I have now enabled anonymous posts. I was so busy with everything that I didn't have the time to explore how to turn on anonymous postings. The blog was set to use the PST, which I switched to the EST today.
I faxed the original tickets and the ones issued in San Diego to the UAL representative today after lunch.
I was reading the consumerist and ran across this article American Airlines Loves You Now, isnt this the what good customer service is all about?
Thank you everyone for all the help and support you have given me, not just on this blog, but everywhere. This is so draining, but all the kindness and the supportive comments and help I have had from people I have never met, makes it all worth while. I'll Keep on truckin, thanks to you.
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5 comments:
All of what you're going through reminds me of why I don't deal with United anymore. They screwed me out of 12,000 miles, and so I simply told them that I would never fly with them again, and that I would recommend that none of my friends or relatives ever fly with them.
I've been United-free since 2002 and I love it. I'm happy to pay more even if United is the cheapest for 2 reasons: 1. I know I'll get better service and not be screwed on another airline; and 2. I hope that every dollar my family and friends and I don't spend on United sinks them a little more, so that they eventually go out of business for their horrible customer service.
I hope you never use United ever again after this debacle they perpetrated against your parents! Shame on them!
And I feel even better about my decision now!
I just stumbled across your story today. Good luck in your fight against this injustice.
I should think you have quite a strong court case, because of the fact that they admitted fault twice and apologized (you should keep the email from the VP who apologized as well, though it was probably vetted by legal and doesn't have any incriminating wording. If it wasn't vetted by legal, it could be quite damaging to them!).
Then, after they admitted fault, they admitted that they lied about what they claimed the problem was (they originally said it was due to a systems upgrade, then changed their story to the "more-than-3-months" ticket change). That's another strike against them.
Finally, their horrible business practices about claiming a 3-month limitation without informing the consumer makes them liable. I would recommend going over ALL the information your parents had available to them at the time of their ticket purchase (both of them) to see if there are any escape clauses in any documentation, or if the 3-month limit was ACTUALLY real. If not, that's a giant lie you've caught them in.
I hope you can get a lawyer to help you out for free -- you certainly seem to have a case!
I also hope you reported this to your local Chamber of Commerce and Better Business Bureau.
You could also write to your Senators and Congressman to see if they can help -- who knows, maybe this will lead to better business practices being mandated by law -- anything to stop United from doing this again!
Good luck!!!
It pays to spend time reading United's Contract of Carriage, which may disclose the 3-month expiry of ticket changes for medical reasons. United expects every passenger to have a thorough understanding of this document.
http://www.united.com/ual/asset/COC21dec06.pdf
Thank you these wonderful and elaborate comments.
Yes, I agree that a 3 month limitation on medical ground on a pre-paid ticket is a terrible business practice. Its like putting a very limited time limit on a gift card that you purchase. You have already paid for it, and they have used your money. Why should they put a 3 onth limit on it? This lousy practice should be stopped.
I checked the contract on the back of the ticket and it says the ticket is valid for 1 year from the date of purchase.
I also download and read the Contract of Carriage and found 11 references to the word "Medical", none of which mentions any limitations due to medical grounds. Thank you for these wonderful ideas.
Thank you for your kindness,
Mahesh
I agree... United is HORRIBLE!!
Our flight got cancelled out of NYC due to "weather." We were booked for a fligth two days later and were placed on stand-by.
We sat at the airport for well over 40 hours and over a dozen flights and had to witness how United "prioritizes" their stand-by lists. According to $ of course. Higher priced ticket holders have first dibbs on seats even if they missed a flight due to their own fault.
United was completely ruthless and inconsiderate in trying to help us get home. I even witnessed how on one occasion the gate personal gave a stand-by ticket to a girl who asked him to "help me out with my friend." I had been sitting in JFK for two days and this slimeball gives away a ticket away to someone who had just arrived.
Not only that, but they had oversold seats and were giving away flights to people who would volunteer to give up their seat for that flight. All to avoid having to pay the people whose seats they overbooked accomodations or refunds for their tickets. So those people that volunteered their seats were given priority for stand-by on the next flight. Meanwhile there I was, in the same clothes as two days before, with my bags back in LA (oh yeah, they sent my bags to my destination while I was still in New York) I had slept a whole two hours in 40 and they were treating me as if I was basically invisible.
Also, on the way to New York we were stuck in Chicago for three hours waiting for the co-pilot.
The whole company is a joke... but of course the high prices are not.
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