What to do when an airline, or anyone, ticks you off. Have a pen and paper ready.
By Adam Holdridge
Staff Writer
United Airlines and I have a love-hate relationship. I am very surprised that when I call them to make a reservation I don’t hear warning bells going off in the background. Sometimes I wonder if that agent’s smirk when checking-in is because it says in my profile: This guy is a real *$@#%, so be nice to him!
I have a secret for the analysts: it was me that has thrown United into bankruptcy. When something doesn’t go my way or I need something accomplished that requires an act of God, I have no problem getting it resolved. I have done almost everything, short of breaking laws, but have found one method that works failsafe. The following idea isn’t just viable for the airline industry, but can work for any travel or consumer industry.
Brace yourself, because this might be a strange concept to grasp. It is a form of communication that doesn’t involve e-mail or telephone calls, but letter writing via the United States Postal Service.
You know, paper, envelope and a stamp.
It works.
And no, you don’t have to write hand-written letters; a computer is allowed in this exercise.
Let’s step back a little bit and review the facts about the current state of the airline industry as it is today. It is very simple: airlines are bleeding cash, routes are getting canceled or cut-down, service has been diminished, and every week there seems to be a new round of employee lay offs. The morale is very low among employees of the airline companies in addition to the complete lack of job security.
Recently, I had to go to LAX to reissue a ticket and use a specialized airline discount coupon (later, I learned that our own Corniche travel can do this for you) and I got more enjoyment standing in line to get my passport fulfilled in Westwood than waiting more than 30 minutes just turn my $125 round trip ticket to San Francisco into an $80 ticket.
Employees have become apathetic and very non-sympathetic to the customer. Every dime is monitored very closely in order to save their company and their job. Before Sept. 11, the airlines would treat members of its frequent flyer programs like celebrities. However, those glory days are long gone. Jane, an agent at American Airline operation at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, said no matter how nicely people ask, she can no longer accommodate customers with any request. Usually, she just smiles and tells them “No.” She told me that even if she wanted to help, the software has been changed to no longer allow certain accommodation features.
Jane has more than 30 years seniority with American Airlines. Companies do not want to miss out on a cent of revenue.
So let’s say that you get bumped, or your flight is canceled, or your reservation cannot be found, or your bag weighs too much requiring you to pay an extra fee. Getting upset in person isn’t going to help your cause, unless you want a middle seat and a vegetarian meal (yes, some agents that I have talked to say they do this when someone really irks them). So, stay calm at the front lines and always be extremely pleasant.
Calling, writing an e-mail or dealing with a supervisor is just not going to help. But oddly enough, writing a letter, printing it and mailing it through the U.S. mail works very well. This is because airlines (and any other company for that matter) always feel obligated to respond to letters they receive from consumers. It sends the signal that if you can find the time to mail them a letter, then you are serious and mean business.
You can usually find an airline’s snail-mail address through its Web site. I have received numerous credits, bonuses, extended a certain level of membership and resolved many issues that have come along. However, if after two to three weeks you get no response, persistence and follow-up is important.
The next step is to find the local Better Business Bureau closest to the corporate headquarters of the company. For example: American is at Dallas, United is Chicago and Delta would be Atlanta. The BBB www.bbb.org is a consumer agency that contains reports on any of the airlines and many other assortment of businesses. By following up with them, using a new memo letter and then attaching the original sent to the airline will definitely get a response and a resolution.
Companies are afraid of the BBB and when a complaint is filed, they immediately work to resolve the complaint, as a negative BBB rating would be bad for business. So they always respond to it.
If you apply this to anything really, not just travel, it works. Writing letters through the mail! Who knew?
March 13, 2003
