krispykrme

I just had one of the worst experience on United.

I was on UA990 from SFO to CDG on 8/28/16. Which was diverted to IAD due to crew rest issue that resulted in a 25 hours delay. While at IAD the premiere desk was able to rebook me on UA122 so that I could arrive in London on 8/29 9pm. That would allow me to drive from Heathrow to Poiters in France and make it to my meeting. At 4:30 am at IAD to check into UA122 it was miraculously that I was pulled off the flight and stuck on UA2090 leaving at 6:30PM. So rendering my one way rental car in Heathrow useless. Fast forward to 8/30 8:40 am, after arriving at CDG, my two rimowa with all my cloth for next two weeks are gone (supposedly in Frankfurt). I am schedule to fly in J on Air China to Haneda thru Beijing on 8/30 evening. So chances are I won't see my bag for next two weeks as I have to go to Tokyo, Sapporo, Seoul, Taiwan, and Singapore before going back to SFO via Tokyo and Paris.

Here is what I have suffered so far

1. 8/29 car rental in Paris- $180
2. 8/29 hotel in Poiters - $200
3. One way car rental from Heathrow to Paris -$1,475.
4. Given united incompetence thus far, I don't think I will find my two Rimowa. Which is about $1800 including my shaver and cloth.

So far I am $3,655 in red.

United offered $200 baggage allowance, and $300 electronic certificate.

Which I think was an insult.

Would like to see if anyone has sued United in small claim court.

mikelat

United would not be responsible for 1, 2, or 3. There is pretty much zero chance you'd win anything in court for those costs. Those are a good reason to have travel insurance though.

Did you fully pre-pay $1475 for the LHR-Paris car rental? WOW

If you wanted to keep the flight to LHR then did you ask if you could decline them moving you to the flight to CDG and stay on your LHR flight so that you wouldn't lose the car rental? Which was more important?

For #4, they have limitations on baggage claims listed on the site. I'd advise reading up on those and looking to see limits for International travel.

Mwenenzi

There is a fast train London to Paris And many flights.
Why anyone would want to drive is a mystery.
Why was the car rental not just cancelled?

The rest of the story here in post 1044 here
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...l#post27136794

Tickets t&c's are well defined.

krispykrme

1. Eurostar last train leaves London at 9:20pm. UA122 arrives into Heathrow at 9:10pm. There is no way for me to make it. I have to be in Poiters by 8am the next morning. Driving was only option left.

2. Prepaid- there is nothing I can do.

This was due to United own issue not force of nature.

Yes- I told them to keep on London flight. They said no. It's no longer available.

Fine. If United wants to play hardball, I will do the same to make it lose lose situation. Small claim court will cost me nothing in legal fees. But it will cost United.

At this point I have removed all UA accrual on my next 6 flight to EVA. I will have round trip in J on Air China, Air Canada x2, and Singapore. So I will make EVA gold with ease this year.

UA1K_no_more

I found this "gem" in that post:
"To add insult to injury. I can't get into C7 lounge at Dulles because I am bring outside food in. Keep in mind, that there were not seats anywhere in the terminal. I ended up having to eat my lunch like a homeless on the terminal floor. Only after I finish my lunch I was allowed back to the Lounge."

You chose to make a non-refundable, pre-paid reservation. You could have made a refundable reservation. @:-)

TA

While the OP's situation is unfortunate and sympathetic, I don't see how an airline can be responsible for the huge costs here that were completely at the OP's voluntary decision to incur?

SEA-Flyer

We don't know that for sure. I know I've encountered times when booking where I don't have a choice between refundable and non-refundable. My only choice was to book it as non-refundable, or not at all. The OP might have encountered a similar situation.

UA1K_no_more

A Kayak search shows last-minute one-way LHR-Paris rentals (Hertz) available with free cancellation. Since the OP booked the car while he was still in the US, I don't see why he couldn't take the time to find a reservation that he could cancel and/or get refunded in case there were additional issues.

