Priceline's Free Pricedrop protection

[VikingChick]

This is from Pricelines website--

 

Free Pricedrop Protection

 

This spring, the Negotiator wants you to get the best possible deals on travel. That’s why he’s backing up every flight and vacation package purchase with Free Pricedrop Protection when you book by June 1st. Now you’re automatically covered if prices drop before your trip.

Up to $300 Cash Back if Flight Prices Drop

 

If another priceline customer books the same flight for a lower price, we’ll automatically refund the difference in cash…up to $300.

[biker1972]

So I have to poll all the people on MY flight to see if they booked with Priceline and if their fare was lower. Like that is gooing to happen. But the guarantee sure SOUNDS go at first blush.:rolleyes:

[parody]

Travelocity has also introduced this "travel protection" plan for vacation packages (flight + hotel) and to match Priceline, both Travelocity and Expedia have (temporarily) dropped booking fees according to the Cranky Flier. In a previous post, I have estimated that the odds of obtaining a refund from the Orbitz Price Assurance plan is less than 1%.

[FlyerTalker]

Parody is an optimist. Refunds are likely impossible on itineraries with multiple connections, rarely on a single connect, and his 1% on a non-stop.

 

Caveat Emptor. Most important words in the traveler's lexicon.

[ab0si]

Parody is an optimist. Refunds are likely impossible on itineraries with multiple connections, rarely on a single connect, and his 1% on a non-stop.

 

Caveat Emptor. Most important words in the traveler's lexicon.

 

I seldom disagree with you, but I have to take exception here.

 

Caveat emptor is the second most important phrase. Where is the loo is number one.

[halbfl2]

This is from Pricelines website--

 

Free Pricedrop Protection

 

This spring, the Negotiator wants you to get the best possible deals on travel. That’s why he’s backing up every flight and vacation package purchase with Free Pricedrop Protection when you book by June 1st. Now you’re automatically covered if prices drop before your trip.

Up to $300 Cash Back if Flight Prices Drop

 

If another priceline customer books the same flight for a lower price, we’ll automatically refund the difference in cash…up to $300.

 

Too bad it has to be another customer. How likely would it be that they'd have the exact same itinerary as you? Sure wish I'd waited to book the return flight for our upcoming transatlantic from LHR to MIA. We booked a round trip w/the idea of tossing the return as it was less than a one-way ticket. However, about 4-6 wks. later, I could have booked that exact same itinerary for $142pp less! The best price seemed to be about 6-7 mo. prior to our trip. Don't know if that holds at all or just a coincidence.

[FlyerTalker]

I seldom disagree with you, but I have to take exception here.

 

Caveat emptor is the second most important phrase. Where is the loo is number one.

 

Touche!!!

[kenish]

Too bad it has to be another customer. How likely would it be that they'd have the exact same itinerary as you?

 

They also need to have the same fare code too, making it even more unlikely.

 

This gimmick reminds me of price match guarantees that large retailers use. The fine print usually says they will match a competitor's *advertised* price on the same UPC or SKU. I worked for a company that supplied national chains. We supplied each chain with their own UPC and SKU for the same item, guaranteeing there would never be a competitor match.

[parody]

Too bad it has to be another customer.

 

This reminds me of a post I saw on Trip Advisor and indicates the persistence one must have concerning this program. A few days after a person bought air tickets for his trip a relative decided to go with him and so he went ahead and purchased another ticket that turned out to have a higher price. The first person at Orbitz that he talked to denied his claim for a refund of the difference in fare because the policy says "when someone ELSE..." buys a ticket they are eligible for a refund and clearly he was not someone ELSE. However, after he appealed to a third agent, he obtained his refund. (Clearly the itinerary was the same.)

 

As I noted in my prior post on this program, it was an attempt to quantify the likelihood of ever obtaining a refund. It was labeled as "ballpark". It is clearly an average, meaning that some convoluted (connecting and/or International) trip would be essentially zero, while some straightforward trip would be higher. Others, like ginagirl, while not necessarily quantifying the success rate, simply stated, "The odds are so in their favor that I wouldn't purchase from them just for spite."