I booked a flight on the US Airways website. The details of the charges were not shown on the screen until my credit card was charged. Upon seeing the itemized receipt I see a charge for insurance. Surprise! I never asked for that. I immediately called the phone number listed on the website, which put me through a cicuitous route of recorded messages. I called the number again, tried pressing 0, hoping to get a person, and still got nowhere.
Finally, I Googled how to get a real person at US Airways Customer Service and followed those directions. When I spoke to a person about the fraudulent charge I was told we have nothing to do with that, that's a separate compant, which was rather startling to here since it was the US Airways web site that charged me for this insurance. I told the girl to take it off my bill, which she refused to do, so I said to just cancel my booking. She, of course, couldn't do that either.
Wondering why this girl had a job, I hung up and was in a dilemma on what to dom but I knew I was not going to take that flight, nor would I ever again consider flying US Airways. I promptly booked my flight on another airline. I wrote two letter to US Airways and one to my credit card company to let them know I will dispute the charge. US Airways customer service did call me back in response to my letter, with no service whatsoever. And the young man I spoke to again reiterated that the airline has nothing to do with the insurance charge. What baloney.
The economic damage is that I have to pay for a flight I am not even going to take. Absolutely absurd. These people are stealing, and getting away with it because the law is on their side. Is there any law on the side of the consumer???
Dennis of Southborough, MA March 16, 2009
New policy: putting your luggage on earlier flight without telling you? My wife and I discovered that US Air has a policy where they can put your luggage on an earlier flight without letting you know that they have done so (at least on shuttle? flights). So after waiting 20 minutes at the luggage pickup we decided to go check with the US Air luggage department to try and figure out what happened to our luggage. As we walked into the US Air luggage area we notice our luggage sitting there and asked the customer service rep what happened. They explained that they will sometimes put peoples luggage on an earlier flight.
I asked the rep how was it that the person whose luggage was put on an earlier flight would know this has happened and therefore not waste their time waiting at the luggage belt? They said that if they have time they would walk down and make an announcement to the passengers?. I was baffled that they would think such a policy is acceptable. What if they lost my luggage? I would unknowingly report the wrong flight number to the customer service agent. Whos watching my luggage as it sits on the luggage belt going around and around? Why doesnt the agent who checks you in offer a simple message, youre checking in early therefore your luggage might be put on an earlier flight?? I honestly do not understand what US Air has to gain by adopting such a policy other than to piss off customers, something they already excel at. Lastly I thought the TSA frowned on separating passengers from their luggage, especially in such a predicable manner?
Nevene of Denver, CO March 15, 2009
My boyfriend and I are long-distance due to our respective job situations. We try to see each other at least twice a month. US Airways is one of very few airlines that flies to and from Yuma, AZ from Denver. We are therefore frequent flyers. On one occasion my boyfriend's flight was delayed for so long that by the time he would have reached Denver he would have had to get right back on his returning flight. At that point we felt that delays happen and we continued to fly US Airways.
Some time after that incident I was scheduled to fly out of Denver at 6:30 p.m. My connecting flight out of Phoenix was scheduled to depart at 9:30. My Denver flight was delayed 40 minutes. Once the plane arrived US Airways was unable to get the gate to work. They spent 30 minutes trying to get the gate to work rather than moving the airplane over 10 feet to an empty gate (stationed literally not more than 5 feet away from our scheduled gate). They finally ended up moving to the neighboring gate after 40 minutes. The customer services/check in representative was rude and abrupt. When I asked her whether I would miss my connecting flight she raised her voice and stated she had already talked with me and that I needed to go sit down.
Well, I did miss my connecting flight. US Air couldn't offer any alternatives except for possibly a flight out of Phoenix at 6pm the following night but no promises. They offered to shuttle me to Yuma. I was assured that my baggage would be on the first flight out of Phoenix the following morning. After a 3.5 hour drive to Yuma and very little sleep I woke up and called US Airways in Yuma. I explained my situation and asked them to help me find my baggage. The first rep was rude and treated me like a child--she told me there was nothing she could do for me. Her manager was even ruder. He interrupted me, told me that delays are to be expected espeically in this economy.
