This couple was scammed into paying nearly $30,000 for lunch in Buenos Aires

[Blockchain]

What a nightmare! I can't believe something so crazy like this can happen and even crazier how the couple had to fight Chase. I guess this is a sign how bad the economy is in Argentina if restaurants are willing to do this.

This couple got scammed into paying nearly $30,000 for lunch - The Points Guy

When a Seattle couple got scammed into paying $29,695 for lunch in Buenos Aires, Argentina, we stepped in to help them with their credit card dispute.

thepointsguy.com

 

[Uncle Wong]

I think the overcharging is more common than you think. I spoke to several tourists that got overcharged on their bill. A good idea to always check your bill. On X a popular poster a while back posted about a Mexican restaurant that overcharged him. I can't remember if someone posted it here too. I was also warned never to use a debit card here. I can't imagine losing a dispute on a debit card. Less protections.

 

[Finance Prof]

The place just probably went out of business and kept the money. Probably represented the perfect opportunity for them to do this to many people. I would guess this isn't the only tourists that had this done.

 

[VINO]

Oh no. I have never heard of anything so bad like this. I can't believe they didn't win their dispute and it came to this. I never keep receipts. That doesn't seem like a viable excuse for them not winning their dispute. It's impossible to spend that kind of money on a meal here.

 

[CraigM]

The place just probably went out of business and kept the money. Probably represented the perfect opportunity for them to do this to many people. I would guess this isn't the only tourists that had this done.

Based on Google and TripAdvisor they seem to be in business still...

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g312741-d23125594-Reviews-Juan_Bautista_Parrilla_Gaucha-Buenos_Aires_Capital_Federal_District.html

Oh no. I have never heard of anything so bad like this. I can't believe they didn't win their dispute and it came to this. I never keep receipts. That doesn't seem like a viable excuse for them not winning their dispute. It's impossible to spend that kind of money on a meal here.

Terrible behavior on all sides. That is a very expensive credit card ($800+ in annual fees alone for a single user, $1400 for a family of four) and users should expect a very high level of protection and customer service. Chase will lose a lot more than $30k in reputation and cancelled cards and they absolutely deserve it. I was looking at that card but not anymore.

 

[Uncle Wong]

Based on Google and TripAdvisor they seem to be in business still...

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g312741-d23125594-Reviews-Juan_Bautista_Parrilla_Gaucha-Buenos_Aires_Capital_Federal_District.html

Terrible behavior on all sides. That is a very expensive credit card ($800+ in annual fees alone for a single user, $1400 for a family of four) and users should expect a very high level of protection and customer service. Chase will lose a lot more than $30k in reputation and cancelled cards and they absolutely deserve it. I was looking at that card but not anymore.

Shocking. I am going to cancel my Chase Sapphire Reserve. I don't feel like they would protect me after reading this. It used to be banks protecting us when fraud is done but this doesn't inspire trust and you are right @CraigM it is super expensive.

 

[CraigM]

Shocking. I am going to cancel my Chase Sapphire Reserve. I don't feel like they would protect me after reading this. It used to be banks protecting us when fraud is done but this doesn't inspire trust and you are right @CraigM it is super expensive.

Good for you, between the two of us it's already cost them $2k a year 🙂

 

[Wally]

Good for you, between the two of us it's already cost them $2k a year 🙂

I had something like this happen with my Sapphire Reserve card with Chase. I bought something on Amazon shipped to Argentina. It was used and not new. I disputed it on my card and they denied me. I could have sent back to Amazon but I would have had to pay shipping which was a large price of the cost. I was surprised Chase didn't protect me. I rarely have had to use this coverage and just like the people in the article, they initially reversed the charge and then they put it back. I tried to argue but I found myself spending more time than what it was worth and just ate the charge. Terrible. I cancelled my card after that. There seems to be an emphasize lately on protecting vendors instead of consumers. This story was shocking.

 

[CraigM]

I had something like this happen with my Sapphire Reserve card with Chase. I bought something on Amazon shipped to Argentina. It was used and not new. I disputed it on my card and they denied me. I could have sent back to Amazon but I would have had to pay shipping which was a large price of the cost. I was surprised Chase didn't protect me. I rarely have had to use this coverage and just like the people in the article, they initially reversed the charge and then they put it back. I tried to argue but I found myself spending more time than what it was worth and just ate the charge. Terrible. I cancelled my card after that. There seems to be an emphasize lately on protecting vendors instead of consumers. This story was shocking.

That's terrible Wally but good to know. If Chase is going down that path, it's not a good one. Walmart, Amazon and Costco prioritized the customer and became the biggest retailers in the world with massive competitive advantages. Ebay chose vendors and devolved into an online flea market, customers just don't trust them.

One of the reasons you pay for a card like Sapphire Reserve is to enjoy your travels and not worry about getting ripped off by vendors or car rental companies trying to sell overpriced insurance you don't need. You expect the credit card company to have your back, and shouldn't have to keep physical receipts or check an app every day while on vacation. I guess Chase will have to learn the hard way.

 

[Wally]

That's terrible Wally but good to know. If Chase is going down that path, it's not a good one. Walmart, Amazon and Costco prioritized the customer and became the biggest retailers in the world with massive competitive advantages. Ebay chose vendors and devolved into an online flea market, customers just don't trust them.

One of the reasons you pay for a card like Sapphire Reserve is to enjoy your travels and not worry about getting ripped off by vendors or car rental companies trying to sell overpriced insurance you don't need. You expect the credit card company to have your back, and shouldn't have to keep physical receipts or check an app every day while on vacation. I guess Chase will have to learn the hard way.

