[Gretchen Eggert]

Five minutes after departing in DFW my daughter discovered that she left her Red Blackberry Pearl on American Airlines Flt#1955 on 11/20/08. The gate agent Loletha Bush confirmed with the aircraft that they had the phone. My daughter waited one hour. No one from the aircraft ever walked up with it and Loletha never walked down the ramp to retrieve it. Loletha's solution was to take my daughter's contact info and get it to Lost & Found to be returned later or book her on an even later connecting flight. These solutions are outrageous. Why not just give her the phone now, problem solved. It has now been 18 days and it was never turned into DFW Lost & Found. I sent many emails so American Airlines could start an investigation/inquiry. You can imagine my frustration when each response referenced the first response. SEE BELOW

December 2, 2008
We have received your email regarding your missing cell phone. However, we indicate a response was provided on November 24 to an earlier email when your mother wrote on your behalf. A copy of the text to our previous response is as follows:
November 24, 2008
I'm sorry to learn of your daughter's missing cell phone. I can understand both your disappointments and frustration.
Although I don't have the benefit of seeing the circumstances unfold, the responsibility to handle such matters rests entirely with the station's lost and found office. Learning that you have filed a report with them, just to let you know, they will ONLY contact a customer if the item is identified. Mrs. Eggert, I hope your daughter's cell phone is found.
Sincerely,
Roberto Silva
Customer Relations
American Airlines

My daughter's cell phone wasn't missing until American Airlines LOST it. I notice a common trend in these email complaints. Their inability/refusal to handle their customers. They are trained to give you the run around. I just booked my daughter a flight home for Christmas on Delta. She will spend an extra 2 hours in airports, but I would rather inconvenience her then give American Airlines my business.

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by Gretchen Eggert

Five minutes after departing in DFW my daughter discovered that she left her Red Blackberry Pearl on American Airlines Flt#1955 on 11/20/08. The gate agent Loletha Bush confirmed with the aircraft that they had the phone. My daughter waited one hour. No one from the aircraft ever walked up with it and Loletha never walked down the ramp to retrieve it. Loletha's solution was to take my daughter's contact info and get it to Lost & Found to be returned later or book her on an even later connecting flight. These solutions are outrageous. Why not just give her the phone now, problem solved. It has now been 18 days and it was never turned into DFW Lost & Found. I sent many emails so American Airlines could start an investigation/inquiry. You can imagine my frustration when each response referenced the first response. SEE BELOW

December 2, 2008
We have received your email regarding your missing cell phone. However, we indicate a response was provided on November 24 to an earlier email when your mother wrote on your behalf. A copy of the text to our previous response is as follows:
November 24, 2008
I'm sorry to learn of your daughter's missing cell phone. I can understand both your disappointments and frustration.
Although I don't have the benefit of seeing the circumstances unfold, the responsibility to handle such matters rests entirely with the station's lost and found office. Learning that you have filed a report with them, just to let you know, they will ONLY contact a customer if the item is identified. Mrs. Eggert, I hope your daughter's cell phone is found.
Sincerely,
Roberto Silva
Customer Relations
American Airlines

My daughter's cell phone wasn't missing until American Airlines LOST it. I notice a common trend in these email complaints. Their inability/refusal to handle their customers. They are trained to give you the run around. I just booked my daughter a flight home for Christmas on Delta. She will spend an extra 2 hours in airports, but I would rather inconvenience her then give American Airlines my business.

Just who lost the phone here, your daughter or AA?

If AA had lost a checked bag, then you'd have a legimitmate complaint. Suppose your daughter had taken the phone off the plane and left it in an airport lavatory? Who's fault would it be then? AA's? The DFW airport? Airlines are not responsible nor are they liable for any personal belongings other than checked baggage and even then there are limitations to that liability.

They are not obligated in any way to track down your daughter's lost phone yet you accuse them of "inability/refusal to handle their customers." This is not a customer service issue. Your daughter should have never left DFW without the phone and the airport agent's offer to re-book her to a later flight in order for your daughter to wait for the phone to be brought to her was going above and beyond if you ask me.

