What Can You Do if an AAgent Misinforms You?
 

Rather than open a discussion if the passenger here is "right" or "wrong" this whole debacle makes me wonder what you could do if an AA rep on the phone genuinely misinforms you. Assuming they won't pull the call? Cliffs Notes: Passenger tried to change a basic econ ticket on a multi-trip was "told" to make a new flight, whole trip cancelled as first/original flight wasn't "taken"

Main Article: https://onemileatatime.com/american-...missed-flight/

Seems like it all boils down to what the phone rep ACTUALLY told him which we do not know. Did they tell him you need to book a new “flight” OR “trip/itinerary?” Sounds like he isn’t really detail oriented so I wouldn’t be surprised if he misunderstood what was being told to him. However, if they told him to book a new flight they DID mislead him.

It''s always fact specific so there is no simple answer.

If the agent tells you there will be vanilla ice cream and it's chocolate, not much.

The facts in the body of the OP are not relevant because the information the passenger was provided was entirely correct. Thus, less than not much.

That poster is clearly an attention seeking clown. He claims to be going to a wedding in Dallas but had no idea what time it started? Is that a joke? Zero sympathy for him from me.

If I had to guess what actually happened is that they got the dates mixed up, and won't just admit that. I've been in a similar boat with UAL - wanted to take an earlier flight and was willing to pay the $56 basic Econ one way fare, but thankfully the agent warned me by not taking the 1st flight, I would lose my return flight. Had this not been made clear I would have been really frustrated.

Here is a printable guide:

1. Join FlyerTalk
2. Try to find relevant threads or Wikis (granted, not always that easy)
3. HUACA

In some cases it’s about finding the right way to explain what is being asked and even gently ‘guiding’ the agent to the answer instead of informing them of how wrong they are.

"Panama Jackson is the Senior Editor of Very Smart Brothas."

Dunning–Kruger effect.

I guess no matter how the OP is framed, judgements about the competency/intelligence/personality of the individuals involved are impossible to resist.

I do not think it is up to the phone agent to answer every question not asked.
He bought a "ticket" for his entire trip. He was told he needed to buy a new ticket. The assumption should be to buy a whole new ticket.
If you don't know much about traveling, use an agent

This was the dumbest article I've ever read.

I don't think the passenger will ever win. The GA will typically be backed up by the station agent. They work together, we're just passing through.

Exactly.

Agents are neither mind readers nor nannies.

The caller's question and the answer were all in the fare rules and COC which he acknowledged reading and understanding at the time of the original purchase. I don't necessarily read the 17 pages of fare rules for every ticket I purchase, but it is on me that I don't and furthermore, the complete inflexibility of BE fares is not merely in the fare rules but has its own column and warnings on the AA site.

Having read the OMAAT post and not the blog post, it's unclear why he didn't go to Orbitz to sort out a change. Did he skip that part from his story because they made clear it was a non-changeable non-refundable ticket?

Reminds me of the time I booked a BOS-EWR one way on B6, then booked my return later. Come the day of the return, realized I had booked BOS-EWR twice, so hopped on a train back to Boston. You live and you learn, and it's not always someone else's fault.