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Purchase Terms and Conditions

Updated: 4/19/2024 8:10:10 PM

Welcome to SmartFares! Access to, purchase of, and use of any products or services purchased through this website is subject to your acceptance of these Purchase Terms and Conditions as well as the Terms of Use of this website. By accessing, using or obtaining any content, products or services through this website, you (herein,"you" or "customer") agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. Please read the following Purchase Terms and Conditions carefully before completing your purchase through our website.

BOOKING REQUIREMENTS

  • Most airline tickets are non-refundable, non-changeable and non-cancellable. In limited instances, an airline may allow a ticket to be changed for a fee, plus the increased cost of the new ticket.

  • All reservations are subject to availability at the time of booking. At least one adult must accompany children below the age of 18 yrs. Children 12 yrs & above are considered adults for pricing purposes.

  • All tickets are subject to specific rules and regulations imposed by the individual airlines which are subject to change at any time.

  • Reservations are not ticketed or confirmed until the airline has issued a ticket number. A confirming e-mail will be sent to the customers e-mail address specified indicating that a ticket has been issued. If you do not receive this confirming e-mail, then call (858-256-7201) or send an email to the Customer Service ([email protected]) indicating you have NOT received the confirmation e-mail with the airline ticket number.

  • Name changes are not permitted once the reservation has been confirmed.

  • Once a ticket is issued, it may not be reassigned to a different passenger or airline.

  • We require up to 72 hours to process all airline tickets.

  • Meal and seat preferences will be sent to the airline, ut cannot be guaranteed. Please note that your seats, meals, frequent flyer and other special requests are requests only. Any service fees that we charge for making such special requests on your behalf are non-refundable. Each airline has a different policy on seat selection and may amend any seat selection or special request without prior notice. It is recommended you contact the airline directly to confirm these requests prior to your scheduled flight.

  • Seats for all passengers will be selected automatically based on the best seats available and adjacent to the primary passenger, if possible.

  • Baggage and Other Ancillary Airline Fees: The airlines may require you to pay additional fees at the airport for certain services. If you exceed certain limits as dictated by the airline, such as the number of bags or weight allowed, and some airlines do not offer a free baggage allowance. Each airline should be consulted for complete information about its baggage and other ancillary fees. It is recommended you contact the airline directly to confirm these requests prior to your scheduled flight to review any additional fees.

  • As airlines continuously update their fares, fares are subject to change and are not guaranteed until the purchase is confirmed by the airline and a ticket number issued.

  • A valid phone number and email address is required to secure your booking.

  • The current maximum number of tickets per transaction is nine.

  • The name on each ticket must match a valid photo ID shown at the airport.

  • The customer is responsible to have all valid travel documents for overseas flights, such as: passport, visa, inoculation record, etc.

  • In certain non-US/Canada departures or non-US/Canada Credit/Debit Cards, SmartFares may request a Credit Card authorization form along with the copy of credit card and identity proof (a Driver License and/or passport page showing photograph and signature). In case, traveler/credit card holder does not provide the requested documents within 24 hours, SmartFares holds the right to cancel the reservation.

  • SYSTEM ERROR: In case of a system error regarding pricing of air, hotel, car rental and any other booking from SmartFares website, SmartFares withholds the right NOT to sell the booking at the erroneous price. Once a system error has been identified, SmartFares will notify you of the right price. At the same time, SmartFares will NOT require you to purchase the erroneous reservation at the amended price.

TAXES, CHARGES, AND FEES

  • Charges appearing in your credit card could be in the name of the airline, any one of their service providers or one of our consolidators.

  • A processing fee of up to $30.00 USD may be charged for each ticket to cover varied expenses, including procurement, fulfilment, quality control and servicing of the flight ticket. All applicable fees are included in the Total Trip Cost as quoted.

  • All fare adjustments and processing fees are charged by LBF Travel Inc, and may appear on your credit card as a separate charge.

  • All fare adjustments and processing fees are non-refundable.

  • The customer agrees to pay the Total Trip Cost charge as appearing on the final booking page. If applicable, shipping charges for paper tickets will be added if requested by the customer or required by the airline.

  • Charges on your credit card may be itemized for each customer by the airline.

  • Phone Service Fees: On each ticket booked by phone, a non-refundable per ticket charge of to $50.00 USD may be added by LBF Travel Inc.

