Lufthansa surprise charges
#16
Join Date: Aug 2015
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Probably a good sign to stop commenting...
#17
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But I assume you are right, OP did not have valid docs, LH rebooked him and charged the fare difference instead of cancelling the reservation..
Wouldnt it have been easier for OP to try to call some good relative or friend to pick up his son from DFW (so his son stays home)?
Moreover, I would be quite amazed if LH would rebook a passenger with a discounted ticket for free to a later date - right before check-in to the originally planed flight closes.
#19
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There isn't going to be a recording because, in OP's own words, this was all done at the gate. If the GA and Manager had a local call between them rather than a face-to-face for some reason, that's not going to have been recorded.
The LH answer to OP seems quite reasonable. E.g., change fee waived, but fare difference collected. The Agent / Manager will have documented that in the PNR notes because someone had to justify the change fee waiver. (This is LH after all !)
OP can try the CC chargeback route, but those pretty uniformly fail, especially when LH can document, as it will, that it charged OP less than the fare rules required.
The LH answer to OP seems quite reasonable. E.g., change fee waived, but fare difference collected. The Agent / Manager will have documented that in the PNR notes because someone had to justify the change fee waiver. (This is LH after all !)
OP can try the CC chargeback route, but those pretty uniformly fail, especially when LH can document, as it will, that it charged OP less than the fare rules required.
#20
Join Date: Aug 2004
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The problem is that the US&A isn't really the greenhouse for consumer sanity laws and at the Indian end ... I dunno. If that went say to court in say France or the UK, the OP would have little difficulty to argue that a day change shouldn't result in doubling the discount airfare without a very clear announcement by the carrier. But of course in many places, airfares and fare buckets are regarded as real things for which some enforcement exists.
If the OP didn't sign anything, he should have disputed the charges right away, then LH would have been a lot more forthcoming with their bullet proof documentation process.
#21
Join Date: Aug 2005
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Posts: 4,667
I'm not contesting that this is probably a good idea... or go without lawyer to a small claims court.
At this point I just don't see that continuing to go through LH customer service will change anything. So the OP can
1) Let it go
2) Create a shitstorm on social media to get the attention of someone at LH
3) Sue LH
HTB.
At this point I just don't see that continuing to go through LH customer service will change anything. So the OP can
1) Let it go
2) Create a shitstorm on social media to get the attention of someone at LH
3) Sue LH
HTB.
#22
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: OSL/IAH/ZRH (time, not preference)
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#25
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You do not see the the intro and the end of your statement as blatant contradictions?
The problem is that the US&A isn't really the greenhouse for consumer sanity laws and at the Indian end ... I dunno. If that went say to court in say France or the UK, the OP would have little difficulty to argue that a day change shouldn't result in doubling the discount airfare without a very clear announcement by the carrier. But of course in many places, airfares and fare buckets are regarded as real things for which some enforcement exists.
If the OP didn't sign anything, he should have disputed the charges right away, then LH would have been a lot more forthcoming with their bullet proof documentation process.
The problem is that the US&A isn't really the greenhouse for consumer sanity laws and at the Indian end ... I dunno. If that went say to court in say France or the UK, the OP would have little difficulty to argue that a day change shouldn't result in doubling the discount airfare without a very clear announcement by the carrier. But of course in many places, airfares and fare buckets are regarded as real things for which some enforcement exists.
If the OP didn't sign anything, he should have disputed the charges right away, then LH would have been a lot more forthcoming with their bullet proof documentation process.
It appears that OP dealt in-person with an agent and a manager. Thus, unlikely to be a recording unless LH outfits its people with body wires.
OTOH, LH is not known for waiving fees. It is close to a certainty that the agent or manager or both, fully document the PNR notes with the facts, what they did, what they waived, what they did not, and that OP accepted the changes.
The sole question is whether OP agreed to the changes. Even the nannies of the EU grudgingly permit consumers some choice.
#26
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#27
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It is the same with all the 261 claims.
I really wonder why the Op has all the problems, Thank God there is FT loaded with experts.
#28
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#29
Join Date: Aug 2004
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..It is close to a certainty that the agent or manager or both, fully document the PNR notes with the facts, what they did, what they waived, what they did not, and that OP accepted the changes.
The sole question is whether OP agreed to the changes. Even the nannies of the EU grudgingly permit consumers some choice.
The sole question is whether OP agreed to the changes. Even the nannies of the EU grudgingly permit consumers some choice.
Given that the OP and his entourage remember the agreement differently, this is a straight "2 words vs 2". Any form of mediation or trial would have to assess what the OP reasonably could have consented to here.
Much like a rape case with LH as accused...
#30
Join Date: Aug 2004
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'Strawman' is a euphemism for this sort of triumph.