When I asked him for the baggage claim number for US Air in Phoenix he hung up on me and then unplugged the phone from the wall. How do I know he did this? Because when I re-dialed I got a message saying this number has been disconnected. My luggage didn't arrive until 10:00 that night (Saturday). I was to leave Sunday afternoon.
Just recently my boyfriend was scheduled to come to Denver from Yuma. His flight from Yuma to Phoenix was fine. At Phoenix they boarded him, he arrived at his seat and found another person sitting there. It turned out that the airline had issued two tickets for the same seat and had overbooked the flight. They told him there was nothing they could do for him: they could not fly him back to Yuma nor could they assure him a spot on another flight out to Denver that day/night. He was stranded. He waited at the airport for nearly 10 hours only to be told he was out of luck. He paid for this ticket and was told only that this happens quite a bit.
In all of our dealings with US Airways the customer service has been horrifying. Representatives of this airline are rude and unapologetic. Delays go unexplained and questions go unaswered. Rather, the representatives behaved as if we owed them something after they had messed up. I understand that delays happen. This, however, is a habitual problem with this airline. It is a pattern rather than a scattering of isolated incidents. When dealing with this airline expect either not to arrive at your destination, a delay, lost baggage, rude customer service, and representatives who simply do not care.
As a result of all of these problems we have lost hundreds of dollars. US Airways is uncaring and unapologetic. I spent quite a bit of money buying items that I had packed in my bag, which the airline lost. Time, however, has been our biggest loss. US Airways simply does not care about this aspect of the situation. What they cannot understand is that people's lives and situations depend on their competence and efficiency. My boyfriend and I have so little time together as it is. US Airways has cost us such valuable time together. I understand that there is likely no legal recourse for this type of loss. My goal is only to get the word out about US Airways.
Stephen of North Babylon, NY March 11, 2009
In March 2008, I booked a flight with US Airways costing 223, which I needed to cancel. According to their non-refundable policy, I needed to complete travel on another booking prior to the same March date in 2009. I knew I wasn't going to be able to do that, so I inquired about an extension. I was given one until April 30, 2009, with a 100 fee.
Even though I thought the fee was excessive compared to other airlines, I figured it was better than losing 223 or paying for another similar flight. Not remembering I needed to book another flight no later than March 5, 2009, my ticket was purged and is no longer valid (as per their email response). My issue is US Airways being allowed to keep my 223 without me receiving something in return.
Brandi of Duluth, GA March 9, 2009
I reported a complaint on the 2nd about my cancelled flight and the representative not being helpful for finding me another flight. on Monday - 3/2/09 after a total of about 8hrs i finally speak with a representative who is somewhat helpful. this representative advised me that i was assigned to another flight but they failed to inform me. so now i'm assigned to a flight for Tuesday - 3/3. ok now i'm just out of one night expenses of the hotel cost in Rome. So the following morning i fly out at and now have 2 connections instead of one. i first connect in Charlotte and then in Philadelphia. well now in Philadelphia i'm waiting on my flight to fly out to Rome. that didn't happen because 30minutes before the flight is due to depart it's cancelled.
so now i'm away from home with no flight. the representative place me on a later flight but now i have not only another connection in Paris but I won't arrive in Rome until late afternoon instead of 8am. for being inconvenience they placed me in first class for one leg of my flight which is to paris. now i'm in Paris with a 2 hr layover and i'm forced to check my carry on bag. next problem, i arrive in Rome to find out that they have lost my luggage. so now it's Wednesday -3/5 and 6pm and no luggage and no idea where my luggage maybe. i get to my hotel and because i was at the airport for 32hrs i need a shower and clothes unfortunately no bag. so my first experience with Rome is searching for clothing and soap.
