Kiwi.com has a rating of 1.1 stars from 2,162 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers complaining about Kiwi.com most frequently mention customer service, full refund, and credit card problems. Kiwi.com ranks 236th among Plane Tickets sites.
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You're liars and stole my money again. Burn bastards in hell. Damn it. It's cursed.FFffffffffffffffffff Yyyyyyyyyyyy company.
Date of experience: November 17, 2022
Worse customer service possible, this company doesn't know what's going on. Very rude on the phone. NEVER DO BUSINESS WITH THEM!
Date of experience: November 25, 2019
DO NOT BOOK WITH THEM
They stole my grandma 1200 $ and booked a Flight to a completely different locations.
CRIMINALS
Tip for consumers:
DO NOT BOOK FROM KIWI. They are criminals
Date of experience: April 23, 2021
I like many others should have read the reviews before booking though this company. I booked a set of flights to the countries in Europe allowing American travelers during COVID on October 5th, and 3 days later there were "changes" to the itinerary and was given 48 hrs to choose a new flight, in which the "alternatives cost much more than the originally booking". I'm curious what happens after that 48hrs. Do you forfeit your money along with the flight? I was tempted to wait and see if suddenly the flights were back on and I'd get another notification.
The changes included: cancellations, delays, and rescheduled flights days earlier or later. How would that even work? Instead of a day layover in Ireland which I chose intentionally my option was 34 hrs in DC... which would cause me to miss yet another connecting flight. The alternatives are not true alternatives for one they make you pay extra and then it changes again.
I actually found the same suggested flight in a re-search because I was skeptical and a portion of the original one refunded and booked the cheaper, which ended up getting "changed" too with them again asking for more fees to choose and alternative.
I tried contacting them. Customer service over the phone is non-existent over the phone. You actually get disconnected if you don't have a flight within 24hrs and their chat function? Ha. You get an email auto reply.
I eventually went to my bank because I felt like I'd been played and placed a dispute. As my trip that was scheduled for 2 weeks from now doesn't seem like it's even going to happen because this service is unreliable. Out of the 25 countries and airlines I've traveled through, this agency is the worst. There was no way for me to make accommodations because 4 different flights kept changing layover destinations and days and lengths. It just wasn't worth it, and it's a shame companies like Kayak funnel users to it. In short, it's the cheapest but you don't even get what you paid for.
Heck, some people show up to the airport and the agency never even booked their flight while they pocketed the money.
Date of experience: October 18, 2020
I bought the Kiwi guarantee because of the unknown surrounding covid travel thinking I am covered for most events. Come to find out I am covered for 1 event that rarely happens. That event is an airline cancellation, which is usually covered by the airline in the first place. Kiwi and their Guarantee is an absolute scam.
My flight out of my city of origin was cancelled due to an airport en route closing. I had the option to then rebook or receive a refund. Well I chose to rebook only to find out that I would be charged an extra $400. Okay whatever, typical for an airline to charge a rebooking fee + difference of the tickets. However, they decided to rebook me through an airport/country that wasn't allowing transit. Normally, I would double check the guidelines for the country/airport but seeing how my flight was cancelled when I was at the airport I chose to rebook for a flight later that day. So I assumed they would administer some customer service and check for me before making that a rebooking option. To my dismay, I boarded my flight got off at the next destination only for them to say, "Sorry, go back." I was forced to buy another ticket back to my city of origin, which I had to pay an asinine amount for out-of-pocket. And Since the airline never cancelled the flight I never got a refund on any portion of my round trip ticket.
TLDR: THIS COMPANY AND THEIR "KIWI GUARANTEE" IS AN ABSOLUTE SCAM! DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. During COVID travel just book directly with the airline so that you have an opportunity to recoup your money and save yourself the pain of hassling with this scummy company.
Tip for consumers:
Buy directly with the airline during covid times! If you can’t afford to buy directly with the airline then I would just postpone your travel. Buying direct will end up saving you money and heartache. If anything happens this company WILL NOT hand over your money willingly!
