PTravel

I'll keep this short because I have to catch a flight.

After 5 years or so of 1P status, I changed jobs last year and, as a consequence, lost status. Now, I've only got 3P and that's thanks to a generous FTer.

At SFO, I attempted to check on bag. It rang the scale at 54 lbs, 4 lbs overweight. Okay, my bad -- I was used to the higher allowance. The non-UA bagger-checker-inner took me and my bag over to the non-elite side. There, I was confronted by a charmless and rude agent who kept repeating, "Your bag is 4 lbs overweight." I kept saying, I know -- I'll pay. How much is it? Well, it turned out it was $125. For 4 lbs. Okay, the rules are the rules, notwithstanding that it was within the discretion of this guy to waive it. So I got to open my bag on the floor, throw a bunch of shirts on the scale until I hit 4 lbs, and then either wear them or stuff them into my extremely limited carry-on space. Humiliating, yes, but, as I said, the rules are the rules and I'll abide by them. After completing this exercise, I asked for my luggage check stub. This is when things really fell apart.

Mr. Charmless and Rude said, "You were given it." I said, "Sorry, no, I was not." He said, "Maybe you lost it or forgot to take it." I said, "No, and I don't care for the inference. I'd like to speak to a supervisor." He said, "I'm just suggesting the possibility." I said, "I think we're done. If you can't give me my baggage check stub, please get the supervisor." And, yes, that was verbatim what I said -- I was pissed, but I never raised my voice, never used foul language. Mr. Charmless and Rude calls his supervisor.

The supervisor turns out to be someone not unknown to FT -- he's tall, middle-aged, balding. He comes over and Mr. C&R begins to explain that I'm "missing" my claim check. I say, "Excuse me, may I speak to you?" (remember -- I'm the one who politely asked for a supervisor). Supervisor XXXX fixes me with a deadly stare and says, "I'M SPEAKING TO MY COLLEAGUE!" Whoa! I say, "I'm sorry. I'll wait." He takes one of the stickers off the luggage tag, puts it on his card and says, "This is the same as the luggage tag that you were given." I ask if I can speak with him for a moment. We move to the side.

I explain, calmly and quietly, what happened. I explain that, though I was only a 3P, I had been a loyal 1P UA flier for the last 5 years or so. I told him that I didn't mind having to unpack my bag. I did, however, mind when Mr. C&R accused me of both lying and losing my tag.

XXXX just stared at me. Literally. He said nothing and just stared.

I said, "Okay, so I've told you. Is the the Station Manager in today?"

XXXX said, "No, just me."

I said, "Fine. By the way, though I'm on a budget fare today, my business pays for full Y. I have two full Y itineraries this week and, at this point, I'm ready to cancel them and take my business elsewhere."

XXXX said, "I'm sorry you feel that way."

I looked at him and said, "Wow. Okay, I've said what I want to say," and turned to go to security.

XXXX called after me, "I said I was sorry you felt that way!"

Unbelievable. Not even an apology -- nothing.

Okay, UA, I didn't do much for you last year.

It's really hard to come up with a reason why I'd want to take my two full-Y flights (including a transcon) next week with you, much less the other full-Y transcons I have next month, and the two trans-Atlantic full-C trips I have next month. Oh, yes -- I also pretty much determine travel policy for my company. Guess we'll all reconsider our travel.

I'm ticked. And I'm late.

Gotta fly.

IADtoWhere

Wow I hope I never run into that guy, I'm betting even if you were GS it wouldn't have helped!

tryathlete

This is what causes people to switch or not even bother to become loyal to any service organization. All it takes is two people in a row-- the proverbial bad cop followed by a bad cop #2. Any good organization has structure where one person does the ENFORCING and the second, the lattitudes.

You got two [jerks] and no good cop. I feel badly for you. My wife would have killed #1 and threatened #2 within an inch of his life while I stood by and tried to calm her down.

You are a VERY cool but assertive cucumber, and I suspect this incident will pass and if something happens like it again, you will take a whole bunch of business over to AA. I would NEVER blame you, but if I were you, I'd seriously wait for something more substantial at least for now. Domestic travel in the US is a race to the bottom.

zitsky

Nasty experience, that's for sure. It sure is an interesting reminder of what non-status passengers are dealing with these days. Some people on this board don't have much sympathy for the average traveler. I wonder how some folks would react being in the same situation. You handled it pretty well.

FlyingNone

I would have said....."Sorry about the stub, it probably got caught up in the bagtag printer"...and would have given you one of the three "ministubs" on the main tag or would have just deleted the original tag and ran a new one. With no disrespect, don't take this the wrong way, but was all of this worth it over having to adjust your overweight bag ? Annoying yes but .....I agree that I don't think the supervisor should have called after you and repeated his statement

mre5765

1Ks get treated the same.

The difference is that we've enough experience with UA that we've learned to not deal with UA's front line employees except when absolutely necessary.

