Storm in Paris, ORD-CDG
Dec 27, 1999, 1:26 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: los angeles
Posts: 27
Storm in Paris, ORD-CDG
Well, we could not land... Funny how they waited until we got above the airport to let us know. We had to land in LHR. Will post a trip report later here's a letter I'm sending to UA customer service, it'll give you an idea..... You might be able to tell that I am holding my horses....
-----------------------
United Airlines
Customer relations- WHQPW
Attn- Director of Customer Relations
PO BOX 66100
Chicago, IL 60666
December 27, 1999
RE: Request for London-Paris train fare reimbursement
VIA FACSIMILE
Dear Sir/Madam,
I was travelling in Business class with my partner on flight UA 942 ORD-CDG on December 25, 1999. As we were circling the Paris airport, the captain announced that the plane could not land because of a severe storm, and that we were being diverted to London.
After we landed in Heathrow, we were kept on board for two hours waiting for your ground staff to decide on the fate of the flight. When they finally cancelled it, we were told to deplane, collect our luggage and report to the United Arrivals desk. There, a clearly overwhelmed staff of three told us that they had reserved a block of rooms in a hotel near the airport, and that they would book flights to Paris for the next day. Since it was still early in the morning and I had a meeting scheduled for the next day in Paris, I asked about the possibility of getting there by train. Your staff told me that they had tried to contact the train station but, and I quote, " Since this is Boxing Day, trains (were) not running". There was something unusual about this statement - Boxing Day is not a holiday in France- and I decided to call the train station myself. I was told by a Eurostar agent that trains were indeed running and leaving for Paris.
Faced with the prospect of spending 24 hours in an airport hotel waiting for a phone call and the likelihood of missing an important meeting, we decided to take matters into our own hands. We hopped on a taxicab to Waterloo station, bought two tickets to Paris on the next Eurostar train. We left at 10:42 am and arrived in Paris at 3 pm on the same day.
I would like to request the reimbursement of the train tickets and taxicab fare. The total comes to 390+ 42= 432 British pounds. I have included copies of the receipts. I would be very happy to provide you with originals if requested.
It is clear that United Airlines cannot control the weather, and I appreciate the Captain’s decision not to land at CDG. I also appreciate the fact that it might not be possible, in a short timeframe, to provide individual customer service to a 300-strong planeload of passengers, which explains why "a block" of hotel rooms had been booked.
Therefore, I will resist the temptation of calling the UA Heathrow staff anything but professional. However, it was indeed clearly possible to arrange continuation of our trip to Paris on the same day- we did it ourselves. And if I am ready to accept that it might not have been possible for your staff to arrange it, I also believe that I should not be penalized for succeeding in getting us to Paris on the same day.
After our arrival in Paris, a UA reservations agent told me that, indeed, reservations had been made for us on a British Midland flight scheduled for the next day. I believe that we made the right decision by taking this train a few hours after our arrival in London. The same reservations agent told me to write this letter, which I would have done anyway.
On a related matter, I would like to suggest that since United Airlines already has a marketing arrangement with Eurostar, such arrangement could be widened to include improved collaboration for the re-booking of passengers during irregular operations in Paris, London, Brussels or Amsterdam.
I am a loyal United Airlines customer, and, once again, I understand that there are logistical difficulties in arranging alternate travel for large numbers of passengers during irregular operations. I hope you will appreciate that a customer is sometimes able to resolve issues on his/her own when time is of the essence and the United staff is clearly overwhelmed.
Respectfully yours,
Dr. X
1K. # xxxxxxxxx
[This message has been edited by LAXPremex (edited 12-27-1999).]
[This message has been edited by LAXPremex (edited 12-27-1999).]
-----------------------
United Airlines
Customer relations- WHQPW
Attn- Director of Customer Relations
PO BOX 66100
Chicago, IL 60666
December 27, 1999
RE: Request for London-Paris train fare reimbursement
VIA FACSIMILE
Dear Sir/Madam,
I was travelling in Business class with my partner on flight UA 942 ORD-CDG on December 25, 1999. As we were circling the Paris airport, the captain announced that the plane could not land because of a severe storm, and that we were being diverted to London.
After we landed in Heathrow, we were kept on board for two hours waiting for your ground staff to decide on the fate of the flight. When they finally cancelled it, we were told to deplane, collect our luggage and report to the United Arrivals desk. There, a clearly overwhelmed staff of three told us that they had reserved a block of rooms in a hotel near the airport, and that they would book flights to Paris for the next day. Since it was still early in the morning and I had a meeting scheduled for the next day in Paris, I asked about the possibility of getting there by train. Your staff told me that they had tried to contact the train station but, and I quote, " Since this is Boxing Day, trains (were) not running". There was something unusual about this statement - Boxing Day is not a holiday in France- and I decided to call the train station myself. I was told by a Eurostar agent that trains were indeed running and leaving for Paris.
