[Not Happy]

Here is the correspondence related to this horror story.

Aosta M. D'Souza,

I appreciate your quick response to this complaint. I am unsure if you reviewed the flight/itinerary information associated with this incident as I did not discuss it in detail in the online form as it was and is my intention to forward a fully detailed description of the events in a letter to be sent to various persons and departments I was advised to contact regarding this incident.

I originally purchased four tickets in July 2011 flying from Charleston WV to McAllen TX. The original itinerary was scheduled to depart Charleston on Tuesday December 20 at 1650hrs and arrive in Atlanta GA at 1818hrs. The connecting flight was scheduled to depart Atlanta Tuesday December 20 at 1935hrs and arrive in McAllen TX at 2140hrs.

The confirmation for this itinerary was received by email on 16 December at 0533hrs. On two different occasions after this, my wife and I contacted Delta, providing our confirmation code and flight information, in order to obtain information related to traveling with our children and their safety seats. During neither of these conversations was the itinerary change mentioned even though the Delta agent stated that they had retrieved our flight information. The original flight from Atlanta to McAllen no longer existed at the time of these conversations.

I was advised by the Agent at Charleston WV that the original itinerary had been changed in October 2011. This is three months after I purchased my tickets and two months before I received my confirmation! I do understand that flights are routinely cancelled, delayed, or rescheduled due to various reasons. However, this was not a last minute emergency or weather related incident, this was something that had been done months earlier for Delta's convenience and I and my family suffered for the failure to notify us earlier.

It was not just the four of that was "inconvenienced" by this incident. Based on the flight we originally scheduled six months ago and confirmed two to four days prior, my mother-in-law drove six hours from Tampico Mexico to pick us up at the airport at 2140hrs to find out that we were not there. We had no way of notifying her before she had left home of what was going on in Charleston.

I understand that incidents happen, but it is how we react to those incidents that define us as people and in this case a company. Delta employees are the face of Delta and therefore reflect the standards. Had this been just a matter of a scheduling issue, perhaps the remedy would have been sufficient. It is the fact that your representative informed my family and I that he could do nothing for us and dumped us off on someone else.

The Charleston agent informed us that we had three options: 1. Schedule our flight for the following day when there was a connecting flight from Atlanta which would result in either staying in a hotel in Charleston or driving over 150 miles back home adding a total of 300 unscheduled miles to our expense in addition to having to carry all the luggage out of the airport, loading back in the car only to repeat the entire process all over again the following day. 2. Schedule our Atlanta to McAllen flight for the following day and take the original flight from Charleston to Atlanta as schedule then stay in a hotel in Atlanta at our expense. 3. Cancel the entire flight for a refund minus cancellation fee and take another airline.

After all of this debate and finally reaching the decision that we would lose less vacation time and time with our family by going on to Atlanta and dealing with things there when we weren't under the pressure of our flight leaving in the next 20 minutes, the agent gave me the impression that he was helping me by sending my family to Atlanta where they had more resources and authority to deal with issues such as these.

I cannot believe the audacity of this individual smiling like a friend and shaking my hand knowing that I was traveling with my wife and two children ages 2 and 4 and that he was going to either strand us at an airport over night or put us in the position of paying for a hotel near an airport which average around $100 a night at our expense. Then, to find out that perhaps Atlanta could have helped us had your representative in Charleston not tied their hands by placing the comments on our itinerary that he did.

Your representatives actions were blatant, intentional, and malicious!!! This agents actions and the affect they have had on my family and I far exceed the trivial gesture received at the Charleston location. The compensation equates to $120 per person for the entire ordeal unless you factor in my mother-in-law which lowers this to $96.40. The fact that my wife's family lives in Mexico, which means a potential annual trip for a family of four over the next 20 years at a current cost of approximately $1500 equates to $30,000.

A company the size of Delta can easily afford to lose $1500 per year or even $30,000 at any given time, my family however cannot afford to save this kind of money to pay to a company that does not appreciate the true value of it or do I believe that I would choose to willingly give our money to a company that that would employ an individual and not take responsibility for that employees actions. I appreciate your review but not the end result of it and will keep this in mind as I make my family's travel plans and document my Delta experience with other friends and family.

