an update they will revert back to you.
Wishing you a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Travelstart
Travelstart's reply05 Nov 2020, 16:30
Official
Hi there Michelle
Thank you for email and feedback.
I am sorry for the delay in response from the Schedule changes Team. I have checked the booking and see that they have emailed you today, advising that there is still no response from the airline on if they authorize waiver of fees for your requested date. I also note that they have been sending follow ups to the airline as well.
We understand it can be frustrating to wait for the information, however we need the information and flights to be authorized by the airline before we can proceed.
As soon as they have an update they will revert back to you.
Wishing you a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Travelstart
Thank you for email and feedback.
I am sorry for the delay in response from the Schedule changes Team. I have checked the booking and see that they have emailed you today, advising that there is still no response from the airline on if they authorize waiver of fees for your requested date. I also note that they have been sending follow ups to the airline as well.
We understand it can be frustrating to wait for the information, however we need the information and flights to be authorized by the airline before we can proceed.
As soon as they have an update they will revert back to you.
Wishing you a wonderful day further!
Thank you and kind regards
Travelstart
Travelstart's replyOfficial
09 Nov 2020, 14:48Hi there Michelle
Thank you for your feedback,
Please allow me to investigate this for you and then I reply to you from my feedback inbox. We can then further communicate via that inbox as I manage both this channel and that inbox.
Your understanding and patience in this is much appreciated.
kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Thank you for your feedback,
Please allow me to investigate this for you and then I reply to you from my feedback inbox. We can then further communicate via that inbox as I manage both this channel and that inbox.
Your understanding and patience in this is much appreciated.
kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Travelstart's reply09 Nov 2020, 14:48
Official
Hi there Michelle
Thank you for your feedback,
Please allow me to investigate this for you and then I reply to you from my feedback inbox. We can then further communicate via that inbox as I manage both this channel and that inbox.
Your understanding and patience in this is much appreciated.
kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
Thank you for your feedback,
Please allow me to investigate this for you and then I reply to you from my feedback inbox. We can then further communicate via that inbox as I manage both this channel and that inbox.
Your understanding and patience in this is much appreciated.
kind regards
Lee-Anne
Travelstart
MN
Michelle N's updateReviewer Update
09 Nov 2020, 15:12Hi Lee-Anne,
That's fine. Looking forward to hearing back from you.
That's fine. Looking forward to hearing back from you.
MN
Michelle N's update09 Nov 2020, 15:12
Reviewer Update
Hi Lee-Anne,
That's fine. Looking forward to hearing back from you.
That's fine. Looking forward to hearing back from you.