I dont think an airline could have worst customer service if it was run by Al Queada . I just spent 2 hours on the phone, talked to 5 people in the Philippines just in order to reserve a 45 minute flight on the United Express carrier, Skywest. By contrast, I made a reservation with Southwest for a 3 hours flight and it only took about 10 minutes with one agent who was in Phoenix.
Last edited by Bill Greenwood; 12-21-2017 at 11:58 PM.
Get hip to the new order and book online for simple, standard reservations. You'll save yourself your self-imposed aggravation and much time.
Self imposed? THAT statement I don't understand.You'll save yourself your self-imposed aggravation and much time.
Larry N.
When you VOLUNTARILY CHOOSE to spend 2 aggravating hours on the phone trying to book a simple 45 minute flight when there is an obvious, efficient and time saving alternative, then your behaviour is self-imposed.Originally Posted by lnuss
Floats, you and many other people especially the recordings that you listen to while on hold will tell you how easy it is to do everything on line. Just llke I could tell you how easy it is to ski 70 mph down an icy racy course or change 12 gallons of oil in a Merlin or coach a football team. But reality is a little more complicated than that, even if I was good with a computer. Its not that straightforward. I have never had to go online with Southwest and do their work for them and I can usually make a reservation by phone with them in less than 10 minutes. I just wish they flew in here and everywhere I needed to go. Just a few of the obstacles with United were trying to convince the geniuses in Manila that everywhere in Colorado is not Col Springs,that one only took them asking my departure 5 times, and most of the time was spent trying to use miles for the flight rather than pay the bargain price of a mere $670 plus fees and tax for the 200 mile 20 minute flight which SW goes about 5 times as far for half the fare. I did get a special kindness from United,they didnt call cops to attack me like the doctor. They were polite , just incompetent and it is their system not just their people. You could see when their CEO testified before Congress recently how unconcerned he was with any problems the airline has or making any changes.
Last edited by Bill Greenwood; 12-22-2017 at 10:52 AM.
Reminds me of an old joke: "My wife and I tried to fly United, but the flight attendant made us go back to our seats."
I rarely fly United (the airline, I mean :-) but did for a trip back to North Dakota a month ago. Booking (online) was painless, and the planes were all on time. Nobody was beat up in my presence, though the cheeseburger was a bit overcooked.
All the airlines are trying to maximize profit by reducing staffing, and one obvious target is live customer service. That's why they've made online bookings so easy. I had a problem with another airline's reservation a while back, and did spend ~20 minutes or so waiting on the phone. Flip the phone to Speaker mode, and surf the net until you get an agent.
Like Floats said, dealing with live customer service for a simple booking is just self-inflicted pain.
Ron Wanttaja
Why don't you try booking a straight forward point A to B flight on-line that does not require any special needs. Just read and follow the simple instructions for about 4-5 steps in the process. You have nothing to fear but fear itself. Even if you screw up something you can easily correct it. If you omit or mess up something the program will tell you exactly what it is.
Try it, you will make yourself proud and wonder why you were ever afraid to engage. You might also save some money as on-line flights are usually cheaper than phone bookings. As well, you can also see what are the cheapest days to depart and return to any given destination.
Statute of limitations is expired so I'll tell my United story. August 1967, returning from sea, booked my flight from San Diego to home while ship was in Pearl Harbor for fuel. Disembarked in North Island in my dress uniform, straight to airport for flight, United counter agent said "your flight was rescheduled in Denver and there was less than the required delay for an aircraft change so we tried to contact you for rebooking. When we couldn't, we canceled your ticket. Would you like to rebook at full fare?" I was livid. And 19 and bulletproof. I left the gate, found an unattended one, swiped a boarding pass folder and a marker pen. Found a United flight headed east, bravado'd my way on board, gate-checked my seabag. Did the same in Denver. Got to 100 miles from home and wow one of my high school buddies was gate agent at that airport. Got a refund of the ticket price and a ride home from him that night. I'm sure they aren't still that fouled up ... right?
Mike: Using a line one from one of my favorite John Ford Cavalry movies: Ah, the old days. They are gone forever."
That said, I have rarely had a problem with United 's customer service IN THE UNITED STATES. Customer service in Europe, and particularly Frankfurt, is another matter. (I have a "there I was" story about that which would take up too many electrons for a post here.) I imagine that was the kind of experience Bill faced in the Philippines. Customer service on board is another matter. If upgrade is unlikely, I will book with United for a code share flight operated by Lufthansa. Not only does LH feed you real food, they give you real steel eating utensils! And Lufthansa flies B747s on the DC-Frankfurt run.
There ARE worse airlines and worse customer assistance, but I understand Bill's frustration given the near monopoly UAL has on Denver International.
I got the impression that Bill had his problems trying to book a *domestic* flight, and was complaining about Filipino customer service representatives. He was in the US, trying to book a US flight.
Ron Wanttaja
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