SWISS Reissuing Mess - Denied Boarding
Jan 2, 2021, 12:07 pm
#1
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SWISS Reissuing Mess - Denied Boarding
I wanted to share with you guys an awful experience I had with SWISS back in October.
On August I booked a round trip in Business Class from AMS to TLV with SWISS.
Due to several cancellations and schedule changes, I rebooked my canceled reservation from BRE (within 200 miles from the original departure AMS, enabling me to save the trip to AMS and avoid several COVID restrictions).
I received a new ticket on the same day. The change of departure airport was processed free of change fees or fare difference due to the cancellation.
Unfortunately, there was another cancellation within the same day of me rebooking, just hours after I already rescheduled my flight. I immediately contacted SWISS again and asked to be rebooked.
I asked the SWISS representative if they would be able to change my airport of departure again to another nearby airport (Berlin - Less than 200 miles from BRE).
The representative said she is able to change my departure airport to Berlin free of charge and said she will send me a new ticket within a day or two as there was no rush (the flight was scheduled five days away).
During the following days, I never received a new ticket number but was able to see the new Berlin itinerary on both the SWISS and LUFTHANSA websites.
I tried calling SWISS multiple times, every time I was assured everything is fine and that there's a large backlog of reservations to be ticketed and mine will also be ticketed soon.
Two days before the flight I began to worry since up until this point I haven't received my new reissued ticket number. I called the SWISS call center again and was once more assured everything is fine and there's absolutely no reason to worry about my reservation and that it would be reissued soon. I was promised it was moved to an urgent ticketing inbox and would be reissued within a few hours.
One day before departure I still haven't received a new ticket number. I contacted SWISS again and they said once more to not worry and that they re-sent it to the urgent ticketing inbox and to just go to the airport tomorrow.
On the day of departure, I packed my bags and made my way to Berlin airport, I was unable to OLCI so contacted SWISS again on my way, this time around the representative tried to issue the ticket while I was on hold. The representative said there was an error and that she is unable to reissue the ticket without me paying a fare difference of nearly 3,000 EUR.
After informing the representative that I have no intention of paying almost 8 times the original ticket price for a seat on a flight I already have a ticket for she said she is unable to help and could only offer a refund or voucher. I asked to speak with a supervisor to sort the ticketing mess.
At this point, the last SWISS departure from Berlin I was booked on was only hours away.
The supervisor investigated and said the issue was that the original agent rebooked my flight from BRE to Berlin and did not notice that while Berlin is less than 200 miles away from BRE it is actually 359 miles away from AMS. the agent that originally rebooked my flight contacted a different supervisor on while I was on hold and got authorization to change the origin city to Berlin but either the agent or the first supervisor were not aware that a rebooking to a nearby airport is limited to 200 miles from the originally ticketed airport and not from the last ticketed airport (I was not aware of it either).
While there was still time to rebook my ticket so I won't miss my flight within hours the supervisor refused to assist and suggested I'll pay the fare difference of 3,000 EUR and sue SWISS later in a small claims court!
I refused and the supervisor said he will also be able to rebook me in Economy instead of business class if I will pay a fare difference of 800 EUR.
I again refused and was offered to fly the same day from either AMS or BRE, both of which were not practical since I was in Berlin and it would not have been possible to reach AMS or BRE within the time frame given (the drive would take 3-6 hours while the flights were both departing sooner).
I specifically booked SWISS business class (A340) to be able to enjoy social distancing in this complicated COVID time due to a complicated medical condition I have.
I asked to be rebooked on the next SWISS business class leaving BRE which was only two days away.
I recently filed a complaint with SWISS and am waiting for their response.
What do you guys think? am I entitled to reimbursement of expenses? IDB? a gesture of goodwill from SWISS?
I'm a Star Alliance Gold member if it makes any difference.
On August I booked a round trip in Business Class from AMS to TLV with SWISS.
Due to several cancellations and schedule changes, I rebooked my canceled reservation from BRE (within 200 miles from the original departure AMS, enabling me to save the trip to AMS and avoid several COVID restrictions).
I received a new ticket on the same day. The change of departure airport was processed free of change fees or fare difference due to the cancellation.