Sincerely,



--- On Wed, 1/4/12, Contact Delta <[email protected]> wrote:

From: Contact Delta <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: CC-Customer Care-Complaint-Flight Disruption-Cancellation

Thank you for sharing your concerns regarding the service received while
traveling with us. On behalf of Delta Air Lines and our Connecting
carrier Atlantic Southeast Airlines, I sincerely apologize for our
flight delay and your description of the service you received from our
agents.

As our customer, you are in the best position to point out areas that
need attention. Our goal is to provide consistent and accurate
information to our passengers at all times. Our employees should be
responsive to the needs of all our customers, and I regret to read your
report that your experience was otherwise. I understand the frustration
you experienced when our flight was delayed. Please let me assure you
that safety is the number one consideration in the operation of our
flights, but despite our best efforts, we sometimes face unscheduled
issues. We know our travelers need an airline they can count on, and I
recognize how upsetting it is when plans are disrupted.

Additionally, I am truly sorry for your disappointment with the goodwill
gesture you received. We certainly recognize our passengers are the
reason we are in business and we extended this gesture to convey our
apology for the inconvenience you encountered at that time. Be assured
that I have shared your comments with our Airport Customer Service
leadership team. We want to ensure that the best possible service is
provided at all times.

Further, delta uses many factors to determine compensation for our
passengers who have been inconvenienced through no fault of their own.
Our information indicates that you received the compensation we normally
provide in circumstances of this kind and therefore, we must
respectfully decline your request for further consideration. I am truly
sorry to disappoint you, as I understand this was not the answer you
were expecting.

As a valued customer, you are an integral part of our
customer base and we are always interested in your feedback. Thank you
for taking the time to write about our service. We deeply value your
business and look forward to serving you in the near future.

Sincerely,

Aosta M. D'Souza
Coordinator, Corporate Customer Care
Delta Air Lines

Original Message Follows:
------------------------
Delta Air Lines Customer Care Form


Flight Date: 12/22/2011
Flight Number:
Origin City: CRW
Destination City: MFE
Confirmation Number:
Ticket Number:
Class of Travel: economy
Response Required: Yes
Message: This was the worst flying experience and poorest customer
service I have ever experienced in my life. My itinerary was changed
without notifying me costing me additional out of pocket expenses. The
agent took no responsibility for the issue, advised that he did not have
the authority to provide a hotel even though our flight had been moved
to the following day and we were traveling with our two children under
the age of 4 and do not live in the Charleston area! The agent advised
me discretely that I should speak to an agent in Atlanta as they had
more resources and authority than he did to deal with the situation and
may be able to provide a hotel room. Upon arrival in Atlanta, we made
contact with a supervisor and explained everything. He attempted to help
us and was going to provide food vouchers and hotel. He pulled up our
travel information and then informed us there was nothing he could o as
the supervisor in Charleston had noted on the account that we were told
prior to leaving that nothing would be done and not to provide
accommodations to us!!! We were given 4 $100 flight vouchers
(Charleston) $24 in food vouchers and a $58 hotel voucher (Atlanta) to
compensate for the incident. I truly feel this was inadequate overall
and too late especially when dealing with a family traveling with 2
small children during Christmas. While in Atlanta waiting to board for
McAllen (the 2nd leg of what was to have been one day of travel) an
announcement was made that the flight was overbooked and if one person
was willing to give up their seat and travel later in the day, that they
would be provided with a voucher for a free flight. This was simply for
making a choice to fly later with no real inconvenience, Nothing
compared to what my family and were put through based on circumstances
caused by Delta!!!

Submitted: Wed Jan 04 2012 12:13:45 GMT-0500 (Eastern Standard Time)

[jimworcs]

That letter illustrates perfectly the way Delta treats its customers. Their treatment of you and your family is disgraceful...they will no doubt ignore this letter, but you should also copy it to the DOT. Delta are really the lowest of the low.