Products used:
None
Date of experience: January 24, 2022
I recently had the misfortune of booking my flights with Kiwi, and what should have been a smooth and enjoyable trip turned into an absolute nightmare. I am utterly disappointed with the way they handled my canceled connecting flight, leaving me stranded and forcing me to pay exorbitant amounts of money for a solution. This experience has shattered my trust in this company, and I strongly advise everyone to stay away from Kiwi!
First and foremost, the cancellation of my connecting flight was completely unexpected. I understand that unforeseen circumstances can arise, but the way Kiwi handled the situation was utterly unacceptable. Instead of taking responsibility for the inconvenience caused, they shamelessly put the burden on me. Their lack of empathy and willingness to assist customers is appalling.
When I contacted their customer service, I was greeted with a dismissive and unhelpful attitude. They insisted that I had only two options: either pay an outrageous fee to change my flight or accept a partial refund. Seriously? I trusted Kiwi with my travel plans, and this is how they repay their customers? It felt like they were trying to squeeze every last penny out of me, without any regard for the distress and inconvenience I was facing.
The absurd charges they demanded to change my flight were nothing short of a rip-off. Kiwi's complete lack of accountability for the disruptions they caused is simply infuriating. They should be the ones bearing the cost, not me!
At this point, all I wanted was a simple refund so I could arrange an alternative solution myself. But, of course, Kiwi was not willing to accommodate even this basic request. Their so-called "partial refund" was a mere fraction of what I had paid, leaving me significantly out of pocket.
Kiwi's lack of transparency, poor customer service, and disregard for their customers' well-being have left me utterly disillusioned. They have proven themselves to be a company that cannot be trusted with one's travel plans. I urge everyone to avoid Kiwi at all costs and opt for more reliable and customer-centric alternatives. Save yourself the headache, frustration, and wasted money by steering clear of this company.
Kiwi, you have lost a customer for life, shame on you for taking advantage of unsuspecting broke students and treating them with such disrespect.
Date of experience: May 25, 2023
August 19th 2023. Booking itinerary though kiwi, Guam to South Korea, South Korea to Hawai'i. Hawai'i to San Francisco, San Francisco to Newark. Half Non US airlines. Kiwi failed to recognize and create awareness of a certain Cabotage law set in place restricting passengers with connecting flights.
I was only made aware of the law when I tried to board my first flight. That a two hour lay over would not satisfy the seven day remain in country requirement. I was told to rebook a flight to leave South Korea with a US carrier. Unable to find a flight that would allow me to connect with my preceding flight itinerary and not risking becoming stranded in South Korea. In order to arrive on time while traveling on military orders I was forced to book a completely new itinerary only hours before departing.
Upon contacting kiwi support immediately following the attention of this law and requesting a refund, I was sent away to "call back" after my first flight had departed. Releasing all responsibility from kiwi to find a solution. Over all cost of itinerary $2000. Allocated refund credit received $0
Given the circumstances, blatant disregard for transparency, insufferable arrogance and mindless neglect to any sort or redemption towards my case.
I will NEVER be utilizing your services again. Any person / service member or otherwise I can bring the attention to will hear about your frail and ineffective attempts to recover anything. My experience will be recounted and anyone I communicate with will be highly discouraged to participate or offer any kind of business with Kiwi following the support and reconciliation I have received.
I hope you're enjoying the freedoms granted to you by the voluntarily serving military members of what ever country you suppurate in.
Don't be surprised when more taxes are taken out of your pocket to pay for the lack of support you've shown towards service members. FYI you're paying for this predicament whether you care to acknowledge it or not. You and you're companies ethics manifest directly from the response you have provided.
Good luck and Goodbye.
Products used:
Ultimately used none of the products purchased and received no refund.
Date of experience: August 20, 2023
I had booked my flight almost a year in advance from flying. 5 months before flying, I found out I was pregnant. I called Kiwi company and they told me I was unable to do anything since it was not a health issue. I told them I had a high risk pregnancy and they did not care. They asked for a Doctor note which, I was able to provide but the others are not able to get a DR note for MY pregnancy. Therefore a whole family trip of 4 had to be canceled and we were unable to get a refund since we all were not able to provide Dr notes for MY pregnancy. I called again 2 months before the flight and they still said sorry nothing we can do. I tried again just one more time a month before the flight and no, nothing. Now I come to find out after not boarding, that we could of rescheduled our flight ONLLLYYY IF WEEE HAD ASKED ABOUT IT! I kept asking if anything could of been done and they kept saying no because everyone needed a Doctor note. The fact that there was something that we could of done, and not just throw our money to waste but all I had to do was ask if it could of been rescheduled and not just be informed when I called just simply sucks. This company sucks. If you have something coming up, ask all questions. Because asking them if anything could be done is not asking them to help you look for options. This is simply sad and devastating. When I called the lady told me "you have to ask and explain what you want because we do not know what your concern is." I told her, "I kept asking what I can do to not let my money go." She said, "you have to tell us exactly what you need for us to help you." I am sad about this situation. Disappointed. Yes happy to finally start a family but the fact that I cannot get anything back... hurts.
Date of experience: February 27, 2020
Avoid them at any cost.
I got stuck in another county and lost my job and my apartment and everything. Almost got banned to enter county again due visa is out of date and a lot problem and Costs to pay and they will not help you rebook in time to have to do it all even if you have all guarantees and their policy is to find new nothing they will find ways to put blame on you or others, all their fault.
They could be put in jail all
Of them. Cause I chatted with 100 of them supporters they change people all time and no one stays with you all the way. No numbers to call and they think they can call you when you in another country with no number, no email contacts no number and no no no risky as hell.
They did not inform when changes of flights or time and you will miss it and all of your connections flights too.
And refund time is 1 year if not more.
And other refunds was not even given due they do everything to put blame on you if you don't do right and they know the laws/rules way better than you cause scammers and will do all in their power to not give you compromises nor refund.
They are a very high risky and very bad bad bad bad bad bad bad bad.
Avoid at any cost.
I'm stupid to give them chanses, now I lost 3.000 euro on just nothing.
Tickets normally are the most expensive there too, there's a cheaper ones a-lot of them other apps/pages.
3 Rd chanse and lost my life cause them, I explained my situations and they give no compromise for my lost of ticket and life lost costs of everything I had.
I Russian roulette would give you less risky than this.
A gambler have bigger safety to win than you to make safe travel.
Date of experience: November 15, 2022
I have never written a negative review about anything in my whole life, but these people infuriated me. I wish I would have read other people's reviews before I booked my flight tickets through kiwi. For my flight home, I had to make a stop at London and wait 8 hours for my connecting flight. After waiting for some time, I realized there was no flight. Even the airport people were confused because my e-ticked was showing a flight for that day but this flight did actually happen the day before. After examining my travel papers, I realized I had different days on my boarding pass and on my e-ticket. After calling kiwi they told me that 3 months ago airline made a change and I didn't respond within 24 hours, so I got the default option which was an impossible ticket. First of all, an impossible connection should not be the default option, second, there was no email afterward informing me about the change, third all the information they send me (except the boarding pass) did not show the change. So, it was impossible for me to know about that problem and recover on time. Long story short, I ended up paying 500 Euros (10 times the initial amount) for an extra ticket for a very short flight, got stranded for two days and sleepless nights going from one airport to another in London, I lost a day of work, and I got sick in the process. Kiwi refused to refund me or take any part of the responsibility. They told me it was my fault because I did not respond to their email on time. Technically and legally I am curtained they are covered by this fact. I also agree that it was partially my fault because I did not read the fine print and I trusted that things like that could not happen with serious agencies. You see I didn't know how bad the company actually is in providing basic customer service. Their tickets are not cheap because of their advanced algorithms but because the cut down on basic customer service and common sense. You cannot send wrong and misleading travel information and afterward just claim that because of a technicality it is all fine. Please, stay away but if for whatever reason you have booked through them be vigilant. Check your emails constantly, don't trust any information they send you. Check double-check and triple-check by calling them and make them confirm everything. You may be lucky, and everything may go well but if it goes wrong you are on your own. Don't expect any help from those people.
