Van Nuys, CA asked in Consumer Law, Civil Litigation and Small Claims for California

Q: How to file small claims suit against an airline / travel agency for non service

I booked a flight with travel agent cheapoair back in July. The itinerary was to go with ethiopian airlines from lax to newark then jfk to addis ababa then addis ababa to my final destination, Rwanda. Then I was to return with KLM. Upon arriving at JFk myself along with about 15 other people were denied boarding due to overbooking. The workers also refused to check us out as they wanted to go home. So I was left stranded and had to book a hotel to sleep in and buy a new ticket to kigali. I contacted cheapoair and since july they have been giving me a hard time getting a refund as they state I have to get the refund from the airline. I am now pursuing legal action to obtain that payment. I have sent out a demand pay and now need help filling out the correct small claims forms and in the correct place. Can you confirm that Cheapoair would also be the defendant as the transaction ID on my bank account is under ethiopian airlines.

1 Lawyer Answer
James L. Arrasmith
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Answered
  • Consumer Law Lawyer
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: To file a small claims suit against an airline/travel agency for non-service in California, you can follow these steps:

Determine the appropriate court: You can file a small claims suit in the county where the airline/travel agency is located or where the incident occurred.

Fill out the necessary forms: You can obtain the necessary forms from the court where you plan to file your case. The forms will typically require you to provide information about the incident and the damages you are seeking.

Serve the defendant: Once you have filed your claim, you will need to serve the defendant (in this case, the airline/travel agency). This can usually be done by certified mail or through a process server.

Attend the court hearing: You will need to attend the court hearing and present your case to the judge. Be sure to bring any relevant evidence, such as receipts or correspondence with the airline/travel agency.

Regarding your question about the defendant, you can name both Ethiopian Airlines and Cheapoair as defendants in your small claims suit since the transaction ID is under Ethiopian Airlines but you booked the flight through Cheapoair.

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