Letters of complaint
Discussion
Today, I will mostly be being angry at a Bloody Massively Irritating airline.
I had cause to use them to fly to London a couple of weeks ago and due to an unexpected funeral (I suppose funerals tend to be unexpected...) I had to push back my flight by a few hours. Was flying with the girlfriend so had to pay hers as well but oh my god! Simply nothing could have prepared me for the angst ridden nightmare which was BMI's 'help' line.
As if it wasn't bad enough that to switch flights cost us the same again as the whole return flight cost in the first place (f
kers), we waited for ages on the phone, the person who eventually answered had an accent so impossible to decipher that he may as well have been speaking in his native tongue (he may well have been actually), the costs magically changed about 3 or 4 times over the course of the call, never in our favour I might add but then they have you over a barrel, and after all that was done with, the stupid bd had booked us on the wrong flight so the whole bloody process had to start again.
Anyway, I directed a sternly worded letter of complaint at their customer (dis)service department outlining my concerns in a rational manner and pointing out that this experience has made me very unlikely to use them again or indeed, recommend them to others and have been resolutely ignored. I now want to blow my stack at them but I'm aware that there are effective and ineffective ways to complain - should I bother with email again or try other avenues?
Any advice/previous experience with this airline appreciated...
Gylen
I had cause to use them to fly to London a couple of weeks ago and due to an unexpected funeral (I suppose funerals tend to be unexpected...) I had to push back my flight by a few hours. Was flying with the girlfriend so had to pay hers as well but oh my god! Simply nothing could have prepared me for the angst ridden nightmare which was BMI's 'help' line.
As if it wasn't bad enough that to switch flights cost us the same again as the whole return flight cost in the first place (f
kers), we waited for ages on the phone, the person who eventually answered had an accent so impossible to decipher that he may as well have been speaking in his native tongue (he may well have been actually), the costs magically changed about 3 or 4 times over the course of the call, never in our favour I might add but then they have you over a barrel, and after all that was done with, the stupid bd had booked us on the wrong flight so the whole bloody process had to start again.Anyway, I directed a sternly worded letter of complaint at their customer (dis)service department outlining my concerns in a rational manner and pointing out that this experience has made me very unlikely to use them again or indeed, recommend them to others and have been resolutely ignored. I now want to blow my stack at them but I'm aware that there are effective and ineffective ways to complain - should I bother with email again or try other avenues?
Any advice/previous experience with this airline appreciated...
Gylen
Not worth it.
They are going to be bought by Lufthansa so all your complaints will be long forgotten.
IIRC most airlines do have an "unforseen emergency" clause which means if you HAVE to change your flight they often let you do it free of charge as long as you can prove the emergency.
Although that just may be me remembering a Seinfeld episode - sorry. And sorry for your loss.
They are going to be bought by Lufthansa so all your complaints will be long forgotten.
IIRC most airlines do have an "unforseen emergency" clause which means if you HAVE to change your flight they often let you do it free of charge as long as you can prove the emergency.
Although that just may be me remembering a Seinfeld episode - sorry. And sorry for your loss.
walm said:
Not worth it.
They are going to be bought by Lufthansa so all your complaints will be long forgotten.
IIRC most airlines do have an "unforseen emergency" clause which means if you HAVE to change your flight they often let you do it free of charge as long as you can prove the emergency.
Although that just may be me remembering a Seinfeld episode - sorry. And sorry for your loss.
They are going to be bought by Lufthansa so all your complaints will be long forgotten.
IIRC most airlines do have an "unforseen emergency" clause which means if you HAVE to change your flight they often let you do it free of charge as long as you can prove the emergency.
Although that just may be me remembering a Seinfeld episode - sorry. And sorry for your loss.
I wrote to them a few over a month a go 'cos of cancelled flights, and them leaving us in the lurch. Heard nothing, the useless bunch of wasters. I hope the customer service team all lose their jobs when they're bought, I really do.Edited by fatboy b on Friday 15th August 10:20
G C said:
Get a punch bag..?
Haven't you already complained once? Why would you send another, or am i mis-reading this?
Yep and wasn't even dignified with a reply - now I want to complain about how they deal with complaints Haven't you already complained once? Why would you send another, or am i mis-reading this?
