American, Delta Sue Operators Of Scammy Travel Clubs

This is the sort of misleading letter being sent out — under numerous company names — promising travel vouchers, but which is really just bait to get people to pay to join a travel club.

We’ve told you before about travel club scammers who send out notices claiming that you’ve won free trips from Travelocity or travel vouchers from airlines that sound like they exist (but don’t). The airlines have always responded to these stories by saying they would have their lawyers look into these types of scams, but at least two major carriers are actually doing something about it.

Travel writer and consumer advocate Christopher Elliott writes in the Washington Post that both American Airlines and Delta have recently sued operators of travel clubs like the ones mentioned in our previous stories, alleging that these companies tricked consumers into thinking the airlines were legitimately involved in these schemes that promise free travel but try to snare victims into paying thousands of dollars to join travel clubs that are supposed to provide discounts and travel vouchers but rarely, if ever, offer anything useful.

(NOTE: We don’t know if the defendants in either of these lawsuits were involved in either the fake Travelocity or “United Airways” scams we wrote about. These “clubs” often operate under many bogus names but generally use the same tactics.)

American recently sued a network of travel clubs, alleging that they used the airline’s intellectual property on the scammy letters sent to consumers. The airline believes the clubs were intentionally trying to confuse consumers into believing that the airline had given its blessing to the promotion.

“These promotions are a naked attempt to deceptively lure people into sale presentations for useless travel-club memberships by playing off of American’s famous and valuable trademarks,” reads the complaint filed in a U.S. District Court in Texas.

Meanwhile, Atlanta-based Delta has filed a lawsuit in Georgia against a similar travel club that the airline accuses of operating a “well-organized ring of intellectual property pirates,” who allegedly used Delta’s trademarks to deceive consumers.

Delta claims the clubs use the carrier’s logo and name “to further their enterprise of selling travel club memberships pursuant to which members are promised (but do not receive) steep discounts in future travel expenses and other gifts and awards.”

One defendant in the Delta suit tells Elliott that the airline is overreacting to what he claims was not a deliberate misrepresentation.

“My companies and I had a very limited role in one promotion involving use of the Delta mark,” he explains. “We received a notice from Delta that contended that we were using its trademark without authorization, which was news to me, and we immediately informed our printer of the problem and told them that we did not want to use any trademarks that were not authorized to use.”

Sure. Blame the printer.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist