USA Airways Review of Customer Service

This is an email I received from a friend. Yes, it is hard to believe, but it is TRUE!

Hello,

I would like to apologize in advance for this very lengthy email. A tirade of stress and something more than just holiday travel irritation. I apologize to the person who has to endure this episode because it is not directed at you, but at a company who has decided that poor customer service and bad business is the right way to treat people.

I do not normally complain when customer service is bad, because in this day in age, it seems that it is expected that it is okay to pay a lot of money for bad service and goods.
It also seems that this is an accepted situation when it comes to airlines and the services rendered while the customer gets to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars, and if we complain, we are tagged as disruptive and un-cooperative. And from the news stories, being unhappy and mistreated by customer service that includes, snobby and surly flight attendants, condescending counter clerks and non English speaking, haughty, rude over the phone customer support; speaking out and demanding respect for oneself is met with getting kicked off the plane or tagged in the system. In other words the Consumer and Customer, who is PAYING a pretty penny for travelling, is treated worse than the most vilest and murderous of prisoners being escorted across the country.

So to sum up, because of the current state of treatment while flying, I have been somewhat hesitant to contact you about my very recent experience of flying my son from New York to Houston. However, my experience was SO HORRIBLE, that I felt I must contact you. I was handed this email by the counter clerk at the airport after explaining the gravity of the situation. And I apologize in advance for the lengthy explanation, but there is no other way.

I bought a ticket online for $337 from Elmira, NY connecting in Philly and then on to Houston. After purchasing the reservation, it came to my attention that since he is 14 he cannot fly unescorted if the flight has a connection. I get that…so I called customer service, for what seemed like the 10th time, and asked a supervisor if I bought a ticket for my sister, could she meet him at his first arrival gate and fly with him on the connection to Houston. Logic being that the first flight is non-stop and straight shot, ½ hour flight from Elmira to Philly. Then he would be escorted by her to Houston on the second flight. The supervisor over the phone said this would not be a problem and to call back after the Sister’s flight was arranged and give the confirmation numbers and contact/escort information. So his father would escort him on the plane at Elmira, and he would be escorted off at Philly and back on the second flight at Philly and then escorted off in Houston and delivered to me.
Fine then…I bought the second ticket for $315 for my sister for a roundtrip in one day from Houston to Philly, escort the son, and then back to Houston.

When I called customer service that evening, after purchasing the sister’s ticket, to give the escort information, I was spoken to like I was an imbecile, a trouble maker, taking up time and spoken to like a dog. Not a customer how has now paid hundreds of dollars for some transportation…. Not to mention, never once did I get someone from the United States, so making myself understood was near impossible, as well as understanding the rude customer service rep.
She informed that I was told wrong that this flying escort situation was not possible. I asked to speak to a supervisor and she refused to transfer me…now, this is not the first time I have asked to speak to a supervisor …and this is not the first time the representative refused to pass the line to a supervisor. I explained My situation Again, and that is was a supervisor who told me to purchase my sister’s ticket. The rep said fine, and put me on hold…THAT”S IT…I was NOT informed of anything, I was NOT advised of anything…I was simply and merely put on HOLD…FOR AN HOUR! After finally giving up and calling back I speak to ANOTHER customer service Rep, who informs me that..”what reservation? Your son’s reservation has been cancelled.”
By now I am loosing my patience and getting angry, I must admit, however, not once did I use foul language or treat the rep like she treated me.
I did not authorize the cancellation NOR was I informed that the cancellation was taking place…..NOW HERE IS THE GOOD PART, the new Rep I am speaking to informs me that there are A LOT OF NOTES in the system now explaining that why the reservation was cancelled and that I was TOLD all this while the information was being put in the system..”Ms. Salva, you were informed”
….Uh, NO, I was put on hold…no explanation or informing taking place. PERIOD!
Okay, so I ask for a supervisor, and actually get to speak to one immediately. I was first told that yes it was cancelled but I could use the ticket within a year time, adding on $150 flight change fees, $25, per flight rep fee, and that it would have to be used by the name of the person originally flying…Okay this is craziness…I am going to have to pay EXTRA for a reservation I did NOT cancel but have to reschedule? And this is for the same 14 year old that I am now belated being told cannot fly connecting flights? But I can reschedule his reservation that I did not cancel, but the rude and surly rep did, while typing lies in the system? …Oh and by the way, There are NO NON connecting flight for US Airways from New York to any major city ANYWHERE.

So how to get around this? I had to pay for 2 MORE TICKETS!!

