Mid-Valley Scam Alert: Be cautious with travel plans | Local

If you’re thinking about traveling this summer — whether to an exotic island, Disneyland or to visit friends and family — you’ll need to look out for travel scams. Planning plays a big role in any successful trip, but shady characters are lurking in the shadows waiting to hijack your vacation.

In this edition of the Scam Alert, we’re taking a look at travel scams and how you can avoid wasting your money on a bogus trip.

Travel scams come in a variety of mediums: social media, emails, phone calls, texts and more. So be on the lookout for fraudulent deals and phony phone calls this summer.

Today we’re going to look at a few different types of travel scams that you may encounter, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Congratulations! You just won a free island vacation! Or did you? You’ve probably seen advertisements or received messages about a “free” vacation. But is it actually free? Probably not. If you respond to these offers, you’ll probably find yourself paying some sort of taxes and fees. Suddenly your “free” vacation isn’t so free anymore. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

If you read the last edition of the Scam Alert, you’ll recall that robocalls are prerecorded messages that often ask you to press a number to speak to an operator. Well, travel scams may be at the root of some robocalls.

If you receive a prerecorded message describing some fantastic vacation deal, there’s a good chance you’re being scammed. Most legitimate travel companies will not cold call you without your permission or prior correspondence.

If you’re planning on heading overseas this summer, you’ll need to ensure your international travel documents are in order. This may include a passport or travel visa. Some fraudulent sites will charge you high fees for these documents, including service fees that are actually free on official government sites.

Whether you’re planning on staying in a hotel, at a resort or booking some other type of vacation rental, you should proceed with caution when choosing a place to stay during your summer travels. Some schemers will hijack a legitimate rental listing and advertise it as their own. This means you’ll show up to your place to stay only to find out you have no place to stay because someone already booked the room with the real rental company.

Fortunately, there are a few tips from the FBI and FTC that will help you avoid a disastrous vacation this summer:

• Research a company before booking. Look for reviews and ratings to see what other customers have. Make sure to check multiple sites for reviews since con artists will post fake online reviews.
• Know the cancellation policy and get a copy of it. Make sure you’re aware of a company’s refund policy for car rentals, flight reservations, hotel booking and more. Always get it in writing.
• Use a credit card when booking travel plans. This is generally the best protection when it comes to getting a refund.

There are also some red flags you can look out for to make sure your travel plans go smoothly:

• Vague information. If an organizer can’t give you specific deals about an offer, it’s likely a scam.
• The only way to pay is by gift card, wire transfer, cryptocurrency, cash app or cashier’s check. This is how bad actors get you to pay and ensure it’s nearly impossible for you to get your money back.
• Quick Timeline. If someone is pressuring you to make a decision on a vacation right away, don’t do it.

I hope you all are gearing up for a fun, safe and exciting summer. Hopefully with these tips, your travel plans won’t become travel scams.