customer services [US cancels, doesn't assist for connecting flight]
Aug 19, 2015, 2:11 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 109
customer services [US cancels, doesn't assist for connecting flight]
Good evening and forgive the newby to this forum
I have had an issue with a cancelled flight. The issue is not that the flight was cancelled as this was clearly a safety issue. However US Airways then totally abandoned us. The original flight was SFO to PHL. We had a BA flight PHL to LHR later that night.
U.S. Air ground crew basically told us to contact BA ourselves to look at a direct flight to LHR
Long story cut short, we have received even worse service from US Air so called customer services since we returned to the UK than we did on the day of the cancellation.
They have now stated that I may not be happy with their responses so far but they will not respond to any further communication
What do any of you FTers suggest I do next?
I have had an issue with a cancelled flight. The issue is not that the flight was cancelled as this was clearly a safety issue. However US Airways then totally abandoned us. The original flight was SFO to PHL. We had a BA flight PHL to LHR later that night.
U.S. Air ground crew basically told us to contact BA ourselves to look at a direct flight to LHR
Long story cut short, we have received even worse service from US Air so called customer services since we returned to the UK than we did on the day of the cancellation.
They have now stated that I may not be happy with their responses so far but they will not respond to any further communication
What do any of you FTers suggest I do next?
Aug 19, 2015, 2:17 pm
#2
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Title edited to comply with FlyerTalk Rules, moved to current forum for US operations, policy, fleet, customer issues, etc. (It will be thus until 17 October).
/Moderator
/Moderator
Aug 19, 2015, 3:02 pm
#3
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Can you provide us with EXACTLY what you wrote in to US? I think that may help us dissect where the issue is with their customer service response after the fact.
Aug 19, 2015, 3:13 pm
#4
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Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)
Were both flights on a single ticket? And if so, who issued the ticket?
Originally Posted by Cccharlie
Good evening and forgive the newby to this forum
I have had an issue with a cancelled flight. The issue is not that the flight was cancelled as this was clearly a safety issue. However US Airways then totally abandoned us. The original flight was SFO to PHL. We had a BA flight PHL to LHR later that night.
U.S. Air ground crew basically told us to contact BA ourselves to look at a direct flight to LHR
Long story cut short, we have received even worse service from US Air so called customer services since we returned to the UK than we did on the day of the cancellation.
They have now stated that I may not be happy with their responses so far but they will not respond to any further communication
What do any of you FTers suggest I do next?
I have had an issue with a cancelled flight. The issue is not that the flight was cancelled as this was clearly a safety issue. However US Airways then totally abandoned us. The original flight was SFO to PHL. We had a BA flight PHL to LHR later that night.
U.S. Air ground crew basically told us to contact BA ourselves to look at a direct flight to LHR
Long story cut short, we have received even worse service from US Air so called customer services since we returned to the UK than we did on the day of the cancellation.
They have now stated that I may not be happy with their responses so far but they will not respond to any further communication
What do any of you FTers suggest I do next?
Last edited by guv1976; Aug 19, 2015 at 3:14 pm
Aug 19, 2015, 4:20 pm
#5
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,600
If you had a single ticketed itinerary from SFO-LHR, then US's obligation is to get you to London
It sounds like you may have had 2 separate bookings , one with US and another with BA. In this case, then the BA booking is nothing to do with US ; it is solely responsible to get you to PHL. To make changes to the BA flight, then it is up to you to contact BA and make any changes ( if permitted on the BA ticket )
What were you wanting from US? If it is not prepared to discuss it any further , what had you asked for and what did it say?
If it was a single ticketed itinerary, did you incur any expenses? If so , and it was a r/t journey from the UK, you could try initiating a claim through money claim online to recover these costs
It sounds like you may have had 2 separate bookings , one with US and another with BA. In this case, then the BA booking is nothing to do with US ; it is solely responsible to get you to PHL. To make changes to the BA flight, then it is up to you to contact BA and make any changes ( if permitted on the BA ticket )
What were you wanting from US? If it is not prepared to discuss it any further , what had you asked for and what did it say?
If it was a single ticketed itinerary, did you incur any expenses? If so , and it was a r/t journey from the UK, you could try initiating a claim through money claim online to recover these costs
Aug 19, 2015, 4:58 pm
#6
Join Date: Feb 2013
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Is this true now that US and AA are officially operating together under oneworld? Do not the oneworld rules regarding onward protection under separate bookings apply?
Aug 19, 2015, 5:14 pm
#7
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1. No. That is unique to AA and has nothing to do with OW. OP was ticketed on US which is a separate entity and does not operate under AA's Certificate (yet).
2. As to US declining further communication, that is generally the product of conduct which US considers inappropriate or abusive. Don't want to accuse OP of that, but OP really needs to return with the following:
A. Was he booked on on one ticket or two tickets (not bookings, PNR's or whatever).
B. Was there anything in the tone of any of his communications with US which a reasonable person here in the US might take as inappropriate or offensive?
2. As to US declining further communication, that is generally the product of conduct which US considers inappropriate or abusive. Don't want to accuse OP of that, but OP really needs to return with the following:
A. Was he booked on on one ticket or two tickets (not bookings, PNR's or whatever).
B. Was there anything in the tone of any of his communications with US which a reasonable person here in the US might take as inappropriate or offensive?
Aug 19, 2015, 6:31 pm
#8
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AA has , on its Travel Agent's site, indicated that it has a policy to protect on separate bookings
It sounds that the OP has been in contact with US and given that US is not prepared to enter into any further discussion, seems that there is not much left for OP to do other than initiate action through MCOL if due any recompense - whether entitled to anything will depend on whether it was a through booking and whether actually incurred any expenses
Last edited by Dave Noble; Aug 19, 2015 at 6:39 pm
Sep 15, 2015, 3:51 pm
#9
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Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 109
customer services [US cancels, doesn't assist for connecting fligh]
Now having resolved this via travel insurance I am happy to reveal what my "obusive" behaviour was.
