I had arrived at Pearson International, incredibly early for my flight, cleared customs in a flash and settled in to the lounge. I always find airport lounges a good place to kill time before a flight as the drinks and food are unlimited and even if you do have to pay thirty to fifty dollars for a few hours it’s well worth it. Two hours and a few cocktails in I discovered that Continental flight 4946 to Newark had been canceled due to weather.
I glanced out at the clear sky and the pristine runway as planes took off and recalled upon a similar situation when I heard this excuse on a sunny cloudless day in South Padre Island.
After 3 people telling me what they could not do I finally found someone that could get me on a United flight to Dullus International airport in DC with a one hour layover until I caught my flight to Orlando where I would pick up my rent a car and drive to Bradenton where my folks live. I arrived to the airport in Orlando to find out that my luggage never left Toronto.
The events that transpired after can only be described as an example of the worst customer service I have ever experienced from an airline.
January 28th Glad I was in the sunny south I got up and got on the phone to the airline and found out if you lose a bag in Canada or the USA you have to talk to someone in India. The standard answer to “when will my bag be delivered” is I don’t know sometime maybe. Sometime maybe was three days after I arrived so I obviously had to purchase clothing, which I was assured I would be reimbursed for provided I sent receipts.
Jan 4th As notified by the representative in India I sent an email to customerrelations@united.com with scans of my clothing receipts and airline tickets. Jan 6th Sent a Tweet to United Airlines Twitter account which apparently nobody looks at
Jan 13th Still no response from customerrelations@united.com or United’s Twitter Account. I placed another call to United this time I got someone in the Philippines that had a different email for me to try.
Jan 17th I get this email
Dear Mr. Engman, Thank you for letting us know about the expenses you incurred due to the temporary loss of your property. Your correspondence was received in our Claims office on January 06, 2012 and is being forwarded to a Claim Representative for resolution. You will be notified by the Claim Representative upon conclusion of your claim. Our commitment is to conclude your claim within 45-60 days of receipt of your written claim. For additional inquiries, we can also be reached via email at web-baggage@united.com Please accept our sincere apology for the inconvenience you experienced and thank you for your patience during this process. Yours Sincerely, United Airlines Central Baggage Services It does not surprise me that they have been rated worst customer service and they are merging with Continental, which has the 2nd worst customer service. In this day in age I can’t believe that companies can operate like this.
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