Unfortunately, there was another cancellation within the same day of me rebooking, just hours after I already rescheduled my flight. I immediately contacted SWISS again and asked to be rebooked.
I asked the SWISS representative if they would be able to change my airport of departure again to another nearby airport (Berlin - Less than 200 miles from BRE).
The representative said she is able to change my departure airport to Berlin free of charge and said she will send me a new ticket within a day or two as there was no rush (the flight was scheduled five days away).
During the following days, I never received a new ticket number but was able to see the new Berlin itinerary on both the SWISS and LUFTHANSA websites.
I tried calling SWISS multiple times, every time I was assured everything is fine and that there's a large backlog of reservations to be ticketed and mine will also be ticketed soon.
Two days before the flight I began to worry since up until this point I haven't received my new reissued ticket number. I called the SWISS call center again and was once more assured everything is fine and there's absolutely no reason to worry about my reservation and that it would be reissued soon. I was promised it was moved to an urgent ticketing inbox and would be reissued within a few hours.
One day before departure I still haven't received a new ticket number. I contacted SWISS again and they said once more to not worry and that they re-sent it to the urgent ticketing inbox and to just go to the airport tomorrow.
On the day of departure, I packed my bags and made my way to Berlin airport, I was unable to OLCI so contacted SWISS again on my way, this time around the representative tried to issue the ticket while I was on hold. The representative said there was an error and that she is unable to reissue the ticket without me paying a fare difference of nearly 3,000 EUR.
After informing the representative that I have no intention of paying almost 8 times the original ticket price for a seat on a flight I already have a ticket for she said she is unable to help and could only offer a refund or voucher. I asked to speak with a supervisor to sort the ticketing mess.
At this point, the last SWISS departure from Berlin I was booked on was only hours away.
The supervisor investigated and said the issue was that the original agent rebooked my flight from BRE to Berlin and did not notice that while Berlin is less than 200 miles away from BRE it is actually 359 miles away from AMS. the agent that originally rebooked my flight contacted a different supervisor on while I was on hold and got authorization to change the origin city to Berlin but either the agent or the first supervisor were not aware that a rebooking to a nearby airport is limited to 200 miles from the originally ticketed airport and not from the last ticketed airport (I was not aware of it either).
While there was still time to rebook my ticket so I won't miss my flight within hours the supervisor refused to assist and suggested I'll pay the fare difference of 3,000 EUR and sue SWISS later in a small claims court!
I refused and the supervisor said he will also be able to rebook me in Economy instead of business class if I will pay a fare difference of 800 EUR.
I again refused and was offered to fly the same day from either AMS or BRE, both of which were not practical since I was in Berlin and it would not have been possible to reach AMS or BRE within the time frame given (the drive would take 3-6 hours while the flights were both departing sooner).
I specifically booked SWISS business class (A340) to be able to enjoy social distancing in this complicated COVID time due to a complicated medical condition I have.
I asked to be rebooked on the next SWISS business class leaving BRE which was only two days away.
I recently filed a complaint with SWISS and am waiting for their response.
What do you guys think? am I entitled to reimbursement of expenses? IDB? a gesture of goodwill from SWISS?
I'm a Star Alliance Gold member if it makes any difference.
Jan 2, 2021, 3:59 pm
#2
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EC 261/2004 will not apply as you were not denied boarding anywhere nor was your ticketed flight cancelled or delayed. Thus, no duty of care either, particularly because LX rebooked you as you ultimately requested xBRE.
On the other hand, this was execrable customer service. Some carriers might make a sporting show of doing something for you. LX likely will not, but it is worth asking. I would submit your expenses and see what happens.
On the other hand, this was execrable customer service. Some carriers might make a sporting show of doing something for you. LX likely will not, but it is worth asking. I would submit your expenses and see what happens.
Jan 3, 2021, 6:49 am
#3
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With your second request of changing the departure city you have asked for this trouble.
You booked the flight in August 2020. By that time everyone knew that customer service at airlines is abymisal, esp. when it comes to more complex queries.
This is the first red flag for me. How can anyone book a flight several months in advance? Schedule changes and cancellation were guaranteed to happen during that period of time.
