How to Tell if a Travel Agency is Legitimate

You may of heard of a recent arrest in Florida of a Con-Artist pretending to be a TA stealing thousands of dollars from her clients. This was a huge problem in the past but the government, Travel Industry, and Travel Agencies/Agents have taken steps to stop this. But Bad Actors still do Bad things. I will be honest, this upset us as owners of Pixie Dusted Memories Travel. It hurts the Travel Professional Industry at large and is offensive. Our hearts break thinking about the hundreds of people that lost money and missed out on a vacation.

 

How do you tell if an agency is legitimate? This is especially true if they are selling Disney Travel! That seems to be a huge and easy market for thieves in the past. Ask if they have passed the CDK (College of Disney Knowledge) if your destination is anything Disney Related. Ask for references, ask if one of their past clients will share their experience with the agency. Ask if they are IATA (International Air Travel Association) or CLIA (Cruise International Association) members and check their status with these two organizations. Most Agencies are part of one or the other. These two organizations are Travel Associations that work at improving the aspect of travel they are associated with.

The best way to know if they are trustworthy is to watch for what information they ask for. TAs should only ask for what is required to book your travel. These are the things that will be needed besides the where and when of your vacation. Name, Address, Birthday, email, phone number or every member of your travel party and ID information such as State ID, and Passport. These are requested at booking and are necessary for the agent to have.

Also important is what forms to they require you to sign, and how do they make payments. A trustworthy agency will NOT take cash or make charges that are paid to the Agency, other than any MINOR fee they may charge above the cost of the trip. The most trustworthy way to make payments is for the Agent to have you sign a Credit/Debit Card Authorization Form and the Agent makes the payment for you. Any charges will state the name of the destination or the booking site the tickets/package where booked with. In other words, the charge will say Disney or something like Expedia. NOT the Agencies/Agent's name! If the agent accepts cash/checks most states require them to be bonded or have a Trust Account.  Ask about the Bond or Trust Account if the agency asks for Cash/Check or charges your card to themselves. Any dispute can be charged against the Bond or Trust Account if there is a problem.

The Credit/Debit Card Authorization Form protects YOU the Client and the Agent/Agency. It will clearly state the total amount of the trip. The dates and details of the trip and list payments made. Keep a copy of each Authorization Form. Note changes and make sure changes are noted or if the amount changes without your knowledge/permission.

 

All Agents that are part of Pixie Dusted Memories Travel use the Credit/Debit Card Authorization Form and will not accept Cash payments. We also allow clients to pay with Disney Gift Cards because there are ways to save money by doing that. We have an Authorization Form for that. We strive to be completely aboveboard and honest. Feel free to ask us questions! Feel free to ask for our CLIA # to verify we are members in good standing.