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Travelling within or outside a country for a vacation can be quite thrilling. The thought of spending your nights in a cozy hotel or perhaps visiting restaurants in Memphis for some crazy Korean noodle is exhilarating. But all this excitement can get ruined by travel scams.
Research by AHLA indicates that travel fraud has become rampant with Americans making 28.5 million fake bookings per year. This translate to about $5.2 billion annually. Stop Online Booking Scams Act has been in place since 2016 to crack down scammers. However, the world is still wild, and you have to play your part.
Watch out the following travel scams and learn how to avoid them.
Fake Booking Websites
Thanks to the internet that you can now book a hotel for your vacation or business trip at the comfort of your couch. But scammers will try to get ahead of you. Today, you can book a hotel directly on their website or use a third party. Scammers will come up with a website- acting as a third party and convince you to book with them.
In fact, most of them will give you a huge discount, and if excitement overshadows your instincts, then you will get scammed. Scammers might also create a website that looks like the real website or that of a known booking site like Airbnb. Once you make your “booking”, they will disappear with your money.
To avoid this version of a travel scam, ensure you book directly with the hotel. But if you decide to make your bargaining using a third party, ensure the webpage is trustworthy. Read reviews and seek recommendations from friends and relatives who have used the site.
More so, ensure Better Business Bureau approves the site.
Car Scam
When you visit a foreign country, you might decide to hire a car and drive around to any place you want. Thanks to wayfinding signage that will direct you to any point of interest. Cars are convenient, comfortable, and provides personal security and privacy.
Now, you rent a car, but upon bringing it back, the owner claims you have to make extra payments for damages you didn’t know. If you don’t have any proof, you will end up paying for expensive repairs you didn’t even cause.
If you want to avoid this kind of scenario, take photos of the car and document any damages. If possible, go around with the owner taking photos to clear any doubt. Also, keep the car out of the owner’s sight. Some people might get malicious and send someone to mess the vehicle or steal to make you pay for it.
Additionally, buy travel insurance to help you claim in case of any issue.
The Taxi Overcharge
You land, and you’re trying to fight off with jetlag. All you want is to get to your hotel room and catch up with some cuisine. You call for a taxi, and the driver tells you the meter is broken.
Others will tend to charge you more than necessary.
To avoid being overcharged, ask the hotel front desk the rate from your pick-up point. Cab services like Uber have almost constant rates. Although rates can sometimes change, the variant won’t be huge.
Most of the tourism boards allow you to report fraudulent cab drivers. That’s why it’s essential to have the driver’s ID number to report any incidence. Finally, ensure you only board a licensed cab.
Free Gifts
By now, you should know that nothing is for free. This travel scam works whereby a friendly person approaches you for a chat and then place a hat on your head, or bracelet on your wrist. Once you have the gift, then they will for demand money.
These scammers won’t accept their items back. Instead, they will try to cause a scene hoping you will pay than getting embarrassed.
Don’t accept anything from anyone. But in case they put it on you, return it and be adamantly firm about it.
Take-Away
Travelling should not be stressful or scary. Heed to the above advice and your trip will be enjoyable and scam-free.
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