thursday - 3/6 comes and goes still with no luggage so now again i'm buying clothes and shoes because the shoes i wore on the plane didn't work with the weather of Rome. i'm trying to enjoy my shortened trip with no luggage and no help from us airways who advised me that they were not responsible because i connected to another airline in paris (Alitalia who advised me that they never received the bag from my flight in philadelphia). friday-3/6 and my bags are dropped off with no call or sorry or voucher for the clothes i had to buy for 3days. i try to enjoy the rest of my trip.
i fly out on 3/8 with another connection in philadelphia. i arrive in philadelphia and see that they have placed me on a later flight without notifying me of the change. instead of leaving at 4:55 from philadelphia i have to wait until 8:30 to fly out. for my inconvenience they gave me a 10 dollar food voucher WOW. i arrive in atlanta after 10pm instead of 7:15 pm. now i'm thinking this experience is over...NOT YET. they have lost my bag yet again. now i'm home typing this complaint with no bag from philadelphia. all of this with no sorry or remorse for us airways and so far i've gotten a 10 dollar voucher and an upgrade for one leg of my trip.
150 euros spent on clothing, 88 euros for a room that i wasn't able to enjoy, 32 plus hours cut off of my trip...and the amount of inconvenience is priceless
Michael of Scranton, PA March 4, 2009
I tried to book 2 tickets online. I had technical difficulties and called the 1-800 number for assistance. The woman on the other end booked the tickets for me. I asked how much my total cost was. She failed to mention the 25 per ticket fee and failed to navigate me to the proper contact number for assistance with the website. I called to notify US Air of this issue when i noticed it on my bank statement. They told me that since this was 1 month old, there was not anything they could do.
I was wrongfully charged 50.
Jessica of East Falmouth, MA March 3, 2009
I made a complaint to US Airways Baggage Resolution department about my things being stolen by one of their employees and was basically told they are not liable because they decided they are not. I was on a flight on January 7th from Detroit to Providence. My flight connected in Philadelphia . My first flight was an express flight and we were told we had to give our carry ons directly to the baggage handlers to put inside the storage compartment in the plane. The planes are small and cannot hold all the carry ons inside. It is the only time the bag was out of my sight. In the front pocket of my backpack I had my portable external hard drive and a wireless mouse.
When I started to unpack the next day the only thing in the pocket was a package of peanuts, and the pocket was zipped when I got my bag so it did not fall out. I e-mailed the airline immediately and have yet to receive a reply, so I am already unimpressed with the customer service. I called eventually and was told to handle it through the mail with Baggage Resolution. I was forced to give my carry on, a bag intended to stay with a customer, to the baggage person. I was not offered anything so they are not concerned with keeping customers, and I am a frequent flyer. I not only lost my personal items in this situation but I can never recover the things on my hard drive. I sent them receipts of the items and it is clear what happened so they know the items exist and were not lost. I was offered nothing abd basically told too bad so I take that to mean the airline encourages their employees to steal by not caring about these situations.
I have no doubt that there was no investigation as to who was working that day and no kind of disciplinary action took place. I do not understand what makes the airline think they can type up a limitation of liability statement. They are liable because it is their problem if their employees are stealing, not mine. So it is their responsibility. U.S. Airways does not have the right to not accept liability when they either lose someones baggage or have employees who are stealing from customers. I did not sign anything agreeing to this disclaimer so I do not see how it can be valid.
It is despicable to treat customers this way regardless and I will no longer fly with this airline, and neither will my family. I am a frequent flyer so I hope a 200 incident will be worth the thousands you will lose now. I was offered anything, not even a ticket which costs just about nothing to the airline. So there is no concern about losing customers. This is inexcuseable behavior for any company.
Loss of an external computer hard drive and wireless mouse. About 200 worth total.
Brandi of Duluth, GA March 2, 2009
3/2/2009 I decided to fly US Airways for my vacation to Rome, Italy. My flight was scheduled to depart 2:50pm from Atlanta, GA with a layover in Philadelphia. I woke up at 8 am on the 2nd to check the flight status because of a winter storm moving through the north. I checked flight status online and found that my flight had been cancelled. I looked at other flights which were not delayed nor cancelled. I contacted US Airways which took 3 hrs before I was able to get connected to a representative. Once connected, a rude female stated that I would have to take the flight on the 3rd. I asked the representative if I could possibly catch another flight today she stated the other flights are full and that the whether is the cause for the cancelled flights.