Faced with the prospect of spending 24 hours in an airport hotel waiting for a phone call and the likelihood of missing an important meeting, we decided to take matters into our own hands. We hopped on a taxicab to Waterloo station, bought two tickets to Paris on the next Eurostar train. We left at 10:42 am and arrived in Paris at 3 pm on the same day.
I would like to request the reimbursement of the train tickets and taxicab fare. The total comes to 390+ 42= 432 British pounds. I have included copies of the receipts. I would be very happy to provide you with originals if requested.
It is clear that United Airlines cannot control the weather, and I appreciate the Captain’s decision not to land at CDG. I also appreciate the fact that it might not be possible, in a short timeframe, to provide individual customer service to a 300-strong planeload of passengers, which explains why "a block" of hotel rooms had been booked.
Therefore, I will resist the temptation of calling the UA Heathrow staff anything but professional. However, it was indeed clearly possible to arrange continuation of our trip to Paris on the same day- we did it ourselves. And if I am ready to accept that it might not have been possible for your staff to arrange it, I also believe that I should not be penalized for succeeding in getting us to Paris on the same day.
After our arrival in Paris, a UA reservations agent told me that, indeed, reservations had been made for us on a British Midland flight scheduled for the next day. I believe that we made the right decision by taking this train a few hours after our arrival in London. The same reservations agent told me to write this letter, which I would have done anyway.
On a related matter, I would like to suggest that since United Airlines already has a marketing arrangement with Eurostar, such arrangement could be widened to include improved collaboration for the re-booking of passengers during irregular operations in Paris, London, Brussels or Amsterdam.
I am a loyal United Airlines customer, and, once again, I understand that there are logistical difficulties in arranging alternate travel for large numbers of passengers during irregular operations. I hope you will appreciate that a customer is sometimes able to resolve issues on his/her own when time is of the essence and the United staff is clearly overwhelmed.
Respectfully yours,
Dr. X
1K. # xxxxxxxxx
[This message has been edited by LAXPremex (edited 12-27-1999).]
[This message has been edited by LAXPremex (edited 12-27-1999).]
Dec 28, 1999, 12:03 am
#3
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Chicago, IL (2 miles from ORD)
Posts: 660
Good luck!
As I have learned(the hard way), whenever you take matters into your own hands, you create a situation that puts you at a company's mercy. I had a situation involving a breach of contract by a hotel and took matters into my own hands. I asked the company for reimbursement, they agreed, but my letter got lost during a change in the customer service management. As a consequence, the company then refused to honor the promise to reimburse me. I ended up taking the company to court, they won on a technicality. In court, the company's defense was that the situation was beyond their control and they were not liable. I could have sued the party that was directly responsible(the owner of the individual hotel franchise), but that would have required costly and time consuming travels, so I not only lost the money I originally spent, but I lost the cost of filing in court. By the way, the company is Forte Hotels operating as Travelodge.
to them!
As I have learned(the hard way), whenever you take matters into your own hands, you create a situation that puts you at a company's mercy. I had a situation involving a breach of contract by a hotel and took matters into my own hands. I asked the company for reimbursement, they agreed, but my letter got lost during a change in the customer service management. As a consequence, the company then refused to honor the promise to reimburse me. I ended up taking the company to court, they won on a technicality. In court, the company's defense was that the situation was beyond their control and they were not liable. I could have sued the party that was directly responsible(the owner of the individual hotel franchise), but that would have required costly and time consuming travels, so I not only lost the money I originally spent, but I lost the cost of filing in court. By the way, the company is Forte Hotels operating as Travelodge.
to them!
Dec 28, 1999, 10:43 pm
#4
Moderator: Hyatt Gold Passport & Star Alliance
Join Date: May 1998
Location: London, UK
Programs: UA-1K 3MM/HY- LT Globalist/BA-GGL/GfL
Posts: 12,090
Let's just be clear here - all Paris rail stations were closed at some point on the 26th owing to the weather. Is it possible that they were closed when United called, but open when you did?
I use London all the time, and I defy anyone to cope with 300 people who wanted to be in Paris on a public holiday during a four day weekend.
The weather in Paris included 125 mile per hour winds and the loss of 10,000 trees in Versaiees.
I use London all the time, and I defy anyone to cope with 300 people who wanted to be in Paris on a public holiday during a four day weekend.
The weather in Paris included 125 mile per hour winds and the loss of 10,000 trees in Versaiees.