Holiday Scams

5 The bogus travel agent

Ever booked a hotel online and wished you were one of the privileged few who knew all the special promo codes to get your room rate to magically shrink? This is the penny pincher’s nirvana, and there are countless companies on the internet willing to sell you travel agent “credentials”. But don’t be suckered in. “The days of freebies and discounts are done, trust me,” says John Frenaye, a travel columnist at MSNBC. “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

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6 The exclusive holiday club

You’ve just arrived on the beach when a charming young man ambles over with the deal of a lifetime – the chance to join an exclusive holiday club and come back to this paradise year after year. “These bogus holiday clubs cost people over £1.1 billion a year,” grumbles Charles Starmer-Smith, travel writer at The Daily Telegraph. “Once you’ve signed up, you’ll often find the club doesn’t deliver on the promises or doesn’t exist at all.”

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7 The airport X-ray club

You didn’t notice that the guy in front of you had a pal who went through security immediately before him. That same pal is now rifling through your bags that passed through the X-ray machine two minutes ago – only you’re still stuck in the queue because the guy in front of you tried to pass through the metal detector wearing his watch, and then with a pocketful of coins and, oh look! The twit’s forgotten about his 12-inch belt buckle

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8 The web miracle

Latest reports suggest that up to 80% of people research their holiday online before booking, and millions of us never step into a travel agent at all. Blinded by great prices and nice-looking websites, it’s easy to be fooled into thinking you’ve come across a bargain – as happened in 2006 when a bogus company called Unbeatableholidays.com swindled thousands of people out of fees for non-existent holidays, before being rumbled. Says Jason Wakeford at ATOL: “You should always check for a site’s ATOL and ABTA credentials. If in doubt, contact us.” For more details, visit www.caa. co.uk/atol

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