Exec club UAE do not know the rules

Old Sep 12, 2010, 3:21 am
  #1  
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Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Guildford, Surrey
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Exec club UAE do not know the rules

Moved to the UAE two years ago so changed my executive club residency to the UAE. I have since booked my WT+ and upgrade to club online so have not had a problem.

This time, I wanted to book WT+ upgraded to club, Dubai-Venice, Rome-Dubai with a stopover in the UK on the way there. It's easy enough to do a stopover online, but I could not make a booking where I arrive to Venice and return from Rome.

I called the UK executive club and was told I must book it through the UAE executive club and they will waiver the phone fees. So I called the UAE office, and they would not waiver the fees, although it was something I could not do online. She said they would only waiver the fees if the website was not allowing me to do something that it would normally allow me do.

The fees are also about 27 pounds which is almost twice that in the UK. She also wanted to charge the same fees for my infant daughter, and my wife. I was almost tempted to give in until she told me the cancellation fees were identical, even for an infant.

I decided to book to rome and back online to save me the possibility of paying a total of about 200 pounds.

What annoyed me is that the lady would not budge, even though I have booked similar cases in the past when I was in the UK. Has the rule changed or was she just unaware of the rules.
audi2111 is offline  
Old Sep 12, 2010, 3:34 am
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: UK
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Originally Posted by audi2111
She said they would only waiver the fees if the website was not allowing me to do something that it would normally allow me do.
I've had that spouted to me many times, and I suspect that is the actual rule. Many agents do seem to read that rule slightly differently though, so most of the time it is a simple case of ringing back to get a different agent.

I suspect that when agents have been kind and slightly bended the rules for you in the past (as they have done for me) then it makes you feel even more aggrieved to pay the telephone fine this time round, even though they are right.

Though, the rule isn't right. The fine should have been created to encourage people to use the website, but if a function cannot be performed on the website (due to a fault or the feature doesn't simply exist) then customers should not be subject to a fine, which certainly adds up per passenger.
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Old Sep 12, 2010, 3:56 am
  #3  
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Originally Posted by audi2111
She said they would only waiver the fees if the website was not allowing me to do something that it would normally allow me do.
I believe she is actually correct.
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Old Sep 12, 2010, 4:03 am
  #4  
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Join Date: Aug 2002
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Originally Posted by audi2111
So I called the UAE office, and they would not waiver the fees, although it was something I could not do online. She said they would only waiver the fees if the website was not allowing me to do something that it would normally allow me do.
We have been told several times by BA staff here that this is, strictly speaking, the rule.

I am as baffled as the next person by this approach. It would definitely be more logical only to charge for things that can be done online but which the passenger chooses to do offline. There could possibly be a case for a higher fee being charged than at present, if it's limited to this situation.

But as far as knowing the rules is concerned, it sounds like the UAE call centre can't be faulted on this occasion.
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