TBH, although it crossed my mind that a couple of goodwill air miles would go some way to redressing the excess cost of the flight, I'd actually just like them to say 'sorry you received such poor treatment, we might actually review something at some point'.
Agree, a paper letter is probably the way to go but then why have an official channel for complaints through the website?
That said, if being bought by ze Germans, service will probably improve anyway and no-one will give a damn about my complaint in the interim.
Gylen said:
G C said:
Get a punch bag..?
Haven't you already complained once? Why would you send another, or am i mis-reading this?
Yep and wasn't even dignified with a reply - now I want to complain about how they deal with complaints Haven't you already complained once? Why would you send another, or am i mis-reading this?
TBH, although it crossed my mind that a couple of goodwill air miles would go some way to redressing the excess cost of the flight, I'd actually just like them to say 'sorry you received such poor treatment, we might actually review something at some point'.
Agree, a paper letter is probably the way to go but then why have an official channel for complaints through the website?
That said, if being bought by ze Germans, service will probably improve anyway and no-one will give a damn about my complaint in the interim.
Good luck!
walm said:
IIRC most airlines do have an "unforseen emergency" clause which means if you HAVE to change your flight they often let you do it free of charge as long as you can prove the emergency.
Not in my experience. When my Grandad dies earlier this year, the funeral clashed with a flight I had booked, and you could virtually see the pound signs lighting up in BA's corporate eyes.When I called to explain, they wanted to charge me more than 4x the price I originally paid to switch to a cheaper flight. No amount of explanation could draw even the slightest concession from them on this. I even got put through to a team manager who couldn't have given less of a toss if he'd tried. "That's the price, take it or leave it" were his parting words. Nice!
In the end I had to cancel the flight (and thus my entire trip) and claim on my travel insurance.
I had a bad experience with a Bunch of Mongoloid Idiots a few weeks ago who managed to crack my carbon fibre bike frame. £1500 down the pan, even though its insured, its a big pain in the arse.
Had problems with their "english speaking" phoneline too about travelling with a second bag. The woman had no idea what was going on, and eventually informed me that i would just need to show up at the airport and they may or may not have room for my second bag...
Had problems with their "english speaking" phoneline too about travelling with a second bag. The woman had no idea what was going on, and eventually informed me that i would just need to show up at the airport and they may or may not have room for my second bag...
Don't piss around with customer services.
Write directly to Sir Michael Bishop at Donington Hall, Castle Donington, Derby, East Midlands, DE74 2SB.
Start your letter with something like "I write to you in desperation but I do not know where to turn as your customer service department are ignoring my requests for help". Be polite and reasonable. Bishop probably wont see your letter but it will be dealt with by someone in his office who will send it down the line and ensure that you get a proper response.
I've used this with BP, NPower, BT etc.. and it always works. They will ignore you but not a request from their Chairmans office.
Write directly to Sir Michael Bishop at Donington Hall, Castle Donington, Derby, East Midlands, DE74 2SB.
Start your letter with something like "I write to you in desperation but I do not know where to turn as your customer service department are ignoring my requests for help". Be polite and reasonable. Bishop probably wont see your letter but it will be dealt with by someone in his office who will send it down the line and ensure that you get a proper response.
I've used this with BP, NPower, BT etc.. and it always works. They will ignore you but not a request from their Chairmans office.
It really is a bloody racket, isn't it? I don't know if it's due to the economy or not, but I'm starting to really resent this relentless wallet-raping happening at every turn and in my eyes, the airlines are the absolute worst at this sort of practice.
I appreciate that it's all in the small print and that's why I grudgingly put up with out and shell out money hand over fist for everything but small print or not, they have you trapped between a rock and a hard place and there's bugger all you can do about it.
Really pisses me off and I can see me having an 'episode' the next time I get stung for daring to take luggage with me etc. etc.
I appreciate that it's all in the small print and that's why I grudgingly put up with out and shell out money hand over fist for everything but small print or not, they have you trapped between a rock and a hard place and there's bugger all you can do about it.
Really pisses me off and I can see me having an 'episode' the next time I get stung for daring to take luggage with me etc. etc.
Have you ever been to the Complaints Department of any large company ?
