Iberia told me to file a credit card chargeback. Now I don't have a ticket!

When Joel Revill's ticket purchase on Iberia doesn't go through, a representative advises him to dispute the purchase on his credit card. But now he doesn't have a valid ticket. What should he do?

I purchased a ticket from Boston to Madrid on Iberia Airlines through its website but didn't receive confirmation. When I called Iberia, an agent told me he couldn't see the purchase and advised me to dispute the charge with my credit card company, which I did a week later.

On the same day, I received an email from Iberia with a confirmation. I called my bank that day and withdrew the dispute. A bank representative told me to ignore any written communication and that it would automatically close the dispute. I followed this advice and assumed that my ticket would be valid.

It wasn't.

When I tried to check in for my flight, the system showed my ticket as "suspended." An Iberia representative told me to dispute the charge again and buy a new ticket, which I followed.

Iberia did receive the $776 from my bank (Capital One), but it nonetheless suspended my ticket. I want to get a refund. Can you help me?

Joel Revill, Providence, R.I.

You should have had a ticket on your flight from Boston to Madrid. The problem is obvious: An Iberia representative told you to dispute the charge—and later "undisputed" it—without making the necessary notations on Iberia's side. As a result, you ended up with a voided ticket.

It would help if you didn't dispute this charge in the first place. True, credit card chargebacks under the Fair Credit Billing Act cover products and services purchased but not received. But you hadn't given Iberia time to resolve this on its side. Iberia eventually processed your transaction, which led to this mess. My advice: File a credit card dispute after a few days -- not a few hours. (I have more on filing a credit card dispute in my free guide to credit card disputes on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org.)

If someone says you should file a dispute, and you decide to take their advice, then try to get them to put it in writing -- or, at least, to make a notation in their system. It looks like Iberia had no clue what you were doing because it hadn't made any notation in your flight record.

Also, simply refusing to answer the questions is insufficient to close your dispute. Yes, it will ultimately close the case and resolve it in the merchant's favor, but you need more help with a problem like this. I would have explained the situation thoroughly and asked for something in writing that confirmed your dispute had been withdrawn.

I list the Iberia customer service managers' names, numbers, and email addresses on my consumer advocacy site. A brief, polite appeal to one of them might have helped.

Was there a better way? Maybe. A qualified travel advisor might have ensured you had an actual ticket to Iberia. Sure, you would pay a little extra for the ticket, but the travel agent would ensure that your flight goes smoothly. (Here's my guide to finding a travel advisor.)

I contacted Iberia on your behalf. As you requested, the airline issued a refund for your original ticket.

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. You can email him at [email protected] or contact him on his site.