  • Exceptions to the Service Fees policy:

    • First and Business class Airline Tickets- service fee of up to $150 USD per ticket may be added to all types of passenger tickets
    • High risk/high fraud cities- service fee of up to $100 USD per ticket may be added to all types of passenger tickets
    • Flights originating outside of the US or Canada - service fee of up to $75 USD per ticket may be added to all types of passenger tickets
  • There is no additional representation or warranty made for the service fee charged. It covers only booking creation, site usage, and assistance of our phone agent in searching airfares and travel products, if applicable. Service fees may change any time and the updated fees may not reflect immediately. The actual service fee is reflected in the Total Trip Cost during check out. Customer has the right to decide against making the purchase if the final price is not acceptable. Please review the Total Trip Price carefully.

  • CANCEL AND REFUND

    Cancellation of bookings within the last 24 hours:

    • Some airlines offer free cancellation if the booking is made at least seven days prior to the fight's departure. In this case, we will offer a full refund for cancellations.

    For refundable fares, a processing fee by LBF Travel Customer Service may be charged for all permitted cancellations.

    Most airline service fees and airline tickets are NON-REFUNDABLE. Vacation protection insurance can be refunded within 10 days of purchase in case the travel has not begun, and the customer has called the customer service of airline to cancel. All cancellations should be done via phone only. Refund requests will be accepted only after following conditions have been met:

    • Traveler has applied for cancellation and refund with us and the airline rules allow for the same
    • Traveler should not be a “no show”. Most no-show bookings are not eligible for refund processing from suppliers.
    • Waivers are secured from the airlines by us to process the request for cancellation and refund.

    For flight ticket refunds, it is difficult to provide exact date or time it may take for the refund process. All requests for refunds are processed in a sequence. Once a notification is sent to the customer service agent, an e-mail notification will be sent by us to confirm such request. However, this notification is just an acknowledgement of your request and does not automatically qualify you for a refund. Upon receiving the request, we work with the concerned airlines to arrive at a waived amount based on the rules of the airlines and then notify you the decision of the airlines. Please note that we depend on the airlines to receive refunds. After approval of refund by the airlines, it might take some additional time for the same to reflect in your credit card statement. Generally, a penalty is charged for refunds by all airlines. The entire process, from receipt of your refund request to reflection of the same in your credit card statement, might take 60-90 days. Apart from the refund penalties imposed by the airline, a fee of $50 per ticket for processing this refund will be charged by LBF Travel. These fees will be assessed only if the airline has authorized the refund or a waiver has been received and when such refunds are permitted by rules of the airline. In case the airline does not process your refund, we will refund you the processing fees charged by us.

  • CANCEL AND EXCHANGE

    Most airline tickets are completely non-refundable and non-transferable. In cases where the airline does allow cancellations, a credit may be valid towards ticket purchase in future with travel on flights of the same airline. Fare difference (if any) and the applicable penalty will be added in such cases. The time constraints and expiration date of such credit should be discussed beforehand with the customer service agent. All such bookings that allow for cancellation must be cancelled prior to the scheduled departure time of the flight by calling our customer service representative. We do not guarantee any cancellation. At the time of booking cancellation, a cancellation fee of $50 per ticket is payable to us. This fee is retained by us. The credit available must be used within a certain time period and date or you will lose the credit amount. When making a new booking, you will have to pay the applicable fare difference, airline penalties and Travel Inc exchange fees. All such changes are governed by the rules and regulations of the airlines. No representations or guarantees on fees or changes are provided by LBF Travel. Read our Refunds policy if you’re cancelling a booking or applying for refund. For changing the flight dates or routing, read more about our Change policy.

SmartFares FLEXIBLE TICKETS

  • The traveler must have selected and paid for this customer service at the same time as booking the trip. The flexible ticket service cannot be added after a booking is complete. Flexible ticket is SmartFares's own service and does not necessarily mean that tickets are eligible to be rescheduled with the airlines. All flexible ticket rebookings must therefore be made via our customer service. The service is personal, non-transferable, and non-refundable.

  • To rebook, the traveler must contact SmartFares customer service by telephone. The rebooking must be made at least 24 hours before the original time of departure. When rebooking, the travel must be completed within one year of the original booking.

  • No rebooking is complete until SmartFares has confirmed it via e-mail. SmartFares is not responsible for missed rebookings if they are due to the traveler's failure to contact our customer service.

  • The flexible ticket service allows rebooking of flights, subject to availability. If the change involves an upgrade to more expensive tickets, this fare difference shall be at the traveler's own expense. The rebooking must be with the same airline that would have provided the original transportation.

