SFO/ORD Trip Report - Upgrades still not working - No improvement observed
Jun 7, 2012, 10:36 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
SFO/ORD Trip Report - Upgrades still not working - No improvement observed
Just completed a SFO/ORD round trip and encountered a lot of the problems that have been regularly discussed here.
- Booked flight about 3 weeks out in moderate/low fare class.
- Used RPU to request UG for SFO-ORD.
- RPU didn't clear and R didn't open as of T-12, so I called to ask if they could take that RPU out of the reservation and apply it to my return flight instead. Entire process took 1.5 hours on the phone and multiple escalations, but it got done.
- Was never given a TOD offer, only a full buy-up to M.
- Wondering how F filled up. People paying for it? Or, kettles enjoying $29 offers?
- Flew in E+
- For return flight, I was "automatically" checked in.
- Got an error message from UA in email saying they could not issue a boarding pass for the automatically checked in flight.
- Loaded the mobile application and saw that I did not exist anywhere on the wait list.
- Called to inquire about UG status and why I didn't exist on the UG list.
- Agent had no clue why I wasn't on the UG list and said there was nothing he could do about it. I was just SOL.
- R space did open up, however, but the RPU that I had used for the UG waitlist was simply gone. It could not be used for the UG in the T-24 period and it also could not be returned to me. They just took it and wouldn't let me use it to UG into the R space at T-18 or so. He was willing, however, to take yet another RPU and UG me into the R space during the call. Lasted about an hour. Exact same process with double-RPU consumption that I experienced on last itinerary.
- If I had been on my last RPU, then I would not have been able to UG at all, even though I had requested a UG with a valid instrument, and, if I had been trying to do this near the expiration date for the RPU, I'd have lost the RPU due to expiration before having a chance to try it again.
- Had to write to MP 3 times to get credit for the extra RPU that was taken.
- Premier security line at ORD was "closed" and all elites had to check-in through regular security line.
- They've started playing a new video with $mi$ek publicly stroking his ego. In this video, it starts with him delivering a lecture about how great UA is going to become (this time, it's more about the planes than SHARES) but what's amazing is that he delivers the lecture while sitting in an E+ seat. Quite interesting given that the guy has probably never felt an E+ seat in his life, since I thought I read here that his contract gives him access to F for life. I'm sure that if he had to go through what we go through in order to get into F, these system failures would have been fixed 2 months ago.
Key learnings -
1. Three months after the takeover, it appears nothing whatsoever has been fixed in terms of upgrade issues
2. Generally speaking, it seems possible to get fairly good outcomes in messed up situations if you're willing to budget 1-3 hours of phone time per segment; if you're not willing to give up that much of your life to sit on the phone with agents, then you're probably SOL with this new SHARES system
- Booked flight about 3 weeks out in moderate/low fare class.
- Used RPU to request UG for SFO-ORD.
- RPU didn't clear and R didn't open as of T-12, so I called to ask if they could take that RPU out of the reservation and apply it to my return flight instead. Entire process took 1.5 hours on the phone and multiple escalations, but it got done.
- Was never given a TOD offer, only a full buy-up to M.
- Wondering how F filled up. People paying for it? Or, kettles enjoying $29 offers?
- Flew in E+
- For return flight, I was "automatically" checked in.
- Got an error message from UA in email saying they could not issue a boarding pass for the automatically checked in flight.
- Loaded the mobile application and saw that I did not exist anywhere on the wait list.
- Called to inquire about UG status and why I didn't exist on the UG list.
- Agent had no clue why I wasn't on the UG list and said there was nothing he could do about it. I was just SOL.
- R space did open up, however, but the RPU that I had used for the UG waitlist was simply gone. It could not be used for the UG in the T-24 period and it also could not be returned to me. They just took it and wouldn't let me use it to UG into the R space at T-18 or so. He was willing, however, to take yet another RPU and UG me into the R space during the call. Lasted about an hour. Exact same process with double-RPU consumption that I experienced on last itinerary.
- If I had been on my last RPU, then I would not have been able to UG at all, even though I had requested a UG with a valid instrument, and, if I had been trying to do this near the expiration date for the RPU, I'd have lost the RPU due to expiration before having a chance to try it again.
- Had to write to MP 3 times to get credit for the extra RPU that was taken.
- Premier security line at ORD was "closed" and all elites had to check-in through regular security line.
