Skyscanner and third-party companies

[BevS97]

I use Skyscanner to find routes and dates I like the look of but then try and book via the airline. Although I have used Netflighys and Dial a flight.
If your flight is ticketed immediately and you can log in and see it the risk is low.

[Sew109]

Originally Posted by captain-codeye

I would never risk it, only book direct with the airline using a credit card.

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Let’s hope that you didn’t book directly with TC, Max Jet , Monarch, Swiss Air,
Air Berlin, Wow or FlyBMI all of these have gone bust. You would have the same S75 protection whether you book with BA or Quasimodo Flights on Skyscanner.

I would prefer to book directly mainly because I get more flexibility and it’s easier to upgrade, I have used various travel agents on sky scanner with no problems and even used flightgeeks with only a minor hiccup and I have generally got the prices advertised.

[Nimbus]

Originally Posted by Sew109

Let’s hope that you didn’t book directly with TC, Max Jet , Monarch, Swiss Air,
Air Berlin, Wow or FlyBMI all of these have gone bust. You would have the same S75 protection whether you book with BA or Quasimodo Flights on Skyscanner.

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You're right that there's a risk no matter who you book with. I guess what I was originally asking in my post was whether there was a high risk of one of these thirdparty companies going bust or not. Are they all companies that have been around for several years and are generally trustworthy and solvent or are some of them little companies that were only set up this year and are likely to disappear taking your money? When I looked on Skyscanner I hadn't heard of most of the companies listed.

It does seem there is some concern from some people - perhaps not about companies going bust but more about dealing with them if things go wrong or need to be changed. I'm somewhat risk adverse therefore I'd rather deal directly with the airline.

[novocastrian]

Originally Posted by giggler

Skyscanner, my nemesis.
I would do some searches to check reliability of the company’s. Some are much more higher rated than others.
Also I find that the price is often much lower than the airline, but doesn’t actually exist, it’s click bait to get you to the website.
it’s a good tool to check rough prices.

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this

see a good deal click through & spookily the price quoted 'no longer available' but we can do it for xx more

bandits...

[CRUELLA]

I have used skyscanner twice to find the best prices which were netflights.i actually booked through netflights and the price was the same as skyscanner quoted .so I have booked again same method this year .the flights were £200 less in total (5of us) than the airline website.

[Sew109]

I booked a united flight with fare geeks I had the reference number straight away and booked my seats all happy right - wrong. They called me up and said my flights were cancelled as the price changed by £40 in total for three of us I didn't believe them but the seats were gone I paid the £40 got a new reference rebooked seats and then called United to confirm it could not be cancelled again. It cost 1/3 of the United website would I use them again yes, but I know the risks.

[pic499]

If I book via Travelup for Aer Lingus flights, can I still choose my seat? thanks.

[Budmiester]

Originally Posted by pic499

If I book via Travelup for Aer Lingus flights, can I still choose my seat? thanks.

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Have a look on Tripadvisor for reviews of Travelup, most are not very complimentary. You add another layer of t&c’s when you book through an online ticket seller meaning they can charge you for seat selection whereas the airline might not. Best book directly with Aer Lingus.

[Nimbus]

Just a quick update on my original post.

I did use Skyscanner but only to give me an idea of what was happening with flight prices. I ended up booking some Virgin flights direct with Virgin on their website (via Quidco for some cashback). I decided against booking with a third party company.