Another Enhancement? (Reduced Avios for Broken IFE)
Aug 26, 2014, 11:58 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Near Edinburgh
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 9,034
Another Enhancement? (Reduced Avios for Broken IFE)
My outbound LHR-SFO last week had a broken IFE. I was in WT+.
Well, I say it was broken, but it was initially working, until I got half way through a movie and they announced that some people only had the loop system so they were rebooting it. The guy next to me was one of those for whom it was not working and he was not happy.
20 minutes later, the cabin crew had done a great job in ensuring that he was as happy as I now was: Everyone now had the loop system only.
I'm sure I could taste the schadenfreude in air.
I couldn't finish watching my movie, so moved onto my Kindle and, anyway, I thought, that's an easy-peasy 10K Avios. So i filled in the usual form on BA.com a couple of days later.
The customary cut-and-paste response came back yesterday: Sorry, we know how important <insert customer complaint> is to you, we always strive to improve <insert customer complaint> and we'll pass your feedback onto <insert part of BA that owns customer complaint>. Now, here's some Avios, please go away.
But, I had to take second glance. At the bottom of the email:
Calm down, I thought, its just a simple mistake. So, I wrote back, stating that I think they maybe used the wrong template (not quite those words).
But, the response back...
Is this a new approach by BA to not offer a standard IFE failure compensation based on cabin? Has anyone else experienced this? I wonder if they took my high 6 figure Avios balance into account.
I contacted BA via the twitter team too, to see what they're saying. Its only 5K Avios, but this has irked me somewhat irrationally
Well, I say it was broken, but it was initially working, until I got half way through a movie and they announced that some people only had the loop system so they were rebooting it. The guy next to me was one of those for whom it was not working and he was not happy.
20 minutes later, the cabin crew had done a great job in ensuring that he was as happy as I now was: Everyone now had the loop system only.
I'm sure I could taste the schadenfreude in air.
I couldn't finish watching my movie, so moved onto my Kindle and, anyway, I thought, that's an easy-peasy 10K Avios. So i filled in the usual form on BA.com a couple of days later.
The customary cut-and-paste response came back yesterday: Sorry, we know how important <insert customer complaint> is to you, we always strive to improve <insert customer complaint> and we'll pass your feedback onto <insert part of BA that owns customer complaint>. Now, here's some Avios, please go away.
But, I had to take second glance. At the bottom of the email:
As a gesture of goodwill, I have added 5,000 Avios points to your Executive Club account.
But, the response back...
Dear Paralytic
Thank you for coming back to us about your recent flight to San Francisco. I am sorry that you are unhappy with the compensation we have offered you.
When something has gone wrong for one of our customers, our first priority is to offer an apology and do all in our power to prevent the same kind of situation happening again. Where it seems appropriate, we also like to show our goodwill in some tangible way. The form it takes will depend on the particular situation. So the amount of Avios points we had offered you is appropriate for the problem you had onboard.
I would like to assure you that we have offered same amount of compensation to all the passengers affected in World Traveller Plus. While I appreciate your reasons for asking, I'm afraid we cannot increase our offer. I am sorry to have to disappoint you.
Thank you again for contacting us and for giving me an opportunity to look at your case again. I hope we will have an opportunity to welcome you on board again soon.
Best regards
Thank you for coming back to us about your recent flight to San Francisco. I am sorry that you are unhappy with the compensation we have offered you.
When something has gone wrong for one of our customers, our first priority is to offer an apology and do all in our power to prevent the same kind of situation happening again. Where it seems appropriate, we also like to show our goodwill in some tangible way. The form it takes will depend on the particular situation. So the amount of Avios points we had offered you is appropriate for the problem you had onboard.
I would like to assure you that we have offered same amount of compensation to all the passengers affected in World Traveller Plus. While I appreciate your reasons for asking, I'm afraid we cannot increase our offer. I am sorry to have to disappoint you.
Thank you again for contacting us and for giving me an opportunity to look at your case again. I hope we will have an opportunity to welcome you on board again soon.
