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It's so annoying to book a flight and then find out that you could have gotten a much better deal. But technology is starting to provide more options to travelers with buyer's remorse.
For instance, the MasterCard PriceAssure program allows cardholders to track their itinerary to see if a price change entitles them to an airline credit. The program is free to enroll for anyone with a MasterCard, and it works with any foreign or domestic flight on Delta, United, American, Continental and seven other carriers.
If the cardholder is entitled to a credit, they can claim it themselves or they can have MasterCard do the work for them for $19.95.
The fee covers all the tickets on the itinerary, says Chris Aguas, vice president of new product development at MasterCard Worldwide. If for some reason MasterCard is unable to collect the airline credit, your card won't be charged the fee.
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I think that's an excellent perk, the PriceAssure program. How often have you seen a flight reduced just after you bought it a few days before? Vacations too. It makes me mad.
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Like it or not, most airlines charge extra for baggage these days. But depending on the airline and the credit card in your wallet, you may be able to check your luggage without the fee.
"When Continental Presidential card members book flights with their credit cards, their first bag -- and often second bag depending on their card type -- are flown free of charge," says Adam Goldstein, CEO of Hipmunk, a search engine for flights and hotels.
"Delta SkyMiles (credit) card members can check their first bag for free regardless of whether they book the flight with the card, he says. "They simply (need to) provide the SkyMiles number when booking the flight or when checking in at the airport."
If you aren't flying Delta or Continental, other travel rewards credit cards may offer reimbursement of luggage or other incidental charges, so check before you book.
It wouldn't have occurred to me that was a possibility. Very cool indeed! Thank you greenmachine. :) I hate paying luggage fees, It's not as if you can go anywhere without it!
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"Certain cards will have travel accident, foreign medical emergency coverage, purchase protection and extended warranty built in, but typically those types of services are only available for platinum card holders or with an extra fee for regular card holders," she says.
According to Passey, these services aren't likely to replace a cardholder's regular insurance coverage but may help fill in gaps, such as lost baggage reimbursement.
I must be naive. I assumed your normal trip insurance covered all that stuff. That's good to know. Thanks greenmachine!
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It's so annoying to book a flight and then find out that you could have gotten a much better deal. But technology is starting to provide more options to travelers with buyer's remorse.
For instance, the MasterCard PriceAssure program allows cardholders to track their itinerary to see if a price change entitles them to an airline credit. The program is free to enroll for anyone with a MasterCard, and it works with any foreign or domestic flight on Delta, United, American, Continental and seven other carriers.
If the cardholder is entitled to a credit, they can claim it themselves or they can have MasterCard do the work for them for $19.95.
That's one of my pet peeves. I'm the same way about buying clothing in a store one day only to see it reduced the next. That's great you can do something more than grit your teeth about it.
Nice to see some companies are still keeping the benefits going. :) That's a great example there, greenmachine.
When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a rose with the other.