The OP had already experienced UA flight issues on this trip, as well as experiencing problems on a previous trip, so why would he make a $1500 wager on a non-refundable car reservation that would be wasted if UA screwed up again?

halls120

Same here. In all my years of international travel, I've never encountered a situation where I couldn't reserve a car without free cancellation.

escapefromphl

I've never even had a hotel refuse to cancel or change in the event of flight delays.

With regard to original flight,why would the fight even leave SFO with crew that was going to become illegal 5 hours into flight? That doesn't seem right.

CopperSteve

This is my biggest question. Something isn't adding up here.

Often1

You may certainly sue UA and waste your money on a lawyer and filing fees. Or go it alone in small claims and simply waste your time and effort and a smaller amount on filing fees.

But, the bottom line is that before you sue others, you need a basis for liability. Here that is the contract you chose to enter with UA. Apparently you did not read it.

As a starting point, if your flight diverted to and was cancelled at IAD, something had to crop up after departure from ORD. UA flights on that route carry at least one extra Captain/First officer fully capable of flying the aircraft. Thus, some substantial enroute delay must have arisen which would have created the need this problem.

It looks as though UA made arrangements for the flight to continue on to CDG at 5:48 AM local IAD time, but then cancelled the flight.

1. $180 - Car rental in Paris. When you purchased your ticket, you agreed that UA would not be liable for "consequential" damages. These are things such as non-refundable fees for onward transportation.

2. $200 - Hotel in Poitiers - Same thing. It is a consequential damage.

3. $1,475 - Non-Refundable car rental LON-PIS. Unless you obtained prior approval from UA, forget it.

4. $1,800 - Baggage. This is pure speculation. Most bags catch up quite quickly. WorldTracer, shared by most carriers is very efficient and so long as you keep it up-to-date with your new location, your bags will make it to you somewhere. If the bag is lost, which occurs under the Montreal Convention at 21 days, you are entitled to cash (or equivalent) of the fair market value of the bag + contents up to approx. $1,650 (less what UA has already paid on the baggage claim). FMV means that a $100 shirt 2 years ago isn't worth $100 today.

You are far better off claiming these other expenses against your travel insurance if it covers them. Some might.

Finally, what do you mean by "pulled from your flight"? If you were confirmed onto the flight and ontime for it, which I presume you were as you were at IAD, you may have an involuntary denied boarding claim and that might be worth as much as $1,350. But, more details are necessary.

It is water under the bridge for OP - but booking non-refundable car rentals is almost always a mistake. Many hotel properties will be helpful if you call the second you know that you cannot make it, even if you have missed a deadline. Lastly, if you accepted LHR as a destination, what about onward service to any Paris airport from any London airport? What about UA rebooking to FRA on either UA or LH? It's the middle of the night and no way could you have planned for a diversion to IAD. But, it is a UA hub and there is tons of European service. LHR can't have been the only service which could get you to PIS for your meeting.

If you could fill in the details and also consider a more detailed complaint to UA which omits the stuff which can't be helped, e.g. crowded lounge and focus on what has happened, perhaps you will do better. I would strongly recommend holding off until you have returned home as you may or may not need to deal with a baggage issue by then.

MSPeconomist

Why was the OP removed from the IAD-LHR flight? Was he/she literally removed in the sense of first being seated on board when some official told him/her to get off the aircraft?

Cargojon

You are assuming that because UA said your bags were in FRA as of this morning CET time, and you haven't seen them yet that they are permanently gone; you can't assume you won't get them.

Your story is so full of hyperbole and problems of your own making it's really hard to take seriously.

Oh, and if your tickets are already purchased, on Eva, AC, etc UA doesn't give a fat crap if you remove your MP number and insert another *A FF#. It doesn't re-direct the revenue in any way, shape, or form.

WineCountryUA

USA airlines by federal law are exempt from most state statues and small claims actions. Also read the full contract you agreed to at ticket purchase to see the extent of your recoverable expenses and/or damages.