Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 my girlfriend and i were supposed to fly home from philly at about 2:30 in the afternoon on sunday, but they cancelled our flight (citing "mechanical issues", of course). they said they couldn't get us on another flight until monday morning, and gave us a hotel voucher for the night (but no money/comps for food/anything else). the hotel didn't have a laundry service, and we hadn't brought extra clothes, so my girlfriend hand washed some of our clothes in our hotel bathroom (using bath gel, water, and the hair dryer). as an aside, my gf has heart problems (had surgery a year ago), and had a doctor's appointment on monday to get a heart monitor put on for a while. so, we wake up monday morning (each of us with a couple bed bug bites, so avoid the sheraton suites near the philly airport) and catch our new flight, which has a short layover in chicago. the plane had a broken bathroom, and was delayed at the gate/runway for about an hour. awesome. when we land in chicago i check my phone, and had a voicemail that our connecting flight has been cancelled and that they re-booked us on a flight at 6pm the NEXT DAY (tuesday). so we get them on the phone and they end up being able to get us on a flight tuesday morning at 8:30. we get a hotel voucher again, but this time we make them give us two rooms (one for each of us), just to cost them some more money for fucking us over for two days. again, no money for food/travel/anything. now, you might not think that not getting money for food/travel is a big deal, but keep in mind that the hotels they put us in are right by the airport, where there's NOTHING else around, so if you want food you either need to get delivery or eat using the hotel's overpriced restaurant or roomservice (23 bucks for fish and chips? seriously?). and if you don't want to just hang out at the hotel you need to take a taxi somewhere, which can be quite expensive of course. our phones ring at about 4:30 in the morning on tuesday, with an automated message saying our flight has AGAIN been cancelled. ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME???!! my girlfriend calls in trying to get something re-scheduled. the first girl that she talks to says there's nothing until WEDNESDAY NIGHT, and starts getting lippy when my gf is asking her to check other airports. now, we weren't being picky this whole time, and have been asking them to get us into pretty much any airport in southern california (we were supposed to fly into orange county, but were open to L.A. or ontario or burbank). eventually my gf hangs up and calls back to talk to someone else. this new person says she can get us into the burbank airport (about 90 minutes from where we live), but the flight leaves in an hour and a half. ok great, we take it and rush the fuck out of the hotel (no time to shower or anything) and head to the airport. we BARELY make it on the plane (literally the last 2 people to get on, and they shut the doors about 60 seconds after we got on), and are headed to dallas for a short layover before flying to burbank. we land in dallas, nervously check our phones and, surprisingly, there's no message saying our flight was cancelled. phew. so we made it to the burbank airport at around noon, and then had to wait for about 2 hours for a friend to pick us up (a one-way rental car would have been $150 bucks, which is insane). throughout all of this, we hardly even get an apology from the american airlines people. no offer for a discounted future flight, or a free upgrade to business or first class, nothing. not a god damn thing. and if we hadn't been on their ass about looking for other flights we wouldn't have gotten home until late WEDNESDAY night (more than 3 days late). i can, however, assure you that there are some scathing letters on the way to their management, although i regret not farting in the envelope or something. moral of the story: NEVER EVER fly with american airlines, and never stay at the sheraton suites by the philly airport. cliff notes: american airlines anally violated me for 48 hours, and didn't even give me a reach around. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 god dammit, typo in the thread title. if a mod reads this please fix it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 That's fucking disgraceful, over here you can take your story to tv programs or newspapers and get them fucked over royally. British Gas got fined 2.5 billion pounds for bad customer service so they'd be screwed lol I'd demand a whole lot of compensation for potentially putting your gf's life in danger by keep screwing you over with flights and making her miss a vital doctors appointment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 That's fucking disgraceful, over here you can take your story to tv programs or newspapers and get them fucked over royally. British Gas got fined 2.5 billion pounds for bad customer service so they'd be screwed lol I'd demand a whole lot of compensation for potentially putting your gf's life in danger by keep screwing you over with flights and making her miss a vital doctors appointment yeah i'm very curious to see how they respond, and we won't hesitate to try to take it to a news outlet if it's not to our satisfaction. i obviously had to miss work for 2 days as well, so there's also 2 days of lost wages to account for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 yeah i'm very curious to see how they respond, and we won't hesitate to try to take it to a news outlet if it's not to our satisfaction. i obviously had to miss work for 2 days as well, so there's also 2 days of lost wages to account for. One screwed up flight is forgivable, but that is a joke and to phone you at 4.30am saying the next one is cancelled is horrendous. I don't know how the law is in the US but over here all people and companies have to provide a duty of care by law so they would have to provide money or vouchers for meals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 Well fuck me running. I got a honeymoon coming up in three months, and after reading this I double checked to see who my tickets were booked through, and sure enough it's AA. I hope I don't have an experience like you, mainly because we have a ship to catch in Miami, can't be too late. They've already re-scheduled the flight once. Still, that royally sucks man. I've had some shitty experiences flying over the years, but nothing like you just described. Good to get the word out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 Well fuck me running. I got a honeymoon coming up in three months, and after reading this I double checked to see who my tickets were booked through, and sure enough it's AA. I hope I don't