married name is different from booking - any adivce?
 

In October I married my wife who has now legally changed her last name. Mrs. Snace and I are booked to fly yeg-yyz return at the end of the month. The problem is that the booking was done previously and links to her Aeroplan - which has her maiden name on it.

After speaking to an AC agent in the lounge a couple days ago she was told that it is pretty easy to change, she just has to call AE. This morning she called AE today and they told her to send copies of her license and AE card to them. Then, she called AC who easily changed the booking so that her name shows up as her new ID. Now, she has her own separate booking with her new name that does not have any AE number attached to it.

First off, I can't modify the reservation online and even check the seat she is in as it is a completely separate booking. Is there any way to have this booking link up with the original one? Originally, we had seats together and I hope it is still that way. As well, we may need to change our travel dates/times and now because of this new booking I can't modify her reservation online.

Secondly, how long will it take for AE to process the information? This flight is what she needs to make elite status and will be keeping all the boarding passes and itineraries in the event that it doesn't show up. I would hope that the name change could occur quickly, but I don't figure it will.

Does anyone have advice so that the AE points make it on to the booking? Obviously she is going to follow the steps they gave her, I just wanted to see if there were any other options.

As well, are there any opportunities to have the booking be linked to mine?

I would appreciate any feedback. I will check back here in a bit and answer any questions (if any).

Thanks in advance!!!

I don't understand this archaic thing of changing name.

Seems like females continue seeing themselves as second class or something? Or that's how their husband want to see them? Or that how they expect their husband to see them?

ok, forget the fact that she did it because she wanted to. assume she legally changed her name and it had nothing to do with marriage. any advice?

I went through it 2 years ago. It seemed that aeroplan is simply the hardest to change. I had too fax a copy of of marrigae certificate over and over. To be honest the whole process took over 3 months. For all its worth just leave it under her madien name. Ensure she has ID ie: drivers licence ..ect that says so.
So she can qualify before Dec.31st.
Good thing you are only going on domestic flight as I was going overseas at the time to HKG.
Good Luck:eek:

Wow. One of the more useless posts I've seen in a while. I'm sure the OP appreciates your help!

:rolleyes:

she had to switch it over as we are traveling in early January internationally. I looked at changing the booking, but since it was done by someone else and there were a bunch of different carriers it became too much trouble.

also, she doesn't have any other picture id that has her maiden name. If she had a new Ontario health card, it would be great, but she only had the old one. Once she moved to AB she had to give her drivers lic. to them.

thanks for your advice. We will stay on top of AE, but i know it is a busy time for them...


EDIT: This doesn't seem like it would be possible, but would she be able to use her expired passport with the maiden name along with her new passport? She is a couple hundred miles away, and she may be taking a flight to Calgary that could get her over.

Here is a thought. Some of us want to do it. I changed my name because I wanted to not because my husband asked me.

I even put my career on hold to stay home with my two kids until my children were preteens.

I enjoyed being a mother and wife. Now I am enjoying my career and have full support from my husband.
I have never for a minute felt I was second class citizen in my marriage in the years that I have been married because I changed my name or gave up my career temporary .

My daughter on the other hand decided not to change her name.

Yet, she has decided once the family arrives she will put her career on hold to stay home to be a fulltime mom and a wife. Will she feel she is a second class citizen in the marriage,of course not .

I dont think the expired passport is a good idea. For one thing it is "cut" in the corner so it cant be used. I suggest you get a hold of a 'supervisor and or manager" at Aeroplan and get them to look after this issue TODAY! they will need you to fax all paperwork. You need to be on them BIG TIME!;)

To the OP -- whatever process was required to make the change for Drivers Lic., Health Card, Insurance, Bank and so on, simply repeat for AE - this should suffice.

Speaking from my own former workplace, in the case of a financial institution you have to send a copy of the marriage lic. or name change paperwork. For next time I'd send a registered letter containing that info along with a signed request letter.

not a name change due to marriage but a similar situation with Aeroplan:
mr. K goose had always been known from the time he was a child, by a different first name than was on his birth certificate. His drivers licence, bank accounts, SIN number etc , even passports all in the name he was known by but not his birth certificate name. This was never a problem until 2001 when the passport had to be changed to his proper legal name. We forgot about Aeroplan until trying to book some international flights and had to phone them. We faxed a copy of the passport change and they changed his aeroplan stuff almost immediately. He got his new areoplan card in two or three weeks. so it can be done.

My wife, who has stayed home since we had kids, did not change her name. Neither did my daughter.

But eh, I guess there must be people who don't like their maiden's name?

Being a newlywed myself, my wife has elected to change her name to Mrs. CD and is just now going through the process of contacting the various companies and organizations to make the switch. We have flights booked in January so I'll have to remind her to contact AE... :cool:

In Quebec, it's not even an option without requesting permission from the Government for a name change - and they rarely grant it.

I got married this summer and my wife took my last name. She sent the info into aeroplan and the changes were made within a few days. I was actually surpirsed how quickly it went through. The thing that took the longest was getting her name changed on a business flight pass, but even that went through within a week.

Have you ever tried to travel with your spouse in a country outside Canada and whomever is across the counter does not believe that you are married to your husband because you don't have the same family name?

This happened to me (in 1993) and this is the reason why I have hyphenated my name on my passport even though i got married in Quebec. I endured that experience from an AC agent in Paris because he did not believe that we were a married couple and he thought that I was trying to "sneak" into Canada:eek:
He tried it twice - once on checking and once whilst we were boarding until my husband told him off (I guess he was one of those who could not accept a mixed race couple). He was an FF on AC and I was a loyal flyer with Canadian ;) both across the country and the pond.

^^^