I wish I could put a zero star rating. One star is too much
Date of experience: August 10, 2019
I wish I had read other people's reviews about this Scam, as hundreds of people had horrible experiences with Kiwi based on reviews on the Internet, and On Facebook there is a campaign to warn people about staying away from this Scam company. Be cautious as you will be scammed, just take a look at other people experience and on Facebook search for " KIWI travel agency are thieves " group and you will find hundreds of people who got Scammed by Kiwi, anyway as I mentioned in my first review because of their misleading website I bought saver ticket and 48 hours later which was 1 month before the flight, I got noticed that my travel documents take more time to arrive that's why I asked Kiwi to refund me or at least reschedule my flight that they didn't accept it, after that as it was a connecting flight one of the them had changes in departure and as I bought protection plan from Kiwi ( Scam company) I wanted to cancel that flight and ask for refund as I had protection plan already that I bought from this Scam but they ignored my request and after contacting them a few times they said it will be considered as voluntary cancelation and it depends on the airline company that they refund you or not? What the heck? When I bought a ticket from them, I also had a protection plan, which I think was another trick that they use to rob more money from you; otherwise, later, they do nothing for you. Long story short, after many contacts, they refunded me 32 Euros while they ate my 900. The funny thing is, I paid them about 25 dollars just for that protection plan, but you can not do anything with this scam. They are exactly like an experienced thief: after robbing you, they run away, and then they play with the words, and at the end of the day, you feel bad for being scammed by a company that is allowed to rob people legally based on their rules. I have just worked with Canadian and US companies, and I have not faced such a horrible experience. Now, honestly, I am worried for my bank information that I used to buy tickets from this scam, as they might share my bank information with other scammers or... Just be away from this SCAM
Date of experience: August 15, 2023
When I was buying tickets, the first option on their website was the Saver Plan, and on that same page they had a note that this plan does not offer ticket cancellation. However, on the same page, they mentioned that all plans are eligible for cancellation 24 hours before the trip, which is quite misleading, and based on that, I chose the Saver Plan, which was a more reasonable price. However, 48 hours later,( 4 weeks before the flight) due to some problems in my travel documents, I asked them to cancel or reschedule my tickets, but they said I would not receive any refund, and if I reschedule, I have to pay again for new tickets. I think they are just waiting to steal your money by playing with the words. Be away from this horrible service.
Date of experience: July 23, 2023
If I could rate them minus 3 stars, I would.
Connection flight (Marseille-Gatwick) got cancelled. Can happen. We were given the option to reschedule for the following day, which we did online. All good. Then we got a call from Kiwi saying they couldn't put us on that flight (full) so the other option was to go to Shannon (Ireland!) the following evening, sleep there, and then fly to London the morning after. So instead of arriving Sunday evening, the ONLY OTHER OPTION they gave us was to arrive on Tuesday morning, with another connection flight. Unacceptable! I told them that it would take less time to go by train Marseille-Paris-London. They didn't give any other option. I told them we would rebook ourselves and they would have to pay us back. The man on the phone was extremely cheeky and said we didn't accept their solution because it wasn't a direct flight, to which I replied I didn't care how we would get to London, but we needed to be there before Tuesday - he tried to twist my words. So we bought tickets Montpellier-Gatwick for 2 people. The overall cost (new tickets, train to Montpellier, and overnight stay) was 503 EUR for two people, which is reasonable. We submitted our claim to AirLine, which came back negative, saying EasyJet had rejected our claim, due to the reason for the cancelled flight. But our issue is that Kiwi didn't give any other solution apart from arriving to London 36 later... from France!
Now, I can't even get in touch with Kiwi about claiming the money! There is no way for me to contact them (specifically phone, the chatbot is a joke!). Not only did they give the worst possible solution to a cancelled flight, they also give you no possibility to liaise with them. Worst experience ever. Stay away from them - I know we will.