I paid for the first NONSTOP flight from Elmira, New York to Philly…..
I paid for the second NONSTOP flight from Philly to New York, and the fees for escort on this flight when my Son was NOT flying by himself…reservations and seat arrangement made by US AIRWAYS IN THE Elmira Airport. ….
Are you kidding me? Oh and did I mention that these had to be one way tickets because the roundtrip ticket (like the one purchased at the very beginning was) are 3 times more?
Now I have paid for 4 flights for 2 people for ONE day of flying….not to mention fees for changing the flight reservations…that I DIDN’T CHANGE!!

Now to make this worse…US Airways cancelled flights and delayed flights into Philly. Oh and I checked this was the only problem flights last week. And the reason why I know this is because I went to the airport myself on Wednesday, December 17th to speak to a customer service person face to face…because the individuals on the phone give me a different answer every time I called. I spoke to 5 different people within US Airways from 3 pm to 4 pm and everyone said contradicting information about the flights …either the same flight was cancelled or delayed….Now, I ask you now? I am suppose to trust my SAFETY, not to mention my Child’s Safety with a company who doesn’t even know what the weather status or cancelled or delayed status is? Or even where there plane is? So because the person at the airport said the flight were only delayed, I was informed to tell my sister, whose flight was delayed almost 6 hours, to go ahead and get on the plane for Philly from Houston.
On the off chance my son is allowed to get on the later 6:20 pm flight out of Elmira because the 3:00 was cancelled. So Sister gets on plane and flies to Philly. My son goes to Elmira for 6:20 flight, only to be told my in person rep that he will not be allowed to fly that night…why? Because that is what the gentleman said. Regardless of the fact that my sister is in Philly waiting for him, regardless of the fact that the father is standing there saying put him on. Regardless, of the fact that I have paid for the flight. There were NO rules being broken…it is a NON_STOP flight to Philly…Simply because the rep said so. And I was about to be charged for reservation changes again as the gentleman change his flight to the next day as well as my sisters. So for the 3 or 4th time now reservations are being changed, I have lost count, and I am being charged AGAIN for changes I am not making!!

Now, I understand weather changes everything, however, I do NOT understand why due to weather, I am going to have to pay MORE for reservation changes that I didn’t change in the first place.
The ½ flight from Elmira to Philly was $409 and the flight from Philly to Houston was $169 (this makes no sense whatsoever that the longer flight is ¼ the cost), Not to mention the original $337 and the $315 flights I already paid for at the beginning. This does NOT include escort fees and reservation change fees…which I believe are $100 escort fee, $100 (for a supervised minor that had his aunt in the seat next to him), $300 change reservation per each nonstop ticket, and $50 in reservation fees, these are the fees I am aware of, but because I cannot see an itemized list from the purchase confirmation email, I cannot be sure, all I can see are the LIST of fees that were charged to my debit card that are not sent as receipts to my email. This does not include the hotel expense for my sister while in Philly that had she not been told wrongly to get on a flight for a connecting that was cancelled, she could have taken a different flight the next day. I’m sure for a fee.

At any rate, my son and sister are finally safe in Houston. However, I must now figure out how to get him back to Elmira, New York…for a fee. I am hoping he decides to move to Houston so I do not have to deal with US Airways again. Continental, who allows minors to fly, as long as the connecting flights are within Continental, has always been my choice of air transportation companies, simply because the hub is here in Houston. However they do not fly to Elmira. I truly did not think the service would be that big of a difference. I was wrong.

I would rather pay for a taxi cab to take my son all the way back to New York, then to put him on a US Airways plane again. At least he would not have to pay for $2.00 water and $5.00 for a box of junk food or be cramped in undersized chairs. Nor would he be asked to give up his seat to “even out the plane,” because someone allowed it to be over loaded and over weighted by luggage and overbooked by people.

I myself will NEVER fly with US Airways nor will I pay for any of my family members. I do not trust their safety with your company. How could I? NO two people know what the reality is on the ground much less in the air. Oh and by the way, US Airways lost my step mother’s business a year ago.

I WILL be reporting this to any and all business bureaus and customer complaint blogs and anyone else who will listen. I already have informed my Company’s travel agency, who will no longer book her clients with US Airways.

And finally, I am sending this story to the TV new and the Houston Chronicle. I am sure that they are open for Christmas horror stories of traveling.

I would also like for US Airways do something/anything to make up for the horrific week you have caused me, the stress over the safety of my child and my sister, the needless waste of money, especially at Christmas time. Because of the extra expenses, fees and exorbitant amount of tickets; Christmas will be very lean, leaner than already planned for, for my children, which is not far from what it was going to be as a single mother with three children. And for this I will never forgive you.

At the least, refund the fees and excess you took in a very underhanded and manipulative manner.

I hope whoever read this has a good Holiday, because, I honestly am not directing this at you…but the business you are working for.