MikeFly

I'm traveling with my 2 non adult children to CDG, all of us are in J. My kids are on award tickets mine is paid. I'm EXP and have taken them in many times without a raised eyebrow. Tonight the person at the desk (someone I do not know) checks all three of our boarding passes, registers us, and gives us gate info. We further discuss the wind situation and other general chitchat. We go and sit down. After being seated for about 5 minutes, the agent comes over and explains to me that the rule is only one guest even if immediate family. I'm a little surprised but willing to accept the rule. Another passenger offers to guest my daughter. The agent does not like this at all. He argues that it can't be done and it is wrong. I politely state that I am following the rules just like he is. He becomes dismissive and decides to call a manager. A premium services manger shows up about 10 minutes later. We step out the back door to discuss the situation. She asks for my understanding in backing an employee. I agree, however, I also ask for her understanding in passenger relations and following rules. She sees my point and asks that I write in about the policy. End result we were allowed to stay in the lounge. My issue with the agent is twofold. Waiting so long to decide to enforce a rule and then deciding which rules he is going to follow.

Mark_T

Poor handling on the part of the AAgent.

If they had rejected your additional guest at point of entry you'd have had no reason for complaint.

Once they had admitted you it would have been better not to make an issue but learn for next time and once the point had been raised and the other person offered to guest your daughter in they should have accepted the offer graciously as a simple solution to the problem.

TheAAdmiral

+1. The AAgent should have addressed this when you checked in.

ESpen36

I think the AAngel should have just registered your daughter as the guest of the other EXP visiting the lounge who offered to include her on his/her access.

Granted, it's not exactly the way it's supposed to happen, but as long as the other person didn't already have a guest in the lounge, it is completely within the rules, which state 1 guest per EXP.

(Also note that the GUEST does not need to be flying outside North America....any OW-marketed, OW-operated departure/arrival on the same day is fine for the GUEST. Only the EXP member must be traveling to/from/through Europe, Asia, Central/South America, and/or MEX.)

Spiff

Exactly. The other EXP can guest whomever he/she wants. That includes strangers met on the concourse or in the FL.

PDX-PLT

Yup.

For reference, AC members can bring in their whole family to the AC, but at FL it's one guest. The AAgent may not of liked the manner in which the other EXP was using the rules, but tough: he was fully in compliance with the rules as stated by AA/OW. She was out of line to get "upset".

Something similar happened that I was involved with a few years ago at a DFW AC. When I entered, the AAgent was giving some kid in the Services a bit of a bad time about entering; he wasn't in uniform, didn't quite have the documentation to her satisfaction. So I went ahead and told her he was my guest. By the expression on her face she obviously didn't like it (I think alot of people get miffed when they are trying to assert some authority, and then it gets pulled out from under them), but didn't raise a stink about it.

JDiver

@OP: Maybe a new AAgent? I've always had nothing but Sterling service at the ORD FL.

Most agents I have seen in the same position have no problem letting an EXP with spouse and two children in , even. This one could have asked a supervisor before issuing you an opinion, or let you in and then sought an opinion to govern future admissions behavior.

Instead, there was a change of mind and potential embarrassment, but certainly inconvenience, for a valued customer. Mistake number 1.

Further, the agent becomes dismissive and defensive. Mistake number 2.

Then, the supervisor essentially asks for forgiveness for helping the employee save face. Mistake number 3, penalty doubled for supervisors.

I think the OP handled this issue most appropriately, with good and discrete assertiveness. For a bonus, the helpful EXP was also helpful and compassionate - the agent committed mistake number 4 in denying the EXP's right to guest someone in under qualifying circumstances.

Peter principle is at work here, along with inadequate customer relations training. Retailer Nordstrom does much better than that, AA.

brp

I sure wish they wouldn't, though.

I agree 100% that this agent handled this badly. Once the OP and family were let in, that should have been the end of it.

However, sometimes rules do exist for a reason. If the rule is 1 person, and not whole family, then it should be enforced. If I wanted to go somewhere where members could bring in the whole family, I'd go to the AC.

I'm sure that this rule is in place to keep the place from getting over-crowded. Letting in 4 people on a membership doesn't work toward that goal.

The agent may even not have liked the way the rules were being used, and I agree. Other members guesting in random people just because they can (and I agree that the rules allow it) is also a disservice to other members. Looking out for the members who are entitled to use the club and preventing dubious (albeit "legal") abuses is something I'd hope they'd do.

I'd hope that more agents would enforce the rules as written and not allow in more than 1 person per EXP.

Still doesn't excuse the poor handling in this case, of course.

Cheers.

porsche534

The situation was obviously handled poorly, but once the other EXP offered to guest one of the children it should have been dropped.
I'd rather see the agents enforce the 1 guest (regardless of how it's fulfilled) than change the policy to allow all immediate family members in the FL. The FL at ORD is small enough and those of us (non-EXP) with int'l first tickets do appreciate the ability to have a seat and avoid a crowd.

oldpenny16

So which child was the OP supposed to send away? Or was the only choice for the OP and both children to flee?

porsche534

The rule is 1 guest. If there wasn't another EXP willing to guest a child upon entry, as previously mentioned, the AC could accommodate immediate family (which also happens to be 3x the size).

tkelvin69

Off to the AC for these heathens.

Schultzois

Agree that the appropriate thing would have been to say something before granting entry to all three... Maybe the AAgent was unsure and took those few minutes to check the rules, but at that point the only reasonable thing to do really would have been to come over and explain that only one guest is usually permitted, but that since he hadn't said so earlier, he would be happy to make an exception just this once.

Once another passenger offered a guest space, I'd say it was out of line for the AAgent to argue the point further - better simply to be thankful that a graceful out for an otherwise uncomfortable situation had been offered. Bear in mind that this would not have even come up if it had been dealt with at the desk up front...

The supervisor really should have taken the stance that the rule should have been made clear on entry, and then gone on to say that as it had not in this case, they would be making an exception just this once (and reminding the AAgent to check entry rules before sending passengers in if unsure in the future).

HUB Flyer

This implies that the OP knew the rule and usually gets around it when the agent is familiar. Is this the case?

btwayland

when you've seen this happen, you are sure that the EXP and spouse were on J or Y tickets and not F tickets accessing the FL lounge?

i do agree that once the other EXP offered to guest the additional child into the lounge that the OP and family were then in compliance, despite the agent's protest.

the agent should not have let them in the lounge in the first place, as it was not within the rules. however, if the agent felt the need to approach the OP after access was granted, i would have perhaps discretely mentioned (out of earshot of ANYONE else in the lounge) to the OP that this was a one-time exception, and then restated the 1 guest rule for future reference.

new agent or not, AC agent filling in for FL agent or not, discretion and graciousness in the event of an employee mistake have nothing to do with what lounge or even where one is working -- those are skills required across the board in these types of positions.