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Comment by SteveNuts | Hacker News Reader

My question is, with Google's pretty much non-existent customer service (unless you're on G-suite), how difficult is the process going to be to get to a human if you want to make a claim that they weren't the lowest price?

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Super anecdotal obviously, but very very difficult. Bought some flights on Scandinavian Air through Google Flights that included multiple checked bags for my wife and I about a year ago. Upon arrival at the airport in Gothenburg, they were very insistent we hadn't paid for bags and had to pay the exorbitant fees for checking bags on the spot.

We essentially could not figure out how to contact anyone at Google Flights to clear up the situation or achieve any form of redress.

I don't think it's currently possible to book flights to Google Flights itself. Doesn't it always redirect you to another site to book? You would have to contact that site for help in this siutation.

I recall booking through google flights, as I understood they simply booked on my behalf through the carrier but I was entirely in Google eco-system.

You’re wrong, it’s possible. [0]

[0] https://support.google.com/travel/answer/7515668?hl=en

Google still isn't the seller of record, though.

> Note: All bookings are made with the relevant airline or online travel agency.

That's also partly on the airline. I recently had a similar experience with a ticket booked through I think Expedia. Bags on the return flight were supposed to be included. When we checked in, the machine wanted to charge for bags. We showed the agent the booking email, she made a quick call, and waived the bag fee. It was odd to me from the start that bags were included only on the return flight, but I attributed it to international travel.

The issue isn't about who's fault it is. The issue is that you can call Expedia when things go wrong but there's nobody at Google you can call.

> Bought some flights on Scandinavian Air through Google Flights that included multiple checked bags for my wife and I about a year ago. Upon arrival at the airport in Gothenburg, they were very insistent we hadn't paid for bags and had to pay the exorbitant fees for checking bags on the spot.

Something like this had happened to me often enough that I no longer purchase anything through an intermediary when traveling. Flights, directly through the airline. Hotels, directly through the hotel. Theme park, directly through the park. Is it convenient to make reservations and/or pay in person on-site? On-site it is.

The occasional discounts just aren't worth the clusterfsck it becomes when there's any kind of misunderstanding or miscommunication.

The price between a intermediary and an airline can be 1300 USD vs. 800 USD.

Especially when the existing sites that at least offer 800 numbers are already so bad at doing low price guarantees. Look at what hotels.com did when the price dropped by $1000: quibble about whether the rate was really the same because of whether breakfast was offered all week versus weekdays. It turned out to be their error anyway. https://www.elliott.org/the-troubleshooter/hotel-price-drops...

A while back I applied for a price protection partial refund when I bought a Nexus something or other and they dropped the price a week or two later.

It took less than 24 hours for the money to be back on my card - I don't think any humans were involved. Why would they be?

> I don't think any humans were involved. Why would they be?

The question is not "can I contact a human if it all goes well and everything works perfectly?"

The question is "can I contact a human if it doesn't?"

Unlike say getting locked out of your account, missing out on a discount is not catastrophic. If it happens at a low enough rate, just accept it and move on. If it happens at a high enough rate stop using the service.

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