An alert has been raised by a Dunedin woman regarding the potential price gouging by third-party travel booking services. This warning comes after her elderly mother unknowingly paid $1300 for two one-way flights from Wellington.
The woman, identified as Penny, shared that her mother believed she was booking directly with Air New Zealand but had actually made the reservation through a website called Gotogate.
If the booking had been made directly with the airline, Penny estimated that they could have saved around $600 on the flights scheduled for January 3 for her and her grandson.
Upon investigation, RNZ found that seat and bag fares from Wellington to Dunedin on the Air New Zealand website were priced at $436 per person.
Penny expressed her mother’s distress upon realizing the mistake and the subsequent lack of refund offered by Gotogate, stating that the extra $20 charge for an exit-row seat was also an issue as her mother required wheelchair assistance.
Gemma Rasmussen, Head of Research and Advocacy at Consumer NZ, highlighted the risks associated with third-party booking websites that pay for top search result placements, potentially leading to misleading pricing and deceptive marketing tactics.
While the responsibility for excessive pricing lies with the third-party websites, Air New Zealand clarified that they could not intervene in such cases where legitimate travel agents like Gotogate are involved.
Penny mentioned that Air New Zealand assisted in reassigning seats to ensure her mother and grandson could sit together, while they explore options for a potential refund through their bank.
Consumers are advised to be cautious when booking flights online and to exercise due diligence to avoid falling victim to price gouging by third-party services.
RNZ reached out to Air New Zealand, Gotogate, and its parent company Etraveli Group for further comments.