Amen Craig. Totally correct about Costco and Amazon. That was what I miss the most about living in the US. Costco! Amazon also has great customer service in the US but when you ship things abroad I discovered not so good as you have to deal with taxes and shipping which they won't always return.

To be fair I have had this card for several years and I enjoyed getting 3X points on things but I have never had a problem where I had to see if they were on my side. I saw that they were not. I don't want to be buying things and worrying about a merchant doing shady things and then potentially having to eat a huge loss. I wouldn't have even believed that story if the blog wasn't reputable. I read it all the time and trust it. Terrible what Chase did.

 

[Betsy Ross]

Based on Google and TripAdvisor they seem to be in business still...

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g312741-d23125594-Reviews-Juan_Bautista_Parrilla_Gaucha-Buenos_Aires_Capital_Federal_District.html

Terrible behavior on all sides. That is a very expensive credit card ($800+ in annual fees alone for a single user, $1400 for a family of four) and users should expect a very high level of protection and customer service. Chase will lose a lot more than $30k in reputation and cancelled cards and they absolutely deserve it. I was looking at that card but not anymore.

This is crazy all around. I can't believe it but this website blog appears to be very reputable. I have this credit card and the fees keep going up each year but there are some benefits that offset some of it like a travel credit. I have not had to dispute anything like this. In BA I prefer to pay with cash for the discount and to avoid things like this.

It is difficult to believe something like this happened and that Chase did not immediately fix this. Scary.

 

[lemonade]

What a nightmare! I can't believe something so crazy like this can happen and even crazier how the couple had to fight Chase. I guess this is a sign how bad the economy is in Argentina if restaurants are willing to do this.

This couple got scammed into paying nearly $30,000 for lunch - The Points Guy

When a Seattle couple got scammed into paying $29,695 for lunch in Buenos Aires, Argentina, we stepped in to help them with their credit card dispute.

thepointsguy.com

This sounds unbelievable. This is a premium credit card. I can't imagine how stressful this was for the elderly couple. To add insult to injury paying the Argentina lawyer $2,500 dollars to fix this only to get no where for them. I would never get this credit card after reading this story.

The article said the couple posted a negative review and no one believed it was true. I would have had the same reaction. Just wow.

 

[CraigM]

This is crazy all around. I can't believe it but this website blog appears to be very reputable. I have this credit card and the fees keep going up each year but there are some benefits that offset some of it like a travel credit. I have not had to dispute anything like this. In BA I prefer to pay with cash for the discount and to avoid things like this.

It is difficult to believe something like this happened and that Chase did not immediately fix this. Scary.

thepointsguy is the first place most Americans search when looking for a new credit card, they are beyond reputable

 

[VINO]

thepointsguy is the first place most Americans search when looking for a new credit card, they are beyond reputable

Totally agree. I follow their blog all the time. I am actually very surprised that they would allow the investigative reporter to post about it and post on their website. Chase has to be one of their biggest banks that they push cards to. Most of the affinity cards are with Chase. Makes me respect them even more for posting about it and helping the couple fix their problem.

Very surprising the entire ordeal.

 

[Flamingo]

That's terrible Wally but good to know. If Chase is going down that path, it's not a good one. Walmart, Amazon and Costco prioritized the customer and became the biggest retailers in the world with massive competitive advantages. Ebay chose vendors and devolved into an online flea market, customers just don't trust them.

One of the reasons you pay for a card like Sapphire Reserve is to enjoy your travels and not worry about getting ripped off by vendors or car rental companies trying to sell overpriced insurance you don't need. You expect the credit card company to have your back, and shouldn't have to keep physical receipts or check an app every day while on vacation. I guess Chase will have to learn the hard way.

I was thinking of getting this card for a sign up bonus but Craig is right who needs to worry about getting scammed and not having the company to back you up! I can't imagine other scenarios that aren't so outlandish. If chase won't protect you in a clear cut case like this what happens in other scenarios? I have never heard of someone keeping a receipt from vacation? Half the time I don't even ask for a paper receipt. Chase didn't even come out with a stronger response when asked by the Points Guy.

 

[Ceviche]

What a nightmare! I can't believe something so crazy like this can happen and even crazier how the couple had to fight Chase. I guess this is a sign how bad the economy is in Argentina if restaurants are willing to do this.

This couple got scammed into paying nearly $30,000 for lunch - The Points Guy

When a Seattle couple got scammed into paying $29,695 for lunch in Buenos Aires, Argentina, we stepped in to help them with their credit card dispute.

thepointsguy.com

Difficult to believe this is true. If it weren't for the website being one of my favorite I probably would think it is fake.

I wonder if this restaurant did this before? You would think in this day and age if it was happening to more people you would hear about it but then again a lot of people that visit Buenos Aires are elderly and might not be online much. Obviously something stood out to the restaurant that they could scam these people.

Then scammed again by the lawyer. I wonder how they found this lawyer. Proof positive you have to be careful in Argentina when dealing with lawyers. I hope more restaurants don't start doing this. I did read a few cases of restaurants charging tourists more than what was usual but isolated for the most part.

 

[Esposas]

But honestly how did they find this lawyer? Jeeze. I wish I could say I was surprised but sounds like the typical day in Argentina with how the lawyer acted.

I never heard of a restaurant trying to charge this much and this seems like common sense that the credit card would know it was fraud. This is too crazy to make up!

 

[Target]

Crazy!