So, someone has a flight they can no longer use and you want to buy it from them? Great – you will buy a cheaper flight, the other person will get some of their money back and there will be fewer empty seats on planes!

There are a few things you should watch out for when you buy a flight from a person. Flights are expensive and this is an ideal place for fraudsters to try to swindle you. Someone might even be selling a flight that does not exist!

The main question is – can they actually sell you the flight? Airlines allow name changes – this is how a flight can be transferred from one person to another. Therefore, the first thing to check should be if the flight is with an airline that allows name changes. We have a whole page dedicated to airline name change fees and rules – if the airline is not in our list, it probably does not allow name changes. At least not officially.

The second problem to think about is when will you send this person the money – before they have changed the name, after they have changed the name, or after the flight? Ideally, you want to send them the money after the flight. However, they will want the money before they change the name. You do not know if you can trust them, and they do not know if they can trust you! Sending large amounts of money to someone, you do not know is a huge risk!

Another problem that not many people think about is the fact that the seller will still have access to the booking after they have changed the flight in your name. The flight was probably purchased through their online airline account and they have access to the account and to the flight. There is nothing stopping them from changing the name of the flight again and selling it to someone else. All they have to do is pay the name change fee again. And unless you are checking the booking regularly, you won’t know until you turn up at the airport!

With SpareFare all buyers are protected – we hold the money with us until the flight takes off. This stops the seller from changing the name again and selling your flight to someone else!