You will find that the address just leads you to a large warehouse on some out-of-town industrial trading estate, which has a single door, with a single letterbox, behind which is a big pile of various aged letters of complaint.
They dont care, they have your money already, feck off !!
I am most suprised that you have held onto this anger for these weeks, so much so that you needed to post it on here.
The stress this is causing you is shortening your life, a life that is already short enough ....
You will find that the address just leads you to a large warehouse on some out-of-town industrial trading estate, which has a single door, with a single letterbox, behind which is a big pile of various aged letters of complaint.
They dont care, they have your money already, feck off !!
I am most suprised that you have held onto this anger for these weeks, so much so that you needed to post it on here.
The stress this is causing you is shortening your life, a life that is already short enough ....
Swilly said:
I am most suprised that you have held onto this anger for these weeks, so much so that you needed to post it on here.
The stress this is causing you is shortening your life, a life that is already short enough ....
The stress this is causing you is shortening your life, a life that is already short enough ....
I had actually forgotten about it but another excess airline charge reminded me of my complaint and brought piss back up to simmering levels.I feel stricken today by an overriding sense of 'enough is enough'. I'm sick of constantly paying through the nose for everything and I want it to stop. But it won't. So I'm in a huff.
I'm also waiting in for the delivery of my hugely overpriced passport which will allow me to take my hugely overpriced airline on holiday where I will enjoy the dubious pleasure of paying a hugely overpriced extra charge because I want to take a bag and a surfboard with me.
This has given me time to brood on this matter and it has poisoned my outlook on today.
ETA - a letter to the top man is a great idea - well done sir!
Edited by Gylen on Friday 15th August 11:00
Gylen said:
It really is a bloody racket, isn't it? I don't know if it's due to the economy or not, but I'm starting to really resent this relentless wallet-raping happening at every turn and in my eyes, the airlines are the absolute worst at this sort of practice.
I appreciate that it's all in the small print and that's why I grudgingly put up with out and shell out money hand over fist for everything but small print or not, they have you trapped between a rock and a hard place and there's bugger all you can do about it.
Really pisses me off and I can see me having an 'episode' the next time I get stung for daring to take luggage with me etc. etc.
I very much sypathise with the point of your OP.I appreciate that it's all in the small print and that's why I grudgingly put up with out and shell out money hand over fist for everything but small print or not, they have you trapped between a rock and a hard place and there's bugger all you can do about it.
Really pisses me off and I can see me having an 'episode' the next time I get stung for daring to take luggage with me etc. etc.
But on the "ancillary" charges, I actually feel some pain for the airlines.
None of them are going to make much money this year and it really isn't their fault.
Oil has ripped the arse out of their cost base and they have to do everything they can to claw back every spare £.
Putting in charges for bags etc... is actually far more fair than just putting up blanket prices.
That way you can still fly cheap as long as you don't mind turning your undercrackers back-to-front/inside-out in order to minimise luggage.
Ryanair's average ticket price actually FELL -8% last quarter (admittedly, in Euros).
I fly to/from Baku every month, it used to be BA who did this flight, they were not very good, from Sept last year BMI took of the route, they are considerably worse, we regularly have no entertainment - this is in business class ! - they regularly run out of food choices, the flights are invariably late, the lounges are crap, crisps and biscuits, nothing hot 
I have complained several times and heard nothing - I am not hopeful that a change to Lufthanza will make things better as when it changed to BMI they used the same planes repainted and the same crews.
I have complained several times and heard nothing - I am not hopeful that a change to Lufthanza will make things better as when it changed to BMI they used the same planes repainted and the same crews.
walm said:
Oil has ripped the arse out of their cost base and they have to do everything they can to claw back every spare £.
Putting in charges for bags etc... is actually far more fair than just putting up blanket prices.
That way you can still fly cheap as long as you don't mind turning your undercrackers back-to-front/inside-out in order to minimise luggage.
Ryanair's average ticket price actually FELL -8% last quarter (admittedly, in Euros).
They charge you for blankets Putting in charges for bags etc... is actually far more fair than just putting up blanket prices.
That way you can still fly cheap as long as you don't mind turning your undercrackers back-to-front/inside-out in order to minimise luggage.
Ryanair's average ticket price actually FELL -8% last quarter (admittedly, in Euros).
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