Date of experience: May 30, 2023
For many years, now I have been using kayak.com to book many of my flights. I need to book a flight back to Europe for a family occasion. Flights during the month of August are very expensive and I was foolish in being lured into what seem to be a lower fare. Once I went to check out it directed me to keewee.com. I didn't think before I thought. I should have done my due diligence and read the reviews on them prior to purchasing.
The first red flag was after purchasing the fair to Europe, we had to pick seats. I have experienced that with lower cost carriers where you have to pay for seats so, that wasn't a huge thing. What was the huge thing was that two days later, I was reimbursed for one of the seats for the leg and one of the flights. They said there was no seat. I called them and they said that seat was no longer available despite my purchase. Then, I called the airline directly, and they said I was only waitlisted on the flight and it wasn't guaranteed. Given the fact that I had less than a week to book a viable ticket, this was not acceptable and causing on due stress. I calledkeewee.com telling them that I needed to be refunded, because nothing was set and I was put in a precarious position. They refused. I told them that they could comply and do what they needed to and also to please have the supervisor get back to me which they never did. I also informed them that I would be dealing with my bank directly and would seek legal counsel if need be. These companies are unscrupulous and they don't really care whose money they steal. These companies are unscrupulous and they don't really care who's money they steal. I ended up booking elsewhere for the sanity of having a flight. I think my perseverance with my bank, as well as having them go after Keewee ended up in my favor. But never again!
Date of experience: August 9, 2023
I faced a very bad experience yesterday with KIWI.COM.
My booking number with KIWI was *******.
Momondo recommended the Kiwi.com flight which had transits at Kiev, Ukraine.
No Visa requirements were mentioned in the tickets at the time I booked the tickets.
I along with my friend was refused to board the flight at Copenhagen airport on December 19,2018 by Ukranian International Airlines. We were told visa is required to board the flight even though the transit time for catching our flight to our destination Dubai was only 4 hours.
We learned through our friend in Ukraine that 2 weeks before (after we booked the tickets), there was a policy change by Ukraine due to war situation which KIWI.com didn't inform us in whatsoever manner. We called KIWI.com at 3 am in the morning at Copenhagen airport, where they told they told they can't help in any manner and they won't take any responsibility. I told them the policy change happened after we booked and KIWI.com should have at least informed the customer regarding this. They replied we can contact your embassy (at 2 am in the morning! WTF). So, future travellers, please keep in mind that all the stuff like KIWI.com' guarantee and stuff like that are just useless and it won't come to your help if you book tickets with KIWI.com
I was then directed to opt for KIWI refund in the form of credits instead of the cash as it cash form refund will take 30 days and I won't be able to reschedule the flight using that. I was also told KIWI credits will get credited within 1 hour and they will help me reschedule the flight from the Copenhagen airport then and there. Then only I was realized that I was cheated again, and I didn't get the KIWI credits also till now. So, I lost almost 1200 USD (10,000 SEK) for the two tickets.
It is a pity that a reputed website like MOMONTO recommends and lists such untrusty and fake websites like KIWI.com on their website.
I am writing this only to help future travellers to never trust KIWI.COM and book flights with them even if it is way cheaper than other airlines as you will lose all your hard-earned money.
*******553
Date of experience: December 20, 2018
Booked a flight from santorini to Amsterdam, with a stop in Rome. Not even 24h later the flight from Rome to Amsterdam got put up 3h in advance making me not able to make the connection. The only option Kiwi.com gave were paying extra to get onto other flights the same day. I didnt mind staying an extra day in Rome but i dont want to pay extra for tickets that have allready been paid for. I contacted the customer service trough an ticket as they request you to do since you cant call up until 7 days before your flight. A month later still NO RESPONSE. I was dumb enough to buy the customer service package, which is an absolute scam, before investigating how to find a way around them. For people who are looking for the same thing read further. You have an email with the confirmation of your booking numbers. Go to the airline website and fill in the stuff you need to fill in, in order to look at your flight (which in my case i couldnt make). A LOT OF AIRLINES GIVE YOU FREE RESCHEDUELING AFTER THEY CHANGE THE FLIGHT SCHEDUELE. So i did just as i said and i was able to change the flights myself FREE OF CHARGE as it should be.