have an experience like you, mainly because we have a ship to catch in Miami, can't be too late. They've already re-scheduled the flight once. Still, that royally sucks man. I've had some shitty experiences flying over the years, but nothing like you just described. Good to get the word out there. change airlines now if possible, man! since it's 3 months away you might be able to get something for the same price, and not have to pay a fee for cancelling your tickets with AA. fuck those bastards, stick with united (which we used for our flight TO philly) or delta, i've never had a problem with them. or even jet blue or southwest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 One screwed up flight is forgivable, but that is a joke and to phone you at 4.30am saying the next one is cancelled is horrendous. I don't know how the law is in the US but over here all people and companies have to provide a duty of care by law so they would have to provide money or vouchers for meals yeah, one flight i can understand, since shit happens. but this was insane. i mean, what if we were dirt poor and didn't have any money for food? what then? what if i worked for an employer who didn't allow time off and fired me for missing 2 days of work? what if we were flying to see a dying relative, and they died before we got there? those mother fuckers will rue the day(s). RUE IT, I SAY!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toejam98 Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 About 4 years ago i was in Chicago for my brothers navy graduation. Im from Connecticut, so we left our hotel to go to Ohera International to fly outta chicago and come home. We got there about an hour before our flight, after waiting in line for 20 minutes we reached the Bag Kiosk. Here we found out, that you have to check in at least 45 minutes before not 40 minutes before. 5 Minutes really a big fucking deal? remember this was like 11 am in the morning, they refused to let us on the flight so we missed our flight back and we were on a waiting list for a flight to open up all day until 9:30 Pm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 About 4 years ago i was in Chicago for my brothers navy graduation. Im from Connecticut, so we left our hotel to go to Ohera International to fly outta chicago and come home. We got there about an hour before our flight, after waiting in line for 20 minutes we reached the Bag Kiosk. Here we found out, that you have to check in at least 45 minutes before not 40 minutes before. 5 Minutes really a big fucking deal? remember this was like 11 am in the morning, they refused to let us on the flight so we missed our flight back and we were on a waiting list for a flight to open up all day until 9:30 Pm. i had that happen to me once a few years ago, when i was flying out of the airport in long beach. the worst part was that it's a tiny airport (the kind where you walk out on the runway and go up a set of stairs to get on the plane), and there was a window behind the ticket counter through which i could actually see my plane and the people waiting to board it (and boarding hadn't even started yet). i was literally like 30 steps away from the frickin plane and they wouldn't let me get on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toejam98 Posted July 28, 2011 Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 yeah airports are a mess, its like going to the DMV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2011 yeah airports are a mess, its like going to the DMV yeah except nobody pats down your junk at the dmv (well, nobody with a security badge anyway ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumanGoing Posted July 29, 2011 Report Share Posted July 29, 2011 Wow, what an ordeal, that has to be one of the worst travelling stories I've heard. regional flying in the U.S. is getting worse all the time. I've basically decided that the next time I have to travel around the U.S. I'll be going with a train or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 29, 2011 Report Share Posted July 29, 2011 That's literally the second horror story I've heard abut that airline in the past 2 days. Give them major shit man...my buddy ended up with food/lodging costs covered, a switch to first class and a $500 voucher for much less of an ordeal than you two went through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2011 That's literally the second horror story I've heard abut that airline in the past 2 days. Give them major shit man...my buddy ended up with food/lodging costs covered, a switch to first class and a $500 voucher for much less of an ordeal than you two went through. see now that's about what i would have expected them to have done for us already. the fact that they didn't makes me think we can get a lot more than that out of it in a settlement *fingers crossed* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GripGambler Posted July 30, 2011 Report Share Posted July 30, 2011 Most stories I've heard of airline delays like this have ended in much more being given, you should have asked for assistance with food during the layovers as you probably would have gotten it without much of a fight. That said, I think you are going a little overboard with the negativity. I would be upset at the situation too, but realize that the airlines loses a ton of money when they have to cancel a flight (tens of thousands of dollars or more), so they aren't doing it just to piss people off. It just happen to be a shitty coincidence for you that it happened on multiple flights you were going to be on. Flight cancellations happen with every airline, every airline has some shitty customer service people and some good customer service people, and every airline has policies on what to offer people who have to reschedule due to the flight cancellation but can always give more if pushed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted July 31, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 31, 2011 Most stories I've heard of airline delays like this have ended in much more being given, you should have asked for assistance with food during the layovers as you probably would have gotten it without much of a fight. That said, I think you are going a little overboard with the negativity. I would be upset at the situation too, but realize that the airlines loses a ton of money when they have to cancel a flight (tens of thousands of dollars or more), so they aren't doing it just to piss people off. It just happen to be a shitty coincidence for you that it happened on multiple flights you were going to be on. Flight cancellations happen with every airline, every airline has some shitty customer service people and some good customer service people, and every airline has policies on what to offer people who have to reschedule due to the flight cancellation but can always give more if pushed. we did, many times. we asked for money/vouchers for food, for a rental car, or anything else. they said no. every time. and yes, i know they don't do it intentionally, but we got treated like crap, especially considering how many delays/cancellations it was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GripGambler Posted August 1, 2011 Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 By treated like crap, do you mean that you weren't given a lot of free stuff on top of the free stuff they gave you? or that the people weren't nice to you after a reasonable amount of back and fourth discussion about it? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted August 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 By treated like crap, do you mean that you weren't given a lot of free stuff on top of the free stuff they gave you? or that the people weren't nice to you after a reasonable amount of back and fourth discussion about it? yes. and if we hadn't persisted with things we wouldn't have gotten home until wednesday. WEDNESDAY. they weren't even TRYING to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GripGambler Posted August 1, 2011 Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 Them not trying to help would mean that they were intentionally trying to lose business. That sounds legit to you? They ran across internal problems that cost them tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, they got everyone rescheduled when they could (logistics hell), they gave everyone free hotel stays close to the hotel ( should they be expected to give everyone hilton suites? ), and then undoubtedly had their customer service blown up by upset people demanding things that can't be done ( like instant flights to wherever they want and luxurious spa getaways in the meantime). I'm not taking sides or saying that you shouldn't be upset at the situation, I just think that you aren't looking at it from their side and are being a little unreasonable with what you are wanting. Satisfactory customer service doesn't mean that they give you every free thing that you ask for and dedicate a persons entire day to figuring out a more efficient path to get you home. That would be considered above and beyond customer service, and frankly would probably bankrupt a company if they did it for every customer who was inconvenienced at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted August 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 Them not trying to help would mean that they were intentionally trying to lose business. That sounds legit to you? They ran across internal problems that cost them tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, they got everyone rescheduled when they could (logistics hell), they gave everyone free hotel stays close to the hotel ( should they be expected to give everyone hilton suites? ), and then undoubtedly had their customer service blown up by upset people demanding things that can't be done ( like instant flights to wherever they want and luxurious spa getaways in the meantime). I'm not taking sides or saying that you shouldn't be upset at the situation, I just think that you aren't looking at it from their side and are being a little unreasonable with what you are wanting. Satisfactory customer service doesn't mean that they give you every free thing that you ask for and dedicate a persons entire day to figuring out a more efficient path to get you home. That would be considered above and beyond customer service, and frankly would probably bankrupt a company if they did it for every customer who was inconvenienced at some point. yeah i kinda doubt the phone support people are shareholders, so i don't think they give a shit if they lose business... and no, i don't think it's the least bit unreasonable to want something in addition to a hotel room, after getting delayed for two days, consequently suffering lost wages and additional money spent. but you keep fighting for the airlines Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blindsided Posted August 1, 2011 Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 Face Kicker, I'm guessing you've never worked in customer service industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Face Kicker Posted August 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 nope, i'd get fired pretty quickly for sarcastic quips at the stupid people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blindsided Posted August 1, 2011 Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 That's exactly why you don't understand the other side of the story that Grip is trying to get you to see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 1, 2011 Report Share Posted August 1, 2011 As someone who has worked being a manager both in shops and an actual customer service manager, aswell as being pretty savvy on the law, I can honestly say that in the UK face kicker has a point There is a thing here called 'Duty of Care' which the person or company is fully responsible for For example, I was working on the door of a nightclub for a friend of mine one night and an attack happened across the road. I had to go across, split up the fight and then look after the injured guy until the police and ambulance arrived. Now this may not always happen but by law it was my responsibility under the duty of care part of law and if I'd have stood back and let it happen I could have lost my SIA badge (security license) Also the same when I have to travel to other places in the country for my job, its not written into my contract that I have to do it (so not part of my day to day job) so when I go anywhere they not only have to provide accommodation but also a food allowance that is enough to cover meals during my stay each and every day by law The same would apply to an airline if it happened here, it would be their responsibility to provide food and suitable shelter otherwise they would be liable for failure to take the appropriate steps to look after the customer until they had rectified the situation Again, not sure how it works in the US but basically it'd be the companies responsibility to make sure they take care of you and ensure the person does not suffer, and going without food would be suffering in the eyes of the law Sucks sometimes from my side though, as I have to adhere to this even when the client is a total arsehole, plus all the courses and training everytime a tiny bit of legislation is worded differently Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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