Best regards
I contacted BA via the twitter team too, to see what they're saying. Its only 5K Avios, but this has irked me somewhat irrationally
Aug 26, 2014, 12:53 pm
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Near Edinburgh
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 9,034
I consider seeing half a movie worse than having none at all. With the loop system, at least I could have started at the start of a film, but having watched half of it, there was no way i could try and restart from where it failed.
So, it should have been double
So, it should have been double
Aug 26, 2014, 12:55 pm
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Near Edinburgh
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 9,034
Perhaps I should have complained that the in-flight map was unwatchable after the loop system was put on - it was like watching it through a murky snowstorm.
Aug 26, 2014, 1:15 pm
#9
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold, HHonours, SPG, AVIS
Posts: 526
Another Enhancement? (Reduced Avios for Broken IFE)
We had an issue in Club about half way through the flight and got 15K. It really only affected Mrs E2S as there was nothing I wanted to watch, and was reading my Kindle. In the email response we were told that BA apologised and liked to inform us that the Thales system was going to be rolled out across the fleet, unfortunately it didn't say by when, but I assume it will be complete when the last 747/772 is retired!!
Aug 26, 2014, 3:13 pm
#11
Moderator: Qatar Airways
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: LHR/NCE/MIA
Programs: BAEC GfL & GGL, SQ Gold, Amex Centurion, Mucci des Chevaliers des Bons Mots et Qui Savent Moucher
Posts: 8,947
I had an issue with the IFE on my recent ATH-LHR flight. I was sat in CE watching an over-head screen but the sound did not work at my seat.
I was awarded 7,500 Avios without pressing. I was quite pleased, especially as I simply used my wife's sound controls...which she didnt mind as she had no interest in the film (I did mention this to the Customer Rep)
I was awarded 7,500 Avios without pressing. I was quite pleased, especially as I simply used my wife's sound controls...which she didnt mind as she had no interest in the film (I did mention this to the Customer Rep)
Aug 26, 2014, 8:20 pm
#12
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: UK
Programs: I go wherever the content takes me.
Posts: 5,698
Another Enhancement? (Reduced Avios for Broken IFE)
BA's Avios compensation is ridiculously high.
I got 20k for having a rude and badly trained agent on the phone last year, when all I wanted was an apology and seat selection fee back. I didn't ask for it at all.
That's two Band 1 returns.... In general I feel BA are very generous with their compensation.
I got 20k for having a rude and badly trained agent on the phone last year, when all I wanted was an apology and seat selection fee back. I didn't ask for it at all.
That's two Band 1 returns.... In general I feel BA are very generous with their compensation.
Aug 27, 2014, 6:23 am
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Near Edinburgh
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 9,034
I think I've seen that before. A few times, actually.
The BA Twitter team responded. "Like any business, we do review our policies regularly" and "We have altered the number of Avios that we offer."
However, "You are a valued customer and I don't want you to be unhappy" and since "it was a long flight", they gave me a few more Avios. Not the full 5K difference.
Oct 1, 2015, 12:32 am
#15
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA GGL, A3 Gold, M&M SEN, FlyingBlue Gold, AS MVP Gold, Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Amb
Posts: 902
Apologies for resurrecting a pretty old thread, but it was somewhat close to my case. I've had LAV-LHR booked in WT, which I have subsequently upgraded to WTP. At the gate I was bumped to CW, which turned out to be OF seat. So far so good, but the IFE didn't quite work. Instead of AVOD, all I had was a selection of broadcast movies and music and in-flight map, no on demand whatsoever. The crew tried to restart the system, which did nothing. I've emailed customer services only to get the canned copy&paste response: "[...] You’re clearly disappointed with our choice of onboard entertainment on your flight. [...]".
On a positive note, they've eventually added the following line to their template: "We appreciate your support as a Gold member of our Executive Club".
On a positive note, they've eventually added the following line to their template: "We appreciate your support as a Gold member of our Executive Club".