I can't imagine having a refund with these guys since they dont respond at all.
I cant help with refunds nor am I customer service. But I might help you with this way around. If it is too difficult for you feel free to contact me trough email.
Pepijn. De. Boer. Pdb at gmail. Com (I will be helping in my spare time, im not getting paid or involved in this company whatsoever).
Tip for consumers:
Dont cancel your flights cause they dont pay refunds! Try to work your way around if possible!
Products used:
tickets
Date of experience: July 25, 2021
Never purchased any tickets from #kiwi.com! Which is associated with #bookingcom and #Expedia.
I bought a ticket for August 11th from Toronto to Vancouver. I had very important exam in Vancouver. In my ticket the flight time was 6:20 pm but when I got the pearson Airport no one was there. I found the flight time was 10:30 pm. I called #Kiwi.com, not only they were not sorry because of providing wrong information but also after 10 minutes which hold me on the line to check the condition, lied to me that was Airport fault which had changed the flight time, while when I got to the Airport for the second time, they told me that the flight y9 122 #lynxair was always 10:30 and nothing was changed!
They waste my precious time before exam, they made lots of stress for me and lied to me!
I reached Vancouver at 1am instead of 9pm and I couldn't sleep well.
Again on the way back my ticket for flight Y9 121 #Lynxair was 8am in my ticket but the correct time was 2pm!
They were not sorry ar all, they talked to me in a bad way and lied to me.
When I asked the #Lynxair crew at the airport they told me #kiwicom is always like this.
The operator which talk to me introduced himself as Francis.
Tip for consumers:
Never use
Products used:
Flight tickets
Date of experience: August 29, 2022
I booked a flight through Kiwi that was cancelled because of COVID. Kiwi is unable to rebook, and the airline has no record of the reservation.
Date of experience: February 8, 2022
I will never use Kiwi ever again; I gave them an honest try but they have only disappointed me.
I booked a flight through them months in advance from Cleveland to Denver. One of the main reasons I chose them was because it was a nonstop flight and I hate layovers. However, my flight was changed and suddenly I had 9 hrs worth of layovers. Now, I understand that the airline is the one that changes flights and kiwi can't control that; however, I wasn't getting what I bought anymore. I specifically wanted a nonstop flight. Moreover, since I wasn't getting the agreed upon flight I wanted to cancel and find a different flight, but Kiwi would only refund $11 of the total cost. I understand it wasn't their fault but it is their responsibility and if I'm not getting what I bought then I should at least be able to get a refund.
That would bad enough but the customer service is atrocious. I've never wanted a company to go bankrupt before, but Kiwi sure is close. Since I couldn't get a refund or fix my flight I had to go with the terrible one they gave me. The day before my flight their site says they are processing my check in and my tickets will be ready before the end of the day. Periodically I check, and the same message. I go to sleep confident that at least in the morning they'll be ready. Nope. They weren't. I had to call and wait on hold to finally get them. It was an unnecessary hassle with poor customer support. Had I been able to book through an airline directly it would've been simple and easy to check in.
I can't stress enough that no one should ever use this company. They don't care about their customers, they don't care about helping, and to get the most basic of things you need to go out of your way.
I only hope this review deters even one person from using this terrible company.
Tip for consumers:
Don’t use it.
Date of experience: June 9, 2021
I booked a flight with KIWI. Two weeks later I get a message that the flight had changed and I need to take action. I go online, ticket exchange is available if I travel there 24h later and return 12h later. I begrudgingly accepted this exchange and had to rebook hotels and change my whole itinerary, luckily the new flight still worked with my other flights.
Then two more weeks pass and guess what? I get another message, now my ticket is canceled and there is no alternative flights Kiwi can offer. You would think a refund is automatic at this point. But you would be wrong. You can apply for refund and the message says:
Refund amount: as much as possible, but refunds depend on the carrier's policies.
