Consumer complaint received 2025-07-27 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement — Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
State: VA

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/year> I was booking tickets on XXXX website, I needed help with booking the seats for flights to XXXX and from XXXX to XXXX ; I already had everything selected except seats so I googled " XXXX Help Desk number ''. What turn up was " reservation desk '' phone number. I called, at no time did they tell me they weren't actually XXXX, but a third/fourth party. I have since found a legitimate number for XXXX help and they don't work with " Air Tickets '' or have any affiliation with " Air Tickets ''. 

Air Tickets did a quick shell game passing me around to different " Managers '' to get me great flights, when all i wanted was seats for the flights I had. It was getting late and I had spent a few hours on the booking and just wanted to finish so I trusted them and gave the information they wanted, and my credit card. The VISA debit was rejected the initial charge so I used my AMEX, the initial charge for ~ {$2800.00} went through but not the entire cost for both flights for XXXX people which was approximately {$11000.00}. The agent said I would receive my tickets within XXXX hours, I didn't. 

XX/XX/XXXX, no tickets showed up ; XXXX on the XXXX I awoke with a bad feeling and froze my credit card. I tried to call Air Tickets but they were no longer answering my calls and have never tried to call me to resolve things. So I called AMEX to begin a Fraud investigation. 

By XX/XX/XXXX I still had no tickets or anything from Air Tickets nor XXXX, so my husband and I decided to book our own flights directly with XXXX, confirmation XXXX {$2500.00} each, total XXXX on VISA ( Air Ticket sent fake XXXX, confirmed nonexistent by XXXX, it wasn't even on XXXX nor XXXX letter head ; this seems like it would prove they're fraudulent practices. ). We are flying in and out of XXXX XXXX XXXX ( not XXXX XXXX XXXX ). What they sent AMEX doesnt even look like a real XXXX NOT XXXX confirmation email. XXXX flights booked through XXXX were {$330.00} each, plus {$150.00} flight protection, totaling {$1400.00} to our XXXX. Both receipts included, dated XXXX.so my husband and I booked our own flights on the Delta website to XXXX, and I went to the XXXX website for tickets from XXXX to XXXX just because I didn't know the airlines that fly those routes. Our itineraries are both dated XX/XX/XXXX and receipts show charged to our VISA credit card ( not VISA debit and not AMEX ). According to XXXX, I booked my own flights. I don't think whoever does the " investigation '' at AMEX actual read anything I sent them or follows any logic that Air tickets delivered nothing for the ~ {$2800.00}. 

Im not sure how they got my flight information, but the flight on XXXX XXXX confirmation XXXX is our fight. I have confirmation email I received directly from XXXX with my name XXXX in it dated XX/XX/XXXX, the same date as our XXXX flight confirmation emails ; compared to what they sent you with XXXX taken out but they left the comma in that comes before XXXX ; why would there be a comma there if no name following it? 

In XXXX, XXXX XXXX sent XXXX pages of XXXX to AMEX, all fabricated. They sent what they said they were going to book but didnt, maybe they thought I would automatically book the flights they found but those werent convenient, so we choose different flights to XXXX XXXX 

No one at AMEX seemed to read all the data I sent, nor confirm with XXXX that they actually do contract out helpdesk tasking to XXXX. Even if they do, and even if XXXX is a legitimate business, whatever constitutes that, they did not delivery products at all, and at best in a timely manner. I am also going to include copies of my XXXX bill showing all flights tickets were charged to a visa with a different end than the one shown in the XXXX original email, therefore, what was delivered from XXXX that costs {$2800.00}. Nothing! 

Since booked, my husband is unable to travel so we had to cancel his flights. If they booked the flights, XXXX XXXX would have had to cancel them for us since XXXX says " only the person who books the flights can cancel them. '' Lastly, once scammed, my son found a ton of data on XXXX XXXX ticket XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Please call and leave a message with what more is needed to show they are a scam. 

I also have XXXX correspondence from AMEX I could not get scanned it but they should be able to provide you copies. 

Thank you, XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation