[yefro]

Please see my email below to United. Beware when you are given vouchers! To Whom It May Concern: A few days ago, I called United Customer Service and tried booking a ticket using my vouchers (see attached). I obtained these vouchers by volunteering to get bumped off a flight in Denver. When I explained to them to the type of vouchers I had, they said that I had to either go to an Airport with a United counter or mail the vouchers within 24 hours. As I am currently in Freeport, Bahamas, both options were impossible and I needed to book the ticket quickly. The airport here does not have a United counter and it can take up to a month to send mail to the US. I had a scanned-in version of the vouchers with me, so I tried giving the voucher numbers over the phone. They said that they could not use vouchers in that manner. I then offered to email the digital copies of the vouchers by email. They said that would not be valid either. I am not sure if United is aware but this is the year 2011. Everything is digital these days. Whenever I got vouchers from Air Canada, they were ALWAYS digital and I was even able to claim them online. Working in IT, I find it completely absurd that the largest airline in the world is STILL giving out paper vouchers where I have to physically go to the airport to redeem them, especially when it is not a possibility for me. Do you still have planes in your fleet from the Wright Brothers era? Had I known that I would have to physically go to the airport to redeem these vouchers, I NEVER would have volunteered to get bumped off the plane. This was not mentioned when I was given the vouchers. Is this the thanks you give to the volunteers who get bumped off of flights? I asked Customer Service if there is anything that could be done as a Star Alliance Gold member given my circumstances. They said it was not possible. They then told me that I can have a friend redeem my vouchers at the airport. I mentioned that my friend was going to redeem them at the Montreal Airport (YUL) and they said that that airport did not have a United counter which is completely false! I tried telling the individual that he was mistaken and he kept arguing and even responded rudely! He told me that if I don’t like the information he is providing, I should complain to Customer Relations! I called again to try to speak to someone else and they also told me that there is no United counter in Montreal. Now, I have flown United out of Montreal before. I even called the airport itself to ensure that there is still a United counter there. I mentioned to the airport that United was telling me that there is no United counter at the airport. Their response: “United does not know what they are talking about.” How can it be that United does not know which airports have United counters? Why is United employing such incompetent customer service reps? As someone who flies every week, I am highly considering filing a complaint with Star Alliance for the poor treatment United gives to loyal customers. If you are going to outsource your customer service center, at least train your employees properly. After this experience, I doubt that I will fly United again on my dollar. Looking forward to a non-generic response.