WHile speaking with the representative I was looking at different flights which had open seats and other airlines with no cancelled flights. So I asked again and with more attitude she responded that my only option is to fly tomorrow or get a refund. Now I'm frustrated because I can tell the representative is not trying to be helpful. To make matters worse, I have another individual who I was to meet in Rome whose flight departed on time. So I try calling back in hopes that I'll get an actual representative with customer service experience. AGain I was told aprxt wait would be 30 minutes.
WEll 30 minutes turned into 1 hr 23 minutes when I heard someone pick up the line and then disconnect the call. Apparently they are experiencing extremely high call volumes so representatives are disconnecting calls instead of assisting paying or paid customers. NOw it's 3:27 pm on the 2nd have been and I still have not been helped. I'm again holding online which is a cell phone so my experience with US Airways is going to cost me a high phone bill, hotel room fees which are already paid for, inconvience and no sorry. If I ever get my changed flight, this will be the very last time I fly US Airways.
Mike of Manotick, ON February 23, 2009
Booked a flight for my daughter and her friend to meet us in Myrtle Beach. US Air flight booked through Philadelphia. Apart from a delayed departure all went well leaving from Ottawa and arriving in Myrtle Beach. The return flight ( Feb 22) on the other hand was a different matter! Checked in , printed all the boarding passes and left Myrtle beach on time only to find on arrival in Philadelphia that US3878 was cancelled.
Passengers were informed that all the other flights were booked and the best that US Air could do was get them to Montreal at which point they are on their own. Considering that Montreal is over 100 miles from Ottawa , how are they supposed to get home. No assistance was offered ! It was the best that US Air could do. I spent the day trying to arrange to get them home. No compensation was offered either. Considering that flight US3878 had 100 passengers that is incomprehensible to me. Is this normal for US Air? Apart from lodging a complaint I might add that there seems to be no sense of obligation by US Air to get their travelers to their destination.
Loss of 1 day for myself , my wife and the couple accompanying me as we were on call from 11:30 am to 11:30 pm when our daught was scheduled to arrive. Cell phone charges international calling US/Canada 2 Bus fares Montreal to Ottawa Still awaiting their safe arrival in Ottawa (No thanks to US Air)
Dr. Molefi Kete Asante of Elkins Park, PA February 21, 2009
February 20, 2009 Complaint I am a Gold member of US Airways. I have been Gold many times over the past twenty years flying US Airways out of Philadelphia. However, this is the first time that I believe that I have made a complaint about a Flight Attendant. I have made several reports where I thought a Flight Attendant was excellent. On February 19, 2009 I flew from Philadelphia to Montgomery via Charlotte, changing planes in Charlotte. The plane from Philadelphia was an Airbus A320 and I flew First Class. The plane from Charlotte to Montgomery was a CRJ.
On February 20, 2009 I returned on an ll:25 AM flight to Charlotte on the CRJ with the same briefcase and small suitcase, weighing 8 pounds that I had flown to Montgomery with the day before. However, a Flight Attendant named Jamella stopped me in the plane as I was putting my suitcase in the storage and said, You have to check that suitcase at the gate.? I told her that I had flown down the day before and no one had said a word and in fact she could see that it fit in the bin. Her response to me was that if you do not take it to the gate, then Get off and take another plane.? I personally resent this type of treatment and believe that it is completely over the top. I fly thousands of miles every year and if US Airways cannot treat their best patrons any better than this then it should not expect any loyalty from any passengers.
No one should be treated with the rudeness that Jamella showed me for no apparent reason. I believe that it is in order that Jamella, whose last name, I do not know, but who was the flight attendant on the ll:25 AM segment from Montgomery to Charlotte be talked to about customer service or reprimanded. Note: If some flights will permit baggage in the bins of CRJs and some will not, tell the passengers ahead of time. I fly with carry-ons when I am trying to make connections, as I was on these flights.
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