Kenny Guido
Well-known member
Woman wins 'free' vacation, pays fee, sues over no flight
BY DAVE GOLDINER
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, May 14th 2008, 4:00 AM
Savulich/News Gabriela Carmona thought she had won a free trip, but she and fiance Luis Briones got hit with a $399 fine.
The contest on Spanish-language La Mega radio station sounded too good to be true - and it was.
Gabriela Carmona called 97.9FM last month to answer a simple trivia question and win an "all-expenses paid" trip to Mexico or the Caribbean.
Instead, the Queens woman got socked with a $399 fee - and was told the trip didn't even include a plane ticket.
"I was pretty excited because I never won anything before," said Carmona, 32.
"She was really excited," said Luis Briones, 35, her fiancé.
Now Carmona is suing La Mega - the No. 1 station among Latinos - and Florida-based All Star Vacations for unspecified damages.
Her lawyer says thousands of listeners may have been fleeced in a bait-and-switch scheme that was really just a way to steer listeners to the travel agency.
"The radio station really crossed the line," said Jeffrey Carton, who filed the suit in Manhattan Federal Court.
La Mega counters that the contest was actually a paid advertisement, but vowed to cut ties with All Star Vacations until it resolves the complaint.
"It's a commercial. That's all it is," general manager Frank Flores said. "But that being said, we told them to fix the problem or we're not going to do business with you."
The nightmare for Carmona and Briones started last month when they heard La Mega's popular deejay Vega announce a contest for a free vacation.
He said the first 35 callers who could name Latin jazz star Ruben Blades' native country would win the trip.
Carmona listened as the deejay repeatedly implored listeners to call - and she finally dialed the number because she knew the correct answer was Panama.
She was switched to a travel agency where a woman answered the phone by greeting her, "You are the winner," even though no one had asked Carmona to name the country.
Carmona agreed to take a "free" trip to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, and was promptly told that she would have to pay a $399 "administrative fee" to win.
She reluctantly agreed and provided her credit card information.
Only then was she told that the trip did not include airfare.
When Carmona called back to pull out of the whole deal, she was told the tour company has a strict "no-refund" policy.
"We could live without the 399 bucks," Briones said. "But we put a lot of trust in the radio station, and they took advantage of us."
BY DAVE GOLDINER
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, May 14th 2008, 4:00 AM
The contest on Spanish-language La Mega radio station sounded too good to be true - and it was.
Gabriela Carmona called 97.9FM last month to answer a simple trivia question and win an "all-expenses paid" trip to Mexico or the Caribbean.
Instead, the Queens woman got socked with a $399 fee - and was told the trip didn't even include a plane ticket.
"I was pretty excited because I never won anything before," said Carmona, 32.
"She was really excited," said Luis Briones, 35, her fiancé.
Now Carmona is suing La Mega - the No. 1 station among Latinos - and Florida-based All Star Vacations for unspecified damages.
Her lawyer says thousands of listeners may have been fleeced in a bait-and-switch scheme that was really just a way to steer listeners to the travel agency.
"The radio station really crossed the line," said Jeffrey Carton, who filed the suit in Manhattan Federal Court.
La Mega counters that the contest was actually a paid advertisement, but vowed to cut ties with All Star Vacations until it resolves the complaint.
"It's a commercial. That's all it is," general manager Frank Flores said. "But that being said, we told them to fix the problem or we're not going to do business with you."
The nightmare for Carmona and Briones started last month when they heard La Mega's popular deejay Vega announce a contest for a free vacation.
He said the first 35 callers who could name Latin jazz star Ruben Blades' native country would win the trip.
Carmona listened as the deejay repeatedly implored listeners to call - and she finally dialed the number because she knew the correct answer was Panama.
She was switched to a travel agency where a woman answered the phone by greeting her, "You are the winner," even though no one had asked Carmona to name the country.
Carmona agreed to take a "free" trip to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, and was promptly told that she would have to pay a $399 "administrative fee" to win.
She reluctantly agreed and provided her credit card information.
Only then was she told that the trip did not include airfare.
When Carmona called back to pull out of the whole deal, she was told the tour company has a strict "no-refund" policy.
"We could live without the 399 bucks," Briones said. "But we put a lot of trust in the radio station, and they took advantage of us."