We often hear from customers that it’s difficult to know when to buy airline tickets. Airlines are constantly raising and lowering air fares, a regular cause of confusion and frustration. For example, it’s usually good practice to buy early, but there are times when doing so will come back to haunt you when the fare actually drops after your purchase. So, how are you really supposed to know when to buy?
At CheapAir.com we want our customers to know they are getting the absolute best fare they possibly can. Though we can’t stop airlines from constantly changing their fares in order to maximize “yield,” we can help you to breathe a little easier with our recently launched free Price Drop Payback program, now in effect for the remainder of the year.
It’s as simple as this: if the price for the same itinerary goes down any time before your trip, we’ll pay you back the difference in the form of a travel voucher for up to $100 per ticket! We are proud to be the only U.S. travel site who offers this unique buyer protection and we hope this program will arm you with buying confidence.
To take advantage of Price Drop Payback, any time after your purchase go to the My Trips section of our web site to retrieve your itinerary. From there, with one click you can check to see if your fare has gone down. If it has, we’ll issue you a travel credit immediately. You can check your fare every week, every day, or as often as you want. It’s fast and easy and free.
Some restrictions apply, so click here for complete terms and conditions and be sure to let us know if you have any questions.
sarahj
September 21, 2011
So, I bought a ticket on Virgin Ari just on September18th from you. The price dropped $100 on Tuesday. Will you send me a check?
Sarah J
CheapAir
September 21, 2011
Sarah: To take advantage of our Price Drop Payback just go to the My Trips section of our site and put in your booking number and last name. That will pull up your booking and from there you can click the giant “Check if Your Fare Has Dropped” button. That will verify how much the fare has gone down and, if it has, you will be instantly emailed a credit voucher that you can use on your next booking!
SUSAN
October 5, 2011
Sounds, to me, like CHEAPAIR is quite confident that no airline’s fares are going to be dropping anytime soon! Still, it’s a great offer and very fair inasmuch as CHEAPAIR is willing to take the risk with its’ customers!
WAY TO GO, CHEAPAIR!!
(…Pssst. ..um, guys?…do I get a free ticket for saying that? No? Ohwell, it’s a nice idea anyway!) LOL…this was not a paid solicitation…(honest!)
ann
October 16, 2011
Can the vouchers from Price Drop Payback be used by anyone…the purchaser or the traveler?
CheapAir
October 17, 2011
Ann: Good question. The PDP vouchers must be redeemed for a ticket in the same name as the original traveler.
Steve
October 16, 2011
Your Terms and Conditions don’t mention “……..with our recently launched free Price Drop Payback program, now in effect for the remainder of the year.” Does that mean if I buy a ticket now for travel next February, it does not apply?
CheapAir
October 17, 2011
Steve: As long as you buy the ticket this year, it doesn’t matter when you travel. So the ticket you mentioned would indeed be eligible. At the end of the year, we’re going to re-evaluate the program. If it proves popular with our customers, we are open to extending it.
Fina A.
October 19, 2011
Is the PDP apllicable to flights anywhere or US destinations only?
Thank you for thinking and creating a customer satisfaction program. More power to CHEAPAIR!!!
Dale Jones
October 19, 2011
With all due respect, the onus is on the Customer to investigate any price drop and report it to Cheapair—and I would suspect that does not happen very often.
Suggestion: From my past experience, I can state that AAA Travel Agents (the midwest region offices I am familiar with) actually checked the travel costs as part of their diligence to the Customer, and refunded the money back to me—without being told to do it—now THAT is Customer Service! It certainly would be great if Cheapair could at least consider that service because it would seem that they have a quicker line to the prices, than we do.
At any rate, suggestion or not, I would hope that the evaluation data is favorable, and the program be continued in 2012.
Regards,
D. Jones
cheapair
October 19, 2011
Dale, thanks for the feedback. We’ll give you a more candid answer than we probably should.
The truth is, we wouldn’t be able to afford to do it the way you suggested.
When we designed the Price Drop Payback program, we started with one rule: this had to be something that we could give customers for free, included with their tickets. We sensed there was very little appetite for higher air fares, no matter what we were offering, so we committed to providing a benefit without any additional increase in ticket prices.
It is important to understand that when you purchase a ticket from us, almost the entire purchase price is going to the airline. Our cut of an individual ticket is less than $10 — and that is before any of our costs are factored in. The airlines, who take most of the money, will not refund a dime if fares subsequently drop. So all of the money to fund the Price Drop Payback vouchers is coming from our pockets, even though each voucher is more than our profit on the original ticket.
I don’t doubt that some off-line travel agents will manually monitor air fares for their customers and that is a great service. But those off-line travel agents usually charge pretty high fees for their tickets. With the volume of tickets that we sell each day, to check each one continuously for price drops would be quite an undertaking (and might not endear us to our airline partners who are already quite concerned about excessive queries to their systems). That is not to say that it would be impossible, but it would be beyond the scope of what we could provide automatically, for free with every purchase.
We know our program is not perfect, but we are proud of the fact that it is a giant leap forward. This is truly a one-of-a-kind program. Airline sites and other booking sites do NOTHING for you when your fare goes down after purchase. We are at least offering some way to receive some protection from these price drops, and we are doing it without charging any more.
So far, the program does seem very popular and the number of customers receiving Price Drop Payback vouchers has been growing every week. We are strongly considering extending this beyond the end of the year, and making it a permanent feature.
Thanks again for your input. Good or bad, we love to hear what our customers are thinking so keep it coming!
Joe
October 20, 2011
Does this offer apply to tickets purchased just for travel within the continental 48 states…..or to to other countries as well?
cheapair
October 20, 2011
Yes, Joe, there are no restrictions on destinations.
Donna
January 16, 2013
Are you offering this great program in 2013?
And btw, I loved your response to Dale in Oct 2011 with regards to your services vs. “off-line” retail services. Advantages and disadvantages to both, and thanks for your candid response!
Donna
cheapair
January 16, 2013
Hi Donna,
Yes, Price Drop Payback is still available to all CheapAir.com customers who book on our website.
Antonie
January 16, 2013
Hi,
Just wondering if your will have the “payback” program in 2013.
If so, can more than one refund voucher be used on the same future purchase? I mean, when I am making a purchase, can I use more than one voucher I received from previous “pay-backs”?
Thank you,
Antonie
cheapair
January 16, 2013
Hi Antonie,
Yes, Price Drop Payback is still available to all CheapAir.com customers who book on our website. There are some limitations to our Price Drop Payback program. You can read about the terms and conditions here.
Jennifer
February 8, 2013
When I use the Price Drop Payback Program, will I get up to $100 per ticket or only $100 total? Thanks!
CheapAir.com
February 11, 2013
Hi Jennifer,
Price Drop Payback is per ticket, each up to $100. Click here to learn more about Price Drop Payback.
Mei Leng Lau
June 12, 2013
Is it possible to purchase ticket from Price Drop Payback for international flights originating from other counties to the US. I am currently in Malaysia and will be looking to getting a one way ticket back to Richmond, VA before the end of the year.
Thanks
CheapAir
June 12, 2013
Hi Mei,
Any customer who purchases a flight on CheapAir.com is automatically enrolled in Price Drop Payback. You can read about all the terms and conditions for Price Drop Payback here: http://www.cheapair.com/pdp-terms.htm Please let us know if you need any assistance with finding flights.