Beware of Priceline when using a debit card

My wife and I are going to Chicago in October to visit my sister in law and do some fishing. I had been looking for airfare for the last month or so. A buddy of mine told me to try Priceline, that he had just got a kill deal. I did a "name your price offer" of $300 per ticket as regular price has been about $445 per ticket. Delta accepts my offer and adds $45 in fees, so what still saving $200. Here is the BS part of the deal. I used my debt card to pay for the tickets and Priceline double charged my acct. I didn't notice till today (did deal Friday am) that they had taken $1380 out of my checking acct. I went nuts and call Priceline and I get to talk to "Steve" who does not speak very good English. "Steve" tells me that this is how it works, that they authorize the charge and then debt the charge causing 2 debts and the first one will fall off in 3 to 10 days. WTF!! "Steve" Knows now how to say WTF, BS, and kiss my ass real well. Got to talk to a supervisor about an hour after calling and got the same 3 to 10 days crap. I will never use Priceline again.

 

Priceline

Please cancel it. That is terrible what was done to you. Your trip is not until October so you have plenty of time to find a deal.

NEVER USE YOUR DEBIT CARD!!! They can take all the money they want.
They could clean you out if they wanted to.

It is really strange that lots of people say they get great deals on Priceline
but I tried it once and they charged me more than the hotel was worth.

 

I just remembered something....

Since you are booked on Delta airlines you really can't cancel your air because they will charge you $150. per person to cancel. You would lose $300.
I have no idea if Priceline will also charge you a fee if you were to cancel.

This is one of the main reasons I like to book my flights directly with the airlines. I like the Delta airplanes because they have the individual t.v.s for each passenger to watch the t.v. shows. BUT...if I need to cancel for any
reason I have to lose the $150. cancellation fee.

This is why I prefer Southwest airline.... because they don't have a cancellation fee. I cancelled a flight today and it was really nice not having
to pay a cancellation fee.

Have you gotten a confirmation from Delta that they have received the money and you are paid up? Or.... has priceline sent you a confirmation that Delta has been paid already?
I think you are now stuck having to deal only with Priceline for any problems you may be having since Priceline is in charge of buying the tickets for you.
I am so sorry this happened to you. Your problem has confirmed my belief that it is better to deal directly with the airlines and the hotels.

 

It is never smart to use a debit card for this kind of transaction. There are more protections built into a credit card. Most credit card have a larger credit limit so you don't notice.

What "Steve" said was correct. If they authorized it twice(I am like you and don't know why they would have had to unless it was for the extra $45 in fees Delta was adding) then the extra amount authorized will drop off like he said.

It is like when you go to a restaurant and pay with a card then add a tip usually both charges show up and you get credit for first one in a day or two.

 

Priceline can only charge you once for the ticket, whatever payment method you use, its in their terms and conditions. It would be the same as paying cash or using paypal. You need to go up the chain of command and get this hold released immediately, there is no reason for being double charged, they made the mistake. I have used a debit card a few times for Priceline hotels and was never double charged or were funds held.

I am a big fan of Priceline's "name your own price" product for buying rooms when traveling solo on business. I have probably used PL about 200 times and it allows me to stay in better accommodations for the price of a no-tell motel. I typically save more than 50% when I submit my bid and priceline matches it up with hotel offers in the zone and minimum star rating of my choice. It's probably not the best product for Las Vegas, and I rarely use it when I'm traveling with my family since Priceline only guarantees sleeping accommodations for two.

 

Did they actually double charge you or is there an authorization or hold on the other half which is tying up those funds? I'm thinking it's the latter as it's practically the same as the hold hotels put on available funds when you check it. Yes, it will fall off in a few days, but it's a pain in the ass while you have to wait. I would suggest contacting your bank and asking them about dropping the hold on those funds, though they might tell you the same thing as Priceline did.

As for cancelling the booking as was suggested earlier, Priceline does not allow for cancellations because of the nature of their business model.

 

In another thread I warned about using a "DEBIT CARD" for ANYTHING.......DON'T do it.....

 

IF the transactions are handled properly you will only see one authorization. On the date the live transaction goes thru you may see the auth, a reverse of the author plus the live transaction. That still only debits you one time net. You should never have two debit authentic without one offsetting credit too. Your bank should be able to force delete the duplicate auth.

 

I understand they said one will drop off....alot of places do this with a 1$ charge......but what someone didnt have the funds or credit for a 200$ double charge? now you are paying extra fees!!!

If you can live, id just let it go as it will drop....It will cause alot of headace to get it removed when 3 days later it would of been removed anyway. Revel casino carged me 250$ for a deposit and then charged me the actual room once I checked in saying the deposit will drop in 3 days. yikes.