polochick

I don't know whether it's true, but the chap I had helping me last night said the problem is with recruitment as they are only offering minimum wage and thus they can't get enough staff.

dwugson

Don't make excuses for Omniserve, only for the poor underpaid people working for them. My husband requires assistance and, based on our nightmare experiences traveling through London - not only Heathrow but also Gatwick we'll do anything to avoid any transfer there unless it's our final destination. There is an 'agreement' published on the Heathrow website concerning Omniserve's 'promise' as to what they are meant to provide, they fail in every respect. Although we also give advance requests for assistance there isn't one single time when there hasn't been a significant problem - including one where we almost missed a flight because, in spite of multiple calls by the lounge staff, no one picked us up.

1010101

After all these years they still use Omniserve, either HAL don't care or they pay so little noone else is interested.

I (my wife to be exact) have only had to use disability assistance a couple of times a few years ago but it was shocking, from BA's arrangement of it to security screening. My wife, the ardent royal and lover of all things British hasn't set foot on BA since. It doesn't really matter who actually provides it, as far as the customer is concerned it's BA, and being by far HAL's largest airline customer if they truly cared enough to kick up a fuss HAL would have to respond.

Soupey202

In response to the people that answered me earlier.

My husband would be able to push me from the aircraft door to baggage pick up and then we could put a hand luggage bag in to the wheelchair to weight it down and I could use it to lean on to get to the taxi.

The wheelchair I would take would be my secondary travel one, so whilst annoying if it got lost or damaged it would not be a disaster. The main thing is to avoid almost missing the flight because they don’t come to collect you (last time they sent a buggy for five to collect six people and then dithered over what to do), and to try and get from aircraft to customs in less than two hours (again a typical time).

I really don’t know how Omniserve and HAL get away with such a blatant disregard for the law.

Roger

As most of this discussion appeared while I was away, I hadn't planned to comment, other than to note the ever-helpful Can I Help You's accurate observations that the service is not provided by BA. However BA is the customer's interface and from this customer's POV should press HAL for improvement.

There is another side to the coin. On our return to T5 a couple of days ago, service was impeccable. Waited exiting the plane all of 2 minutes before a wheelchair arrived, then a buggy through Immigration to Customs, help with bags and a further wheelchair to the Customs exit where our driver was waiting.

What made this encounter particularly memorable was the buggy driver's and my mutual admiration of Roy Orbison! He - er, and I - had been fans since Only the Lonely in 1961 and he had visited The Big O's grave in Nashville. While waiting for bags, we had a great, respectful conversation and we were able to exchange useful info. Very OT, I know, but it raised my spirits so much that I'd like to send a BA-style Thank You but don't know how.

OK, but surely these conditions apply to most other airports, and they don't seem to suffer on the same scale. Personally, I find ZRH service impeccable, except the buggy driver shared my wife's first name last month, leading to odd conversation.

LTN Phobia

I suspect my post needs to be read in its entirety in this particular case rather than just a small part of it in order to see what I was really getting at. (i.e. it takes a long time to bring someone online => allow for more resignations, sicknesses etc. because they can't just hire someone for them to start the same day => HAL might need to pay more to their contractors to get them to do this => HAL charges every one of us a lot of money and still don't provide a decent service so we should ALL be upset, not just those who are directly affected by their bad assistance service)

binman

Early in 2027 my daughter returned from a school sport trip in a cast and required wheelchair assistance. In Cyprus she was met kerbside and the agent did not leave her till she boarded. The flight was late into LHR but at the aircraft door aft door she was collected and pushed to the baggage hall. At this point she was told to transfer to a different chair and the school leader asked if she could tame her the rest of the way. They agreed not realising that legal responsibility rested with the airport and their agents. I was genuinley shocked to see the school staff pushing her and of course they left her in my care at International arrivals whilst they got the others students sorted. I made several attempts to get help before trying to push her with a suitcase and hand baggage back to the car park.

The car car park was littered with 12-15 wheelchairs and the instruction was to leave it there. Once settle I again called using the dedicated telephone but no reply.

it was a shambles.

i complained in writing the following day and about 3 days later received the usual corporate cut and paste claptrap from Heathrow airport.

i replied quoting the EU regs and requesting that the issue be escalated and that they advise me of their formal complaints procedure, including details of who to take this up with in the event that I did not accept their reply.

CaroFos

not very kind or empathetic.