kenadams

Dear Lufthansa,

we have to talk. We need some relationship counseling here, because I don't recognize you anymore.

The one thing I have always loved about Lufthansa has been the formidable attention given to high status passengers when they experience flight disruptions: my expectations have always been met, and usually exceeded, during delays and cancellations. Above and beyond has usually been LH's standard of customer care when I have been affected by a flight irregularity.

For the first time I have found myself in unfamiliar territory two days ago in Dubai: my March 13th DXB-FRA flight (part of a DXB-FRA-JFK itinerary) was cancelled. I received an SMS several hours ahead of the flight advising me of the cancellation so I immediately called customer service in the US. I was not alarmed, as I trusted that a very reasonable solution to the problem would be found. I was quite puzzled and extremely frustrated by the sequence of events that followed:
1. The agent responded in the negative to my request to be rebooked either DXB-ZRH-JFK or DXB-VIE-JFK - both combinations would have caused virtually no delay for me. I was advised that the weather issues would affect those flights as well, and that I would have to wait for the next day. I had no way at the time to verify such information.
2. I was offered DXB-FRA-JFK for the next day, essentially postponing the flight a full 24 hours.
3. I asked whether any other airline had flights before a full 24 hours had passed: I was told no options were available on Turkish Airways, and that Lufthansa had no agreements to endorse tickets over to Emirates. To my mention of the existence of a EU passenger bill of rights, and the fact that I have in the past been appropriately rebooked via non Star Alliance airlines when it was fair to do so, the agent responded dismissing my query.
4. I asked whether it would be possible to catch the 8.30am service to MUC, and the agent said I would still then have to fly to FRA (DXB-MUC-FRA-JFK), rendering the change useless.
5. I asked whether I could fly DXB-MUC-EWR and the agent turned the request down saying that reroutings are not permitted. This seemed inconsistent: I have been rerouted to EWR instead of JFK by LH before. LH refers to both airports as New York in timetables and on its website.
6. It appeared that booking DXB-MUC-EWR would be my only alternative to secure a flight on the 13th of March and not have to postpone by a whole day, so I accepted to pay - yes, to pay to rebook a cancelled flight! The charge was small, less than $10, but against European Union laws. Reservation was confirmed and I received an email with my new itinerary.
7. I then requested a hotel room to spend the night and was turned down.
8. Later that night I went to the airport, and asked again for a hotel room: I didn't expect any problems, and was surprised, even outraged, to hear Lufthansa's agent (in an LH uniform) say that it is LH's policy NOT to provide hotel rooms if a cancellation is caused by weather problems. Again, a failure of EU laws and an inconsistency with any past experience of mine.
9. I proceeded to make my own sleeping arrangements. When I got to the hotel I tried to check in online. The site redirected me to Swiss International Airlines claiming I should check in with them. Puzzled, I looked up the reservation number and found that my itinerary had been changed again: DXB-ZRH-EWR, with - thank you very much - an eleven hour connection in Zurich, and an arrival time into Newark two hours later than my previously confirmed DXB-MUC-EWR itinerary.
10. It was already too late to reach the airport for check-in anyway, so I called again and got reinstated onto the DXB-MUC-EWR itinerary.

I will send LH the hotel bill and I am sure it will be settled, and the rebooking charge I paid will certainly be reversed. My public question to you is: how does something like this happen? Why are telephone agents in the US and ground agents in DUB not aware of European Union regulations and passenger rights? Why was I denied a DXB-ZRH-JFK rerouting when I first called, only to find myself booked onto a DXB-ZRH-EWR that I did not ask for after other arrangements had already been made? Why did I hear from just about every LH person I spoke to, that the right to care is not applicable if a cancellation is caused by weather?
Lufthansa, who are you? Are you trying to break up with me?