Estimated refund time: approximately 3 months, depends on the carrier(s)
Now you are furious and you think I'll just talk to the customer service, they will surely understand how ridiculous the situation is and correct it by issuing a full refund immediately. Well you are out of luck there because you can not call customer service unless your (canceled) flight is 14days or less away. Ok but you say there must be a way to contact the company. There is one other way, it's an online message desk where Kiwi replies as soon as they can. It's been two days and they haven't replied to a single message I sent.
So to review. Kiwi sold me a ticket, then they canceled my flight, they offered no alternative flights, I am not getting any service from them any more, and it is their choice not to provide the service I paid for. What happens with the money I paid to Kiwi? They think they are entitled to keep it?
Class action lawsuit anyone?
Date of experience: June 16, 2022
Do not use kiwi.com
They will cancel your flight and not refund you!
Just horrible customer service
Date of experience: September 22, 2021
I would not recommend this company to anyone. I had booked a return trip with four separate legs, and two of the four flights were canceled by the carrier. The carrier sent a text message informing me of these cancellations, but I received no email or correspondence from Kiwi. I phoned Kiwi to verify the cancellations, only to learn that they were aware of them but had failed to inform me, and that they would not issue any immediate refund due to the type of ticket purchased, despite the precariousness of the ongoing COVID-19 situation. This is also despite the fact that their force majeure policy states that refunds depend on the policy of the airline used, and Ryanair's website states that a full refund for the cancelled leg of the journey is available if requested instead of a rebooking. It seems I am meant to wait an unspecified period of time while their customer service team determines whether they can place me on another flight (that I can't now make use of in any case) and hope they send me an email about it, despite the fact they didn't bother to do so after being made aware of the original cancellation. The customer service agent, though polite and professional, gave no indication of a possible timeline in which to expect updates about these changes and insisted that they were intent on finding the "best solution" to my problem, despite it being patently obvious this is not the case, as I informed them the best solution was to refund me for the cancelled flights. I completely understand not being able to refund me for the two flights that have not been cancelled, but given that they have almost certainly received a refund on their end from the carrier for the two flight cancellations in question, or could request one, as per Ryanair policy, there is no apparent obstacle to their cancelling the entire booking and issuing the partial refund, especially given the current circumstances.
Date of experience: March 13, 2020
I rarely review booking agencies unless, like most people I assume, I'm really impressed by or very upset with their service. After reading the reviews on Kiwi.com, they were so overwhelmingly bad that I promised myself to write one if my trip went "okayish" even. I was sooo nervous but I picked them out of desperation since they seemed to be the only ones at the time I booked to offer the connections I needed and this at a significantly cheaper price when I had to leave ASAP.
Bottom line: My trip over 3 continents went very very well and I'm back home safe. Super stressful booking experience because of the bad reviews but made it through.
My takeaways:
1. Book with them if you do not expect to make any changes
2. Make sure you have your PNRs for every single leg as early as 24hrs prior to the flight
3. If PNR not displayed on your page, call them (try a few of their numbers and validate your booking through the keypad)
4. Do the online check-in as early as possible
My surprises:
I know all those pissed at them have a legitimate reason to be, but their platform is very impressive. A wealth of information and beautifully laid out… I don't know if these are the product of rebranding but it's probably the most comprehensive environment I have seen among the last 5 or 6 sites I have used.
Very good customer service (I called the UK) 3 out of the 4 times I called, and always spoke with someone in a matter of 3 min (precious when you pay full cell coms cost for international calls). They followed up by email when they realized they had given me the wrong piece of information over the phone.
Good luck to everyone and sorry for those who had a bad experience.
