Action: Do homework before traveling

On June 24, my fiance and I boarded a Lacsa Airlines flight to Costa Rica. Edgar, a permanent U.S. resident and a citizen of Nicaragua, traveled with his Nicaraguan passport and I with my U.S. passport. Upon our arrival in Costa Rica, Edgar was informed that he could not enter the country without a visa, a policy that applies only to Nicaraguans and to no other Central Americans. Within five minutes, he was whisked away by airport security, leaving me alone in a foreign country.

Edgar was forced to use his return ticket to fly into Miami, where he obtained the visa. He was able to fly back to Costa Rica the next day with a newly purchased ticket. Airport officials and Lacsa employees, as well as the Costa Rican immigration department, assured us that Lacsa was obligated to refund the cost of the first ticket. Its employees had allowed him to board a plane without the necessary documentation. Had he been stopped at the ticket counter, as he should have been, we could have delayed the trip, not lost the cost of the ticket ($495.55), and spared ourselves humiliation, fear and inconvenience.

The clerk at Lacsa headquarters in Miami told my fiance to submit his complaint in writing to TACA Group, a consortium of Central American airlines of which Lacsa is a part. Our letter was sent, and we have since left phone messages and sent e-mails. No one will respond to us. I hope you can get through to the airline. I doubt it will ignore your inquiries. Jennifer Avery

Response: We did not hear from the TACA Group, although our second letter, sent certified, was signed for on Nov. 16. The silence no longer seems to matter, however, since you have let us know that you were contacted and assured a refund would be sent.

It's reasonable to expect an airline's personnel to inform passengers of the entry requirements of the countries to which it flies, but as you have discovered, this is not always the case. As you yourself pointed out, had you known this in advance, you and your fiance could have been spared a lot of aggravation. We did a quick Internet search and were easily able to find out that holders of Nicaraguan passports require a tourist visa to enter Costa Rica for a stay of up to 30 days maximum, and that U.S. citizens may enter without one for up to 90 days.

Given the relative ease of accessing such information on the Internet, we suggest that anyone traveling to a foreign country take the few minutes required to do so. As an alternative, you can always contact that nation's embassy or representative in Washington, D.C. Some countries also have consulates in larger cities.

Mail order mishap

I have been ordering from ABC Distributing in North Miami for five years. In November 2000, I placed an order, and when it arrived, the company had sent two of everything. Three times I called the company and asked for shipping labels to return the unordered items. I also e-mailed the company with the same information. The company never sent me the shipping labels. Instead, it sent my account to collections.

I don't feel I should pay for things I did not order. Nor do I feel I should have to pay for the postage to return them. I ordered through my place of employment with my boss' knowledge, and now ABC is saying my boss is responsible for my bill. Donna Vauiso

Response: Josephine Pozo, vice president of office administration for ABC Distributing in North Miami, said that it is not the policy of the company to discuss details of a customer's account with anyone who is not an authorized agent of the account. The company has therefore responded directly to you regarding your concerns.

Naturally we were curious, so we contacted you and learned that you had received a letter stating the company was giving up trying to collect money from you and had written off the balance.

While this resolves the problem of your continuing to receive collection notices, it does not directly address the problem of your having been sent a duplicate order. We suggest you get a copy of your credit report in a couple of months to make sure this has not been reported as a charged-off account. In fact, it's a good idea to periodically check your credit report in any case. Unless you have been turned down for credit as a result of information contained within your credit report, there will be a fee of $8.50 per report. This can be money well-spent if it enables you to detect inaccuracies when they are easier to correct. The three major credit reporting bureaus are: Experian, toll-free 1-888-397-3742; Equifax, toll-free 1-800-685-1111; and TransUnion, toll-free 1-800-916-8800. Note that in some cases, you will be referred to an affiliate consumer reporting agency. Call for instructions.

Action takes a break

Dear readers: The Action column will be on vacation Monday through Friday, returning Dec. 30. Happy holidays!

- If you have a question for Action, or your attempts to resolve a consumer complaint have failed, write: Times Action, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or call your Action number, (727) 893-8171, or, outside of Pinellas, (800) 333-7505, ext. 8171, to leave a recorded request for Action. Names will not be omitted except in unusual circumstances. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

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