    • Travelers may not change the destination or departure city.
    • Name changes or name corrections are not permitted.
    • Changes to the cabin or booking class on the same flight are not permitted.
    • The flights must be used in the order they were originally booked.
    • If the new tickets are more expensive for any reason (e.g. availability, airlirice changes, etc.), the traveler must pay the fare difference.
    • SmartFares is not responsible for information about visas if the trip is extended.
    • When rebooking, the travel must be completed within one year from the time of booking.
    • The new trip may not depart within 24 hours from the time of change request.
    • When rebooking, SmartFares takes no responsibility for any supplementary servithat may have been booked directly with the airline (e.g. luggage and seat reservations).
    • The booking is non-refundable after the flexible ticket service has been used.
    • When a change is confirmed, the flexible ticket rebooking service has been used and not be used again.
    • If a passenger fails to appear for any section of the journey, the rebooking optis no longer valid.
  • EXCHANGE FEES

    For itineraries where the airline permits changes, a change/exchange fee is charged by LBF Travel, along with fare difference if any and airline penalties. The total cost of the exchanged ticket can be rightly ascertained by calling our customer center. Our Ticket Exchange fees (not including airline penalty fees and fare difference)- For Domestic Travel where the Departure Date is more than 7 days away – up to $100, Domestic Travel where Departure Date is within 7 Days - $150, International Travel where Departure Date is more than 7 days away – up to $200, International Travel where Departure Date is within 7 days away $300. We make no additional representation for our exchange fees except the assistance of an agent in locating your new desired flights and making attempts to re-book new flights subject to availability and other factors.

PAPER TICKETS AND SHIPPING FEES

  • Service fees apply to both e-tickets and paper tickets.

  • Most air transactions can be fulfilled using e-tickets. However, if an airline does not offer e-ticketing, or if you requested paper tickets, there will be a shipping fee assessed of $25.00 USD per transaction for second business day delivery within the US.

  • Additional shipping fees will be applied for shipping to Canada, Alaska, Hawaii or Puerto Rico. A minimum of $45.00 USD per transaction will be charged for international deliveries.

  • FedEx or a similar service will be used to ship tickets. FedEx cannot ship paper tickets to a PO Box or an APO Box. If your billing address is either a PO Box or APO Box, you will need to provide us with your physical shipping address. To provide us with your physical address, please email us at ([email protected]) or call us at (858-256-7201).

CHARGEBACKS AND CREDIT CARD DISPUTES

  • The customer agrees not to dispute the processing fee, airline ticket charge or fare adjustment if SmartFares and the LBF Travel Inc have abided by the terms and conditions of the airlines and this agreement.

  • If customer is questioning any charge on their credit card, please call (858-256-7201) or send an email to the Customer Service ([email protected]) before disputing the charge with the credit card company.

  • If the customer attempts a chargeback on a non-refundable airline ticket, service fee or a fare adjustment that meets the terms and conditions of the airline and this agreement; the customer agrees to refund the full amount of the chargeback plus a 50% penalty for the inconvenience and accounting fee.

  • In cases where the customer attempts a fraudulent chargeback, the customer will be responsible for legal and collection costs in order to recoup the potential loss imposed by the customer.

TSA PRIVACY POLICY

  • The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) requires you to provide your full name, date of birth, and gender for the purpose of watch list screening, under the authority of 49 U.S.C. section 114, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 1004 and 49 C.F.R. parts 1540 and 1560. You may also provide your Redress Number, if available. Failure to provide your full name, date of birth, and gender may result in denial of transport or denial of authority to enter the boarding area. TSA may share information you provide with law enforcement or intelligence agencies or others under its published system of records notice. For more on TSA policies, or to review the system of records notice and the privacy impact assessment, please see the TSA Web site at www.tsa.gov.

    (found in Section 1560.103 of the Secure Flight Rule)

SECURE FLIGHT FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  • What is Secure Flight and what does it do?
    Secure Flight is a government program that streamlines the security watch-list matching process. It will improve the travel experience for all passengers.

  • What information will be collected by Secure Flight?
    Secure Flight requires all airlines to provide a passenger's name as it appears on the government-issued ID used for travel; date of birth; gender; and redress number (if applicable).

  • Why is Secure Flight collecting this information?
    TSA determined that collecting the additional birth and gender data will greatly reduce the number of passengers misidentified as a match to the watch list.

  • What happens if my airline didn't ask for any additional information?
    Secure Flight will be phased in, with each airline incorporating the necessary changes into their systems over the coming months. As a passenger, there should be no concern.

  • If the name printed on my boarding pass is different than what appears on my government ID, will I still be able to fly?
    You should ensure that the name you provide when you book your travel matches the government ID you will use when traveling. This is the name used by the TSA for security watch-list matching. Your boarding pass is issued after the TSA has reviewed your information, so differences should not impact your travel.

  • How do I know if I am on the No-Fly list?
    If you are issued a boarding pass, you are not on the No-Fly list. Any passenger who believes he/she has been delayed or denied boarding erroneously may seek redress through the Department of Homeland Security.