CheapOair.com, OneTravel.com Owner To Pay $2.6M Following AG Investigation

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Fareportal OneTravel, CheapOair Investigation Overview: 

• Who: Fareportal Inc. will pay $2.6 million to the State of New York following an investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James. 
• Why: James determined Fareportal used deceptive marketing practices to get consumers to complete travel-related purchases on websites such as OneTravel.com and CheapOair.com.
• Where: The investigation was conducted by New York’s attorney general.

The owner of travel websites OneTravel.com and CheapOair.com will pay $2.6 million to the State of New York following an investigation into its marketing practices by the state attorney general. 

The investigation determined online travel agency Fareportal Inc. misled consumers by using deceptive marketing tactics that gave them the false belief that hotel reservations and airline tickets were quickly selling out. 

New York Attorney General Letitia James revealed the findings in a report filed on Mar. 10 in which she determined Fareportal’s marketing tactics created a “false sense of urgency” meant to get consumers to complete a purchase. 

“Fareportal included a number of misleading messages on its online platforms that indicated that the supply of airline tickets was limited at a particular price regardless of the actual number of airline tickets that were available,” James said. 

To create a sense of urgency, James says Fareportal would add a “misleading message related to the available supply of tickets for the top two flights returned from a search.” 

Fareportal Misleads Consumers About Available Tickets 

The amount of tickets Fareportal would say were left would depend on how many a consumer had searched for with the company claiming there was only one more than what they needed at that offered price.

“The messages conveyed the false impression that the listed tickets could sell out at that price at any moment,” James said. 

Fareportal would use similar misleading messaging as it pertained to hotel room availability on some of its other online platforms as well, according to James. 

In addition to the deceptive marketing tactics, James found Fareportal had been profiting off of service fees added to the price of a ticket at the time of purchase that was later canceled. James noted that these service fees would “ordinarily be refunded” in the event the ticket was ultimately canceled. 

“In the years 2017 through 2019, Fareportal averaged over $5 million in annual revenues from such cancellation fees,” James said. 

Per the agreement, Fareportal will also be required to ensure all the messages it relays to consumers about product availability are based on accurate date and use accurate comparison prices when offering discounts. 

A separate class action lawsuit was filed against CheapOair in 2020 over claims the company charged customers more than what was listed as the “Final Total Price” on its website or mobile app. 

Have you purchased airline tickets or hotel accommodations from a site or platform operated by Fareportal? Let us know in the comments! 

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