Tip for consumers:
My takeaways:
1. Book with them if you do not expect to make any changes
2. Make sure you have your PNRs for every single leg as early as 24hrs prior to the flight
3. If PNR not displayed on your page, call them (try a few of their numbers and validate your booking through the keypad)
4. Do the online check-in as early as possible
Date of experience: August 10, 2022
I had 3 flights under one booking with KIWI.com for May 2020. Obviously I wasn't going to be travelling anywhere anytime soon. About 4 weeks ago, I get an email from KIWI.com stating that one of my flights under my booking had been cancelled and I need to take immediate action as to what I was to do. The options were INSTANT REFUND, which they advertise to be the fastest way to get your money back and the funds would be transferred to KIWI.COM credits, the other option was to PAY AN ADDITIONAL FEE in order for their customer service agents to reach out to the airlines and ask for a possible refund. I thought that was such a joke, cause isn't that like their job? Why do customers have to pay extra for these people to do their jobs? So I thought that was stupid, so I opted to get the instant refund option. The refund option gave me $54, for the price of the flight (that was cancelled) which I thought made sense when I looked at the final total that I paid ($260), as it was the shortest flight out of the other two booked on the same reservation. So a few weeks pass, and I'm now getting worried because the dates are coming up. So I decided to reach out to KIWI.com to advise that I still needed to figure out what to do about the two remaining flights under my booking. It was then when they told me that I had already cancelled the entire booking and had agreed to a "$54" refund from my $260 original booking. I am beyond upset as I have communicated with them multiple times about this and how all they send me are these automatic responses. I keep asking them for a summary of my refund but THEY WILL NOT SEND It! Just goes to show what a scam this company is! I doubt I'll ever get my money back or a credit of some sort, but this company needs to pay for all the scams they have committed. After reviewing these reviews on here, I know I'm not the first to be scammed and definitely not the last! Shame on you KIWI.com!
Date of experience: May 7, 2020
IF YOU SEE THIS REVIEW, TRUST ME, SPEND THE EXTRA FEW DOLLARS AND BOOK ANYWHERE ELSE BUT THROUGH KIWI.COM
ANYWHERE ELSE!
Tip for consumers:
PLEASE SAVE YOURSELF AND NEVER USE KIWI.COM
Products used:
THEY GAVE ME NOTHING AND ONLY 10% OF MY MONEY BACK
Date of experience: April 18, 2021
On a two-way trip from New York to Berlin via Amsterdam, Kiwi.com managed to get me stranded twice on Amsterdam airport:
On the first flight they "forgot" to pay KLM for the flight ticket Kiwi.com should have purchased for me resulting in me having to buy another ticket for that flight 1 hour before departure (you will know how costly that was) and I'm still waiting for my refund.
On the way back, the first flight was delayed (Kiwi.com probably hasn't any fault in this) resulting in me missing the follow-on flight. However, they were not willing/ able/ capable? To book my on the only other flight to New York that day (despite the fact that I had informed Kiwi.com 4 hours prior to departure of that other flight about my delay). Now being stranded in Amsterdam without my luggage, Kiwi.com instead offered me a refund of my flight to New York (which was ca. 20% of the price of a new flight at that time) or a new flight the next day with a 1-night stay in Amsterdam ("All paid for by Kiwi.com).
Having arrived at the "airport" hotel, I realized it was 15 minutes taxi drive from the airport (of course I had to pay for the taxi) as well as a 40 minutes drive to Amsterdam city center with no other restaurants or activities close by. Then, Kiwi.com had promised to pay for breakfast, dinner and the hotel room - none of this was the case! I had to pay for all myself (reimbursement is filed but as they have so far not reimbursed me for my first flight 4 weeks ago, I am certain I will either not get any reimbursement or it will take weeks).
Last but not least: The original ticket price was just 5% cheaper than if I would have booked it directly with the airlines. I am 100% certain, I will never use Kiwi.com again and cannot recommend it to anyone - not even to save costs as in the end, you will pay more! And you will waste a lot of your precious lifetime waiting on airports and speaking to (10!) customer service agents that are all very friendly, but seem to have no flexibility or rights to make decisions. Also you have to call them as they "cannot" (or don't want to?) call you back. Of course it's not a toll-free number so you will also have additional costs here.
All in all: Using Kiwi.com saved me 5% vs. the alternatives on the ticket price, but so far I have paid at least 15% more due to the additional costs that Kiwi.com promised they would be paying, but didn't. For me this company sounds like scam and everyone who ever thinks of using it, think twice!
Date of experience: January 4, 2020
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