- They've started playing a new video with $mi$ek publicly stroking his ego. In this video, it starts with him delivering a lecture about how great UA is going to become (this time, it's more about the planes than SHARES) but what's amazing is that he delivers the lecture while sitting in an E+ seat. Quite interesting given that the guy has probably never felt an E+ seat in his life, since I thought I read here that his contract gives him access to F for life. I'm sure that if he had to go through what we go through in order to get into F, these system failures would have been fixed 2 months ago.
Key learnings -
1. Three months after the takeover, it appears nothing whatsoever has been fixed in terms of upgrade issues
2. Generally speaking, it seems possible to get fairly good outcomes in messed up situations if you're willing to budget 1-3 hours of phone time per segment; if you're not willing to give up that much of your life to sit on the phone with agents, then you're probably SOL with this new SHARES system
Last edited by FlyWorld; Jun 7, 2012 at 10:41 pm
Jun 7, 2012, 10:48 pm
#2
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: DEN
Programs: UA Gold-MM, AA Gold-MM, F9-Silver, Hyatt Something, Marriott Gold, IHG Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,393
2. Generally speaking, it seems possible to get fairly good outcomes in messed up situations if you're willing to budget 1-3 hours of phone time per segment; if you're not willing to give up that much of your life to sit on the phone with agents, then you're probably SOL with this new SHARES system
My view over the past 2 months is that anything moderately complicated takes forever. It gets done, but it takes forever. As in, hours.
Jun 7, 2012, 10:53 pm
#3
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: SFO and OAK
Programs: FAF, Hyatt <>, SPG PLT
Posts: 2,240
I booked an SFO-ORD ticket for next week on United and the B-up worked just fine and I could select my premium cabin seat before I even had to purchase the ticket. So that upgrade avenue is still working.
As for the RPU re-crediting IME calling gets instruments redeposited immediately/quickly. It is best if when calling you are on a computer on the United website with your account open so you can view the past reservation information (I do like that this is easy to do now and includes everything you would ever need about a prior reservation). Again IME they usually ask for the confirmation number first and then if there were any flights that were not on the original itinerary (SDC, IRROPS, etc.) they ask for the flight number(s). Not at all as seamless as PMUA.
As for the RPU re-crediting IME calling gets instruments redeposited immediately/quickly. It is best if when calling you are on a computer on the United website with your account open so you can view the past reservation information (I do like that this is easy to do now and includes everything you would ever need about a prior reservation). Again IME they usually ask for the confirmation number first and then if there were any flights that were not on the original itinerary (SDC, IRROPS, etc.) they ask for the flight number(s). Not at all as seamless as PMUA.
Jun 7, 2012, 11:08 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Bay Area, CA
Programs: UA Plat 2MM; AS MVP Gold 75K
Posts: 35,068
2. Generally speaking, it seems possible to get fairly good outcomes in messed up situations if you're willing to budget 1-3 hours of phone time per segment; if you're not willing to give up that much of your life to sit on the phone with agents, then you're probably SOL with this new SHARES system
In the past 3 months, I've probably spent more time on the phone with the new UA than I did in the previous 3 years with PMUA.
Fortunately my reservations tend to be longer trips (midcons, transcons, and int'l). But if I had some shorter hauls, it would have been possible to have spent more time on the phone than in the air.
One thing that's missing from your account was any sort of ticketing issues. Hopefully at least that part worked okay for you.
Thank you for the detailed report. Sadly, many of us can relate.
Jun 7, 2012, 11:20 pm
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
That pretty much sums it up.
In the past 3 months, I've probably spent more time on the phone with the new UA than I did in the previous 3 years with PMUA.
Fortunately my reservations tend to be longer trips (midcons, transcons, and int'l). But if I had some shorter hauls, it would have been possible to have spent more time on the phone than in the air.
One thing that's missing from your account was any sort of ticketing issues. Hopefully at least that part worked okay for you.
Thank you for the detailed report. Sadly, many of us can relate.
In the past 3 months, I've probably spent more time on the phone with the new UA than I did in the previous 3 years with PMUA.
Fortunately my reservations tend to be longer trips (midcons, transcons, and int'l). But if I had some shorter hauls, it would have been possible to have spent more time on the phone than in the air.
One thing that's missing from your account was any sort of ticketing issues. Hopefully at least that part worked okay for you.
Thank you for the detailed report. Sadly, many of us can relate.
My ratio of time on phone before and after takeover is same as yours.