Broken Layflat on EWR-SFO

Old Feb 17, 2020, 11:04 pm
  #16  
 
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I had a broken Biz seat (787 the older 6 across type) would not recline FRA-SFO. It can be manually moved between upright and flat (but not in-between), and 3 FAs worked on my seat for over 20 minutes trying to get it working. I really appreciated the effort. The purser gave me $300 voucher in the air. I took it. I probably could have done better but oh well. I'm 1k MM.
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Old Feb 17, 2020, 11:55 pm
  #17  
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Originally Posted by shimps1
Just last month I got $125 for a Y seat that wouldn't recline on a 3 hr 737 flight. $300 for a completely broken lay flat (one one the main reasons for booking that specific flight to begin with) is unacceptable. I'd be looking for $1k minimum. Imagine if you had a meeting to get to right after the flight.
The great thing about living in a free country is that one can look for anything one wishes. That doesn't change how likely it is to happen, though.

Originally Posted by Kacee
In my view $300 for a broken lie-flat on a full fare J ticket is objectively unreasonable.
Reasonable or not is inherently subjective. Personally, I find $300 about right for a 6-hour flight, since I wouldn't pay more than about a $300 fare difference for that upgrade. (And, in fact, that's the approximate route differential). The amount paid for the ticker shouldn't make any difference, as it has nothing to do with the service provided. FWIW, I've actually slept in an upright, broken J seat on a mid-con. IIRC, I got a $175 voucher (which, incidentally, was more than I paid for the flight; I did throw on an RPU, but I would have CPU'ed into it anyway). I found it more than fair (and it was surprisingly comfortable).

Originally Posted by Channel 9
The purser gave me $300 voucher in the air. I took it. I probably could have done better but oh well. I'm 1k MM.
And this for a much longer flight than EWR-SFO.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 12:06 am
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by WineCountryUA
I would expect at least $500, $750 with some status and for a high status individual closer to $1000, as reported for a downgauge flight
A $1,000 comp? but he wasn't downguaged - if they offered that type of compensation, I'd hope for a broken seat all the time
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 12:20 am
  #19  
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I wouldn't be looking for compensation. I'd be looking for a pro-rated refund. What does a non-lie flat cost?
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 12:43 am
  #20  
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Originally Posted by canadiancow
I wouldn't be looking for compensation. I'd be looking for a pro-rated refund. What does a non-lie flat cost?
$689 on AS.

Which is kind of the point here. UA extracts a substantial premium for a "guaranteed" lie-flat on the premium t-cons. That some here wouldn't pay more than $300 is really irrelevant. The market values those seats considerably higher.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 1:08 am
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by NYNDSF
Recently flew on a J fare business class ticket and my seat was broken in the upright position (it did not recline at all let alone go fully flat). When I asked the FA for help, she offered none and did not seem to care at all. I tried to reach out to United after the flight and after a few weeks finally got a response... a $300 dollar voucher. That was a $3k one-way ticket and I am quite upset about the meager compensation especially given I am a mid-level premier status. I told them that it wasn't acceptable and that I would be taking my transcon business class flights with another airline in the future and they did not care. Anyone else had a bad experience like this / any advice on trying to get this fixed??

Sorry to hear that. Welcome to the new world of UA which do not care about the customers. I am accustomed to the service qualities of US3 - 'It is what it is'-attitude.
Does anybody know OP has a case to file complaint against UA and file chargeback because it is not what OP paid for?

Originally Posted by IAH-OIL-TRASH
No go. Passenger was transported to/from destination. If all he/she paid for was a seat, sure.
Is this really in the ToCs of customer protection rights? If that's the case it seems to be that Y fare, PEY fare, and F fare have the same
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 2:19 am
  #22  
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Why not file a credit card chargeback for false advertising?
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 3:45 am
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by Sleepy_Sentry
Why not file a credit card chargeback for false advertising?
IANAL, but think all the consumer protection stuff like that all falls under state causes of action which are (bizarrely) pre-empted by federal law / regs governing airline conduct.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 4:29 am
  #24  
 
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sad to see that the FA seems uninterested in at least trying or attempting to show that they were tiring to solve the issue.
I know the FA's probably cant fix it.. but at least make an effort, and give the passenger some good feelings.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 4:38 am
  #25  
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This story reminds me of that Youtuber who got assigned a broken lie-flat seat aboard a UA SFO-LIH Boeing 757-200 flight.


I guess you got the same seat.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 5:08 am
  #26  
 
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Originally Posted by SeamusSA
Wonder if anyone who had to bear this failure to deliver promised product tried to do a chargeback with the CC?
Originally Posted by IAH-OIL-TRASH
No go. Passenger was transported to/from destination. If all he/she paid for was a seat, sure.
I disagree.
I pay for a Steak and am served Chicken Nuggets, yet I received food.
I pay for a Mercadies and am given a Chevy, yet I received a car.

OP paid for a lie-flat seat which he was denied. If he paid for BE, then I would agree that he paid to be transported. J is paying a premium for comfort, among other things.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 5:33 am
  #27  
 
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UA markets these as premium routes with lie-flat seats. That is part of the extra fare you are paying beyond the lowest available Y fare which is arguably the cost of transportation from A to B.

Booking this route 30+ days out showed a $414 premium for J over Y. Booking this flight on day of departure showed a minimum of $1,250 premium, and as high as almost $3,000.

OP paid a premium for a lie flat seat and did not receive it in any form. The conversation should not be about compensation but about how much of a refund is due, of which the difference between the fare paid and the lowest available Y fare at time of booking is the start of that calculation. Compensation should be a customer service gesture beyond the refund amount to cover the inconvenience.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 5:53 am
  #28  
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Originally Posted by VWang1111
That's pretty stingy compensation but it's getting in to the realm of max compensation offered. It sucks but it seems to be in the norm. This should maybe be merged with the consolidated compensation thread and you can peruse through that thread to get a rough idea. To offer a datapoint, I was on an RPU upgrade and the FA offered a $500 voucher in the air. I would try asking nicely about revising the compensation and you can try emailing oscar's email to see if you can get someone in the executive leadership department.
I have a better idea. Next time you fly the competition instead of UA, send Oscar a copy of a) your boarding pass and b) a simple recounting of your earlier UA experience, letting him know that because of b), you chose a) next time you had a choice.

I doubt anyone at UA cares at this point, but at least you gave it a try.
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 6:04 am
  #29  
 
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I had a broken J seat on an overnight flight from OGG-DEN late last year. It wouldnt recline at all and the purser gave me $300 on the spot with her hand-held device. All I can do is what she told me and encouraged me to write the 1K desk upon returning home. 1K desks response was You've already been compensated in-flight and no additional compensation will be provided .
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 6:21 am
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by D582
UA markets these as premium routes with lie-flat seats. That is part of the extra fare you are paying beyond the lowest available Y fare which is arguably the cost of transportation from A to B.

Booking this route 30+ days out showed a $414 premium for J over Y. Booking this flight on day of departure showed a minimum of $1,250 premium, and as high as almost $3,000.

OP paid a premium for a lie flat seat and did not receive it in any form. The conversation should not be about compensation but about how much of a refund is due, of which the difference between the fare paid and the lowest available Y fare at time of booking is the start of that calculation. Compensation should be a customer service gesture beyond the refund amount to cover the inconvenience.
A broken lie-flat seat is way, way, way better than a middle seat in E- and any other seat in Y for that matter.
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