Aug 5, 2008 11:23 pm US/Pacific
Calif. Attorney General Suing Online Travel Agency
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
California's attorney general is going after a nationwide travel company, calling them nothing more than a gigantic pyramid scheme.
Your Travel Biz.com talks a good game, and they've grown into one of the giants of online travel by recruiting new agents from all over the country. They charge $500 to start your own travel site and $50 a month, and agents make money by selling travel packages or agent memberships to friends and family.
A presentation on their website claims to offer bonuses of $50,000 to $1,000,000 in certain circumstances.
Jerry Brown, the attorney general of California, is going after the company, hoping to get it shut down.
"This thing is growing out of control," said spokesman Gareth Lacy. "Companies can't operate an endless chain scheme where the only product you're offering is more membership."
Dianna Crawford says she doesn't know anyone part of Your Travel Biz who feels ripped off.
"The more time you put into it, the more money you'll make," she said.
The Attorney General's office is asking for Your Travel Biz to be shut down, and seeking $25 million to reimburse their members.
"[They've] built up a massive house of cards, and in this case, we think it's about to collapse," Lacy said. "We want to shut it down before people get ripped off."
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