Kudos to United Airlines! Way to win back a customer!
In an industry where, more often than naught, it still feels like companies like to put the blame on the customer and put forth minimal effort to satisfy a customer issue, my recent interaction with United Airlines gives me hope for the airline industry. It is quite apparent that they have made a significant commitment to providing excellent customer care.
I had booked United flights for my Dad and step mother to fly from Costa Rica (where they live) to Puerto Vallarta for my destination wedding. On the day of the flight, my folks woke up at 2am, took a taxi for an hour to the airport and then when they got to the United counter, they were told they could not board the flight. The flight was to go from San Jose, Costa Rica to Houston, TX to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. My step mother is Nicaraguan, with a Nicaraguan passport and she had gotten a Visa for Mexico. The problem was, being United does not have a holding area in Houston, she would have needed a US Visa to move from the terminal where she landed to the United terminal for the flight to Puerto Vallarta.
Just days before my wedding, I was faced with the reality that my Dad might not be able to attend my wedding. Not only that but I was out $1,400 for my folk's flight. When I called United, I was initially told by the call center agent that the issue was my fault and there would be no refund. I then booked my folks a flight with AeroMexico and two days later they were with me in Puerto Vallarta. Of course, I was out over $3,000 for plane tickets with two airlines, which was painful on top of all my other wedding expenses.
Once I got home from my wedding and honeymoon, I reached out to United. I anticipated they would again put the blame on me, refuse a refund and possibly offer me some kind of credit towards a future flight. I emailed my story to some of the executives at United and within hours received an email and phone call from Ginger Staffeldt, a United customer care executive. Ginger was able to immediately refund me for my parent's flight, was very compassionate and empathetic to my plight and issued me a terrific credit towards a future flight.
The fact is, no business is above making mistakes. Humans make mistakes and businesses make mistakes. Mistakes aren't the problem. It is how they are handled that's the problem. That my folks couldn't board their United flight was a mistake both on my side and on United's. It hadn't occurred to me that my step mother would need a Visa just to land in Houston to then board another flight to Puerto Vallarta. It hadn't occurred to anyone at United that there might be a problem. I'm not angry that there was an issue. That's life, issues happen. That they were able to apologize, show empathy, understand my situation, refund me for the flights and, in a show of good will give me a credit to use their services again, this speaks volumes about what kind of company United is. Sure, they might make mistakes but they take ownership for their mistakes and do everything in their power to make up for them. They have a solid commitment to providing an excellent customer experience. Instead of this experience causing me to never book with United again, their handling of my situation has impressed me and I can't wait to do business with United again. United Airlines, kudos to you and your approach to customer care.
@united @socap