You have no legal ground to claim for compensation because you cannot prove a new transportation contract for Berlin-Tel Aviv was agreed on.
You booked the flight in August 2020. By that time everyone knew that customer service at airlines is abymisal, esp. when it comes to more complex queries.
On August I booked a round trip in Business Class from AMS to TLV with SWISS.
I wanted to share with you guys an awful experience I had with SWISS back in October.
I asked the SWISS representative if they would be able to change my airport of departure again to another nearby airport (Berlin - Less than 200 miles from BRE).
The representative said she is able to change my departure airport to Berlin free of charge and said she will send me a new ticket within a day or two as there was no rush (the flight was scheduled five days away).
The representative said she is able to change my departure airport to Berlin free of charge and said she will send me a new ticket within a day or two as there was no rush (the flight was scheduled five days away).
Jan 3, 2021, 6:50 am
#4
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I think you should forget EC legislation.
The simple line to follow is that having discovered an action incongruent with its ticketing rules, it was incumbent on SWISS to inform you that it would be unable to issue the ticket. If this had happened, I'm guessing you'd have quietly settled on a BRE departure, avoiding the stress and expense you experienced.
Ideally, they'd have recognised that one of their agent had made a mistake, and resolved that a client shouldn't suffer because of that. But this is SWISS.
I've got to say I could see where this was leading after the second shift in departure point. Maybe you, too, had doubts: but the agent confirmed the BRE-BER move, and you were repeatedly reassured that the ticket was, well, tickety-boo.
When the crisis moment hit, it is appalling that the SWISS agent and supervisor were trapped in a loop of machine-logic without the ability to apply common-sense.
Looking through the threads in this forum you can see the airline has a reputation for this type of behaviour and, sadly for you, for defending it.
The simple line to follow is that having discovered an action incongruent with its ticketing rules, it was incumbent on SWISS to inform you that it would be unable to issue the ticket. If this had happened, I'm guessing you'd have quietly settled on a BRE departure, avoiding the stress and expense you experienced.
Ideally, they'd have recognised that one of their agent had made a mistake, and resolved that a client shouldn't suffer because of that. But this is SWISS.
I've got to say I could see where this was leading after the second shift in departure point. Maybe you, too, had doubts: but the agent confirmed the BRE-BER move, and you were repeatedly reassured that the ticket was, well, tickety-boo.
When the crisis moment hit, it is appalling that the SWISS agent and supervisor were trapped in a loop of machine-logic without the ability to apply common-sense.
Looking through the threads in this forum you can see the airline has a reputation for this type of behaviour and, sadly for you, for defending it.
Jan 3, 2021, 9:58 am
#6
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He has at least a reasonable argument for a refund of his original ticket as he was entitled to that when his xBRE flight was cancelled and he was induced not to require that as an option by the acceptance of the xBER ticket. He ought to be at least restored to the situation he faced and it is not for LX to say that he most likely would have accepted a change xBRE and made his way there.
Jan 3, 2021, 10:23 am
#7
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Legally speaking, I agree with you.
That would have triggered the right of a full cash refund.
However, it will be tough to squeeze out that full cash refund from LX - without the help of a court in Bremen.
Unfortunately, there was another cancellation within the same day of me rebooking, just hours after I already rescheduled my flight.
However, it will be tough to squeeze out that full cash refund from LX - without the help of a court in Bremen.
Jan 6, 2021, 11:07 am
#9
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Doubtful anything from October is still available if it was recorded in the first place.
More importantly, it does not appear that LX is disputing what it did. Simply, that it should not have done so.
More importantly, it does not appear that LX is disputing what it did. Simply, that it should not have done so.
Jan 6, 2021, 12:53 pm
#10
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I luckily made several screenshots of my BER booking on their website, this, in addition to a full detailed description of how things happened should probably be enough to win in an Israeli small claims court. I still hope to have the situation rectified with a swift reimbursement of expenses plus an appropriate compensation, but if SWISS refuses I'm confident I can win this in court with little to no expense on my end.
Jan 6, 2021, 12:59 pm
#11
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I think you should forget EC legislation.