• Call the 1K desk to get a SWU printed for LH and get lectured that SWUs cannot be used on Z fares.
• Ask a check in agent to extend 2 e500s for SJC/DEN to the DEN/COS segment and get a SWU pulled (in addition to the e500s).
• Ask a GA how your upgrade is looking, be told there is no chance, and watch the door close with one seat empty in F, then watch the FA upgrade another elite who wasn't on the upgrade list.
• Stand in the 1K line for 10 minutes to check bags, and be ignored for 10 minutes while 1Ps are served.
• Experience an irrop, get no joy from the kiosk, stand in the 1K line to get help and get a 'tude from someone too who complains that "no one uses the machines"; someone too stupid to understand that those machines are chipping away at his job.
• OLCI without printing ones BP, go to a station without a kiosk, and be told "too bad you wasted your time checking in online"
• Standby for an earlier flight, watch -- with 5 minutes left to depart -- the GA page pax who left the area to get a coffee, and then board them and shut the door in your face.
• Board a long haul seated in international F (saver miles), ask for a beer for the pre-departure drink and be told that is not available until wheels up.

Don't check a bag; you'll be happier.

jgsx

But they can't be used on LH Z fares. That doesn't work anymore.

PTravel

He gave me a ministub, but no apology -- only attitude.

Worth what? The problem wasn't the overweight bag, but the failure to give me a stub, the accusation of lying, followed by . . . I don't even know how to describe XXXX.

As a 1P, I rarely encountered this.

I had no option, here.

I rarely do. No choice, this time.

EsquireFlyer

1. Wow, this was a disaster and the two UA employees in that story need to be fired, or at least "non-punitively disciplined" if that's all that their union legally allows.

2. If it requires taking your company's business away from UA (and sending HQ a letter explaining why) to get them to listen, and retrain or fire some some of these previously documented, "repeat offender" Customer Disservice Agents, than I guess that is what you will have to do. Or at least threaten in writing. And you'd be doing a service to the flyers who stay with UA (esp. the ones who don't have as many dollars to vote with), so thank you and good luck! ^

3. Will it succeed, though? I thought that at your firm didn't dictate airline choice, and left it up to individual employees?

PTravel

I'm no longer a firm lawyer -- I'm in-house. Because I'm the local "Up in the Air" guy, the CFO listens to me. For example, we now use a professional corporate TA, rather than having one of our secretaries do bookings for obvious reasons. I'm also the one behind the policy shift to full-Y (domestic) and full-C (international), again for obvious reasons. There's one other senior exec who is an experienced FF and he's pretty much had his fill of UA as well. If we decide the company should go ABUA (anything buy UA), we will. Note, too, that I've calmed down a bit. I've got to leave my house tomorrow at 5 am, but when I get where I'm going, I'm going to write a letter to UA, briefly setting out what happened and asking them why I shouldn't change our corporate policy. We'll see what happens.

izzik

You do realize that saying stuff like this carries zero weight anywhere.. with any airline.

Anyway, it sounds like the majority of your prior travel amounts to one big horrible UA experience.. you should definitely cancel all of your future UA travel and go with another carrier immediately.

reddirt14

This has not happened to me. I have seen similar response, but usually there is a stimulus to the situation that differs for the embelished story provided here.

Look it's real simple, United, air carriers, any service provider, whatever. Be nice, charm and you get a good response. Be a pain the rear, and well you get treated like one. These folks don't make alot of money. Show them some respect.

I know I'll get flamed on this. But I've seen too many cocky flyers who think they are rock stars spouting off at their mouth on these flights. I saw one three days ago bragging about how it was "his flight", yaddi, yaddi, dah... All the time he had no clue he was saying this to a GS. Seriously folks. You are amongst many flyers who fly as much or more than you. These airline reps see 100's of you a day. You are nothing special no matter how much you tell you self to the contrary. Get over with it, do your job and don't block the isles.

EsquireFlyer

Oh, okay then, I'm more optimistic!

Maybe CC the station manager too.

This one is actually not so obvious to me...my firm requires that all travel be booked through the corporate TA, but they charge us a $37 fee on every ticket issued, even on tickets where I can get the exact same fare (i.e., no discount) online, without the $37 fee. Oh and if I have to change a full-Y ticket, the TA "has" to do it by cancelling and reissuing a new ticket, so they keep the $37 on the first ticket, and charge another $37 on the new one.

WineCountryUA

Was not there and only can go by your report, but don't see where Mr C&R accused you of lying. Perhaps could have handled it better.
I'm sure the UA folks run into folks that get a bit confused and frustrated after having to repack due to overweight issues -- not saying you did but suspect they see it frequently and misplacing the receipt would not unexpected.

Again they could have handled it better, but jumping to the "you accused me of lying" was not going to get the situation resolved quickly.

izzik

^