OK, I'm lived in nyc now for 9 years, but previously I lived in Texas and Louisiana for 38 years. And there is no question that the service and attitude at EWR is much worse than the service an attitude at IAH and it is NOT because I am an nyc folk with high expectations (as a born Louisianian I do not have an East Coast Frame of Mind) nor is it because service people in the nyc area are low in abilities in service. I get really excellent service in many ways in the nyc area (contrary to belief service people in nyc area can be some of the absolute best, especially at restaurants, rarely do you get forced out with a check before you are ready), but not at EWR. EWR has a chronic problem and CO needs to do something about it. That said, I think that in this case that if the OP had realized that the bag was damaged while at the airport he or she could have found a CO employee to handle it, even at EWR.

There is no viable escalation path at CO other than contacting someone you may know who is a higher up (e.g., CO Insider). Customer care routinely drops the ball, and it's very difficult to escalate to get something looked at again or from a different angle.



Either that, or they're being efficient based on prior experiences with CO.

My last two problems with CO got me nowhere until I started raising my voice and being very forceful. I don't typically do that with a company unless they're shady and I'm not getting anywhere, which was the case on those last two CO issues -- just getting the usual blow-off answers or passing the buck when it was clearly their fault. It's worth noting that once I did that, I started getting traction, so CO is responsive to it.

So while raising one's voice and being forceful may be a NYC stereotype, it's also possible that it's just how customers have learned how to deal with CO.

Except in this particular case. Except for the minor confusion about whether the baggage services office was actually open had the OP noticed and tried to file the claim that night, it seems that all the OP had to do was follow the policy of having the bag inspected and then the situation was resolved quite well. No troubles at all. And no apparent need to escalate.

In this case the situation did not demand escalation and even if the OP feels better for having vented to someone higher up the net was the same: they still had to follow the policies. This is actually an example that works against your consistent bemoaning of CO Customer Service. In this case the CSRs did everything exactly as they should have and the customer got the appropriate response. Where's the problem here?

There is no problem. The OP did what was suggested to him, made fun of everyone who suggested he drive to the airport, and they replaced the bag.

The OP claims the bag service was closed, and everyone here who is based in EWR know this is B.S. Just looking at the bag counter and no seeing someone at the moment doesn't equate to being closed. AFAIK, Bag agents are allowed to use the bathroom no? Or maybe they were on the back doign some other baggage related work.

And that is besides the point. The OP did not notice the bag was broken until they got home. How is that anyone else fault is beyond me. Maybe the OP dropped the bag trying to get it into his car while juggling his children? Sounds absurd? Yes. Just as absurd as expecting CO to replace the bag without seeing the damage.

Channa is just trying to turn a thread of a simple unwarranted complain (i.e. DYKWIA - an ELITE GOLD - How dare you make me show you the damage I insist you pay for!? :rolleyes:) into his old and tired moaning about CO's customer service not being empowered to give out vouchers like monopoly money.