I have a few suggestions for what YOU can do to possibly track down the phone. Items left on aircraft are usually turned into the baggage claim office at that airport. Start by calling AA's toll-free baggage claim number (1-800-535-5225) and ask them if they can provide you with a direct number for baggage services @DFW. Also, try calling the airport lost and found @972-425-2465.

Finally, if you hit a dead end with these two numbers, e-mail AA again (link to web e-mail form) and briefly explain your situation and ask them to check where the aircraft that operated as flight 1955 on 11/20 flew on to after your daughter de-planed @DFW. It is possible that her phone never made it off the plane and ended up at that aircraft's next destination.

Good luck to you.

[jimworcs]

PHX,
I think you are being a little harsh on this passenger. Ok, lets accept that the responsibility for leaving the phone in the first place was the passenger. These things happen, but lets not say that because someone makes a mistake, then they are totally responsible for all subsequent problems. The key phrase in the original posting is this..

The gate agent Loletha Bush confirmed with the aircraft that they had the phone.

The daughter was ill advised not to accept the offer to take a later flight and wait for the phone to be returned. However, AA had acknowledged they had the phone. At this point, the phone was in AA's care. They now have a moral (and legal) responsibility to take due care of their customer's property. They are failing in their responsibility. They can post as many rules as they like saying they are not responsible for items left on planes, and they are not. However, once they have acknowledged that they have the item in their care and stated that they will return it, they have a legal responsibility to take due care of the item and return it to the owner. The repeated email "stonewalling" is sadly becoming very common in the airlines and it is disgraceful.

[PHXFlyer]

I am willing to accept that pragmatism may come across as being harsh, but I couldn't help but feel that Gretchen was shifting the main blame for the lost phone off of her daughter and onto the airline.

I did offer some constructive suggestions to her how to handle the situation from this point forward. Since it is technically, and legally, not the airlines obligation to expend any more time on this matter, a little time spent on her part may yield the result she is seeking which is the return of her daughter's Blackberry.

As a side note, I too have have lost cellphones and even had one stolen. Lost one in a taxi, a limo, a bar, and had one stolen out of my belt holster while shopping at Nordstrom! The only time I got it back was when I lost it in the limo and realized it and was able to call the driver before my flight departed for Hawaii. In the other cases did I blame the bar, taxi company or Nordstrom for the loss? Absolutely not. I just went through the motions of making a few phone calls, wrote the phone off, and went to my cellular provider to purchase a new phone.

Might I suggest. Gretchen, that you advise your daughter to buy insurance for your cellphone. It only costs a few dollars per month and by paying a $50 deductable they will overmight a replacement phone to her.

[GetTheFacts]

Originally Posted by Gretchen Eggert

Five minutes after departing in DFW my daughter discovered that she left her Red Blackberry Pearl on American Airlines Flt#1955 on 11/20/08. The gate agent Loletha Bush confirmed with the aircraft that they had the phone. My daughter waited one hour. No one from the aircraft ever walked up with it and Loletha never walked down the ramp to retrieve it. Loletha's solution was to take my daughter's contact info and get it to Lost & Found to be returned later or book her on an even later connecting flight. These solutions are outrageous. Why not just give her the phone now, problem solved. It has now been 18 days and it was never turned into DFW Lost & Found. I sent many emails so American Airlines could start an investigation/inquiry. You can imagine my frustration when each response referenced the first response. SEE BELOW

December 2, 2008
We have received your email regarding your missing cell phone. However, we indicate a response was provided on November 24 to an earlier email when your mother wrote on your behalf. A copy of the text to our previous response is as follows:
November 24, 2008
I'm sorry to learn of your daughter's missing cell phone. I can understand both your disappointments and frustration.
Although I don't have the benefit of seeing the circumstances unfold, the responsibility to handle such matters rests entirely with the station's lost and found office. Learning that you have filed a report with them, just to let you know, they will ONLY contact a customer if the item is identified. Mrs. Eggert, I hope your daughter's cell phone is found.
Sincerely,
Roberto Silva
Customer Relations
American Airlines

My daughter's cell phone wasn't missing until American Airlines LOST it. I notice a common trend in these email complaints. Their inability/refusal to handle their customers. They are trained to give you the run around. I just booked my daughter a flight home for Christmas on Delta. She will spend an extra 2 hours in airports, but I would rather inconvenience her then give American Airlines my business.

My apoligies for your daughter's phone being lost but the circumstances behind it being lost was not as you think. 1. The jetbridge was broken that day and was not attached to the plane. The passengers had to come down the back of the plane and down the back stairs of the plane. Outside then to the backstairs of the jetbridge which on that day, it was freezing cold outside. 2. The supervisor called and said he had the phone but due to safety regulations could not bring it to me at the time because we were working another flight, using the same plane out. And 3. I turned the phone in to lost and found at c-2 and asked that they make sure your daughter got the phone. So I am sorry if you think that was poor customer service, but we had to think of the safety of the other passengers first.

[Leatherboy2006]

Getthefacts are you the agent at the gate that day?
If so its kinda of neat to hear the other side

[abutterfinger25]

Originally Posted by GetTheFacts

...
And 3. I turned the phone in to lost and found at c-2 and asked that they make sure your daughter got the phone. So I am sorry if you think that was poor customer service, but we had to think of the safety of the other passengers first.

But if you knew who the phone belonged to, why didn't you take steps to return it to the person instead of just turning it into lost and found?

[GetTheFacts]

Originally Posted by abutterfinger25

But if you knew who the phone belonged to, why didn't you take steps to return it to the person instead of just turning it into lost and found?

Because she left to catch a flight. She did not want to take a later flight like was suggested. That's why! She was gone...gone...gone.

[PHXFlyer]

WTG GetTheFacts! Nice that we could get the full story on one of these posts by someone involved other than the one posting the complaint. Unfortunately, "Gretchen" has never logged back into the forum since her post 1 post on 12/18:

View Profile: Gretchen Eggert Gretchen Eggert
Last Activity: 12-08-2008 11:10 AM

So I guess this was pretty important to her huh? BTW how old was the daughter who lost the phone? Adult who should have known better or a young person? Just curious. Thanks!

[Gretchen Eggert]

Originally Posted by PHXFlyer

I am willing to accept that pragmatism may come across as being harsh, but I couldn't help but feel that Gretchen was shifting the main blame for the lost phone off of her daughter and onto the airline.

I did offer some constructive suggestions to her how to handle the situation from this point forward. Since it is technically, and legally, not the airlines obligation to expend any more time on this matter, a little time spent on her part may yield the result she is seeking which is the return of her daughter's Blackberry.

As a side note, I too have have lost cellphones and even had one stolen. Lost one in a taxi, a limo, a bar, and had one stolen out of my belt holster while shopping at Nordstrom! The only time I got it back was when I lost it in the limo and realized it and was able to call the driver before my flight departed for Hawaii. In the other cases did I blame the bar, taxi company or Nordstrom for the loss? Absolutely not. I just went through the motions of making a few phone calls, wrote the phone off, and went to my cellular provider to purchase a new phone.

Might I suggest. Gretchen, that you advise your daughter to buy insurance for your cellphone. It only costs a few dollars per month and by paying a $50 deductable they will overmight a replacement phone to her.

PHXFlyer did you read my post??? I just wanted to post my frustrations, I was never shifting blame or asked for your advise, but you do seem to be full of it. My daughter left her phone on the plane. I just couldn't understand why someone couldn't get the phone to her.

I wish I had logged back in. I never expected Loletha Bush to respond. Thank you for the full explanation! I do appreciate your response. Had the phone been returned by the Lost & Found department I wouldn't have been as frustrated as I was. According to them it was never turned in so it just stopped there.

[The_Judge]

Gretchen.....PHX won't be back, at least as PHXFlyer. If you look under his screen name, it says banned. He was removed a couple months ago so probably won't respond to you.

[rerere]

Originally Posted by Gretchen Eggert

I just booked my daughter a flight home for Christmas on Delta. .

Well, we just hope that she dosn't get killed on a Delta flight on Christmas. What, with the Nigerians and osama, she and the whole plane could blow up.