The simple line to follow is that having discovered an action incongruent with its ticketing rules, it was incumbent on SWISS to inform you that it would be unable to issue the ticket. If this had happened, I'm guessing you'd have quietly settled on a BRE departure, avoiding the stress and expense you experienced.
Ideally, they'd have recognised that one of their agent had made a mistake, and resolved that a client shouldn't suffer because of that. But this is SWISS.
I've got to say I could see where this was leading after the second shift in departure point. Maybe you, too, had doubts: but the agent confirmed the BRE-BER move, and you were repeatedly reassured that the ticket was, well, tickety-boo.
When the crisis moment hit, it is appalling that the SWISS agent and supervisor were trapped in a loop of machine-logic without the ability to apply common-sense.
Looking through the threads in this forum you can see the airline has a reputation for this type of behaviour and, sadly for you, for defending it.
The simple line to follow is that having discovered an action incongruent with its ticketing rules, it was incumbent on SWISS to inform you that it would be unable to issue the ticket. If this had happened, I'm guessing you'd have quietly settled on a BRE departure, avoiding the stress and expense you experienced.
Ideally, they'd have recognised that one of their agent had made a mistake, and resolved that a client shouldn't suffer because of that. But this is SWISS.
I've got to say I could see where this was leading after the second shift in departure point. Maybe you, too, had doubts: but the agent confirmed the BRE-BER move, and you were repeatedly reassured that the ticket was, well, tickety-boo.
When the crisis moment hit, it is appalling that the SWISS agent and supervisor were trapped in a loop of machine-logic without the ability to apply common-sense.
Looking through the threads in this forum you can see the airline has a reputation for this type of behaviour and, sadly for you, for defending it.
Hopefully SWISS will do the right thing and just reimburse me for my expenses plus maybe throw in some miles or vouchers to compensate for the awful service.
Jan 6, 2021, 2:11 pm
#12
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LX simply sees it as a long-run win. If once in a while some judge somewhere orders it to pay a bit of money, that is a rounding error compared to running a full-scale customer service operation and empowering at least its supervisors.
LX is probably right in this view. At every stage of pushback, more people drop off and, by attrition, paying out the 1% of the 1% is good value.
LX is probably right in this view. At every stage of pushback, more people drop off and, by attrition, paying out the 1% of the 1% is good value.
Jan 6, 2021, 2:36 pm
#13
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LX simply sees it as a long-run win. If once in a while some judge somewhere orders it to pay a bit of money, that is a rounding error compared to running a full-scale customer service operation and empowering at least its supervisors.
LX is probably right in this view. At every stage of pushback, more people drop off and, by attrition, paying out the 1% of the 1% is good value.
LX is probably right in this view. At every stage of pushback, more people drop off and, by attrition, paying out the 1% of the 1% is good value.
For comparison, during September when Israel was said to be closing borders to outgoing citizens, AF managed to get me a seat on an oversold flight just a day before departure (Platinum, overbooked the flight by an additional seat for me) and got me to my destination on time while issuing the ticket in minutes on the phone, asking me to verify I received the confirmation email before I hang up the call. Compare that to the terrible reissuing process LX/LH have.
AF/KL have rockstar level representatives in Israel (which are actually based in Bulgaria), I personally know a few of them by name and I could never imagine such an incident happening with them. It's a typical LX/LH service level where the general answer is a quick and clear "NEIN!".
Jan 6, 2021, 3:12 pm
#14
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Yes, I am totally with you. I have gone off LH Group in a big way, especially LX. So they don't need me and don't care. That's fine. I don't need them and don't care either.
It's a shame, though. It really was a good company for a while. Now it's regained the arrogance that Swissair had à l'époque, but even Swissair wouldn't have behaved like this back then.
Par contre, over at AFKL customer service seems quite good at the moment, especially if you're platinum.
It's a shame, though. It really was a good company for a while. Now it's regained the arrogance that Swissair had à l'époque, but even Swissair wouldn't have behaved like this back then.
Par contre, over at AFKL customer service seems quite good at the moment, especially if you're platinum.
Jan 7, 2021, 2:13 am
#15
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