I simply was not happy with the level of customer service we had received, and asked to be put in contact with the Head of Customer service for US Airways who may have the authority to go against what the policy was and use what may be considered as a common sense approach.
I was told that the agent was acting "on behalf of" the head of customer service and when I asked if he had actually seen my complaint I was informed that this would be the last communication that U.S. air would enter into.
At the end of the day all we got was a standard script response and when we asked to move away from the script we were told that the conversation was over.
At no time did I raise my voice or use any bad language, I even asked if the conversation was recorded at which point the agent got very tetchy
By contrast my travel insurance company resolved the difference in a five minute conversation with no proof required
That is the difference
I simply was not happy with the level of customer service we had received, and asked to be put in contact with the Head of Customer service for US Airways who may have the authority to go against what the policy was and use what may be considered as a common sense approach.
I was told that the agent was acting "on behalf of" the head of customer service and when I asked if he had actually seen my complaint I was informed that this would be the last communication that U.S. air would enter into.
At the end of the day all we got was a standard script response and when we asked to move away from the script we were told that the conversation was over.
At no time did I raise my voice or use any bad language, I even asked if the conversation was recorded at which point the agent got very tetchy
By contrast my travel insurance company resolved the difference in a five minute conversation with no proof required
That is the difference
Sep 15, 2015, 7:19 pm
#10
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The US response may have been more blunt than what a European carrier might say (LH, for example would say, "that is not possible"), but it is exactly what most carriers would do in this circumstance.
Presuming that you were on separate tickets, the US response was correct, you were on your own. Can pretty much assure you that the SVP for CS, if he had taken your call, would have told you the same thing, as would his counterpart at any carrier in the world.
Apparently you have travel insurance, a smart thing to have in this circumstance.
Presuming that you were on separate tickets, the US response was correct, you were on your own. Can pretty much assure you that the SVP for CS, if he had taken your call, would have told you the same thing, as would his counterpart at any carrier in the world.
Apparently you have travel insurance, a smart thing to have in this circumstance.
Sep 16, 2015, 2:51 am
#11
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Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 109
customer services [US cancels, doesn't assist for connecting flight]
Yes the travel insurance was in place and it saved the day, I guess I do not appreciate the poor levels of customer service provided and the way I was lied to by the customer service agent.
Sep 16, 2015, 4:19 am
#12
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Thanks.
Sep 16, 2015, 8:00 am
#13
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I'm genuinely sorry you were discomfited on your trip. From what I'm imputing, given your declining to reveal a question that has been asked previously about being ticketed separately for the US and BA itineraries:
From US' perspective, [hl]they had an obligation to get you to your contracted and declared (via purchasing a ticket) destination, PHL, albeit you'd have been late; your missing your BA flight was legitimately no concern of theirs if you were separately ticketed. As this was not contractually a flight connection, there was no further obligation on their part. Perhaps give you a handful of miles for the delay you'd have encountered, if that; delays and cancellations happen. Through ticketing would have provided you safety, but I suspect you opted to save a few quid, right? That was a risk you undertook, though you did offset the risk with TCI insurance. That was smart.
You then asked the airline to waive the rules for you; they chose not to do so. I really can't see how that was a customer service fail. The likelihood of your actually speaking to the department head was pretty much nil, IMO. They just didn't know who you were, maybe.
Perhaps a well worded letter - though I personally doubt it. This was pretty much a case where they had no obligation to you, and you really needed to rely on British Airways' good will to accommodate your no show status at PHL and subsequent desire to be accommodated from SFO.
And if BA reaccommodated you from SFO, BA could legitimately have charged you change fees and the difference between the original and new fare from SFO. Worse, if you had merely failed to show at PHL and requested reaccommodation at SFO after the flight departed PHL.
How did BA respond, by the way?
(Further bad luck: AA has a reaccommodation policy that might have proved friendlier, but until October 17, AA and US essentially operate as separate airlines - AA is a full member of oneworld, U.S. is an affiliate member at this moment - with a shared FFP and lounges system.)
From US' perspective, [hl]they had an obligation to get you to your contracted and declared (via purchasing a ticket) destination, PHL, albeit you'd have been late; your missing your BA flight was legitimately no concern of theirs if you were separately ticketed. As this was not contractually a flight connection, there was no further obligation on their part. Perhaps give you a handful of miles for the delay you'd have encountered, if that; delays and cancellations happen. Through ticketing would have provided you safety, but I suspect you opted to save a few quid, right? That was a risk you undertook, though you did offset the risk with TCI insurance. That was smart.
You then asked the airline to waive the rules for you; they chose not to do so. I really can't see how that was a customer service fail. The likelihood of your actually speaking to the department head was pretty much nil, IMO. They just didn't know who you were, maybe.
Perhaps a well worded letter - though I personally doubt it. This was pretty much a case where they had no obligation to you, and you really needed to rely on British Airways' good will to accommodate your no show status at PHL and subsequent desire to be accommodated from SFO.
And if BA reaccommodated you from SFO, BA could legitimately have charged you change fees and the difference between the original and new fare from SFO. Worse, if you had merely failed to show at PHL and requested reaccommodation at SFO after the flight departed PHL.
How did BA respond, by the way?
(Further bad luck: AA has a reaccommodation policy that might have proved friendlier, but until October 17, AA and US essentially operate as separate airlines - AA is a full member of oneworld, U.S. is an affiliate member at this moment - with a shared FFP and lounges system.)