United Airlines to Customers: Good News! We've Found Another Way to Exploit You!
I had an interaction with United Airlines last week that highlighted how hostile to its customers the company has become, how pursuit of profit trumps common sense and any attempt to make things work for customers rather than the company bottom line.
My mother was planning to spend Christmas in Ireland with my brother. So we had planned a Christmas trip to join them in Ireland this year. But my mother had some health issues and decided not to go to Ireland. So we had a last minute change of plans, and decided we to visit with her at Thanksgiving in Virginia instead.
We knew the Thanksgiving tickets would be expensive at the last minute, but figured we'd use the credit from the Christmas trip to Ireland, and it would all come out in the wash.
Not so fast. There's a change fee ($900, for the three of us, with a complex mix of flights needing to be changed). But that won't come out of the refund. No. They charge the change fees to your credit card, and send you a PAPER VOUCHER (which they clearly hope you will never be able to use) for the refund.
OK. Made the Thanksgiving change. Expensive, but worth it, because we want to spend the time with my mom.
But I will still need to go to Ireland for some other family business, and can do it in January while my brother is still there. But can I apply the remaining credit? No. Despite the fact that I'd originally paid for three tickets on a single credit card in a single transaction, the remaining balance has now been converted into three separate refunds, and only one of them can be applied to the new ticket. The others will eventually arrive in the form of two separate paper vouchers.
This is symptomatic of either a profound disdain for customers, or, more likely, a calculated decision that if they make it as difficult as possible to use a refund, much of the money they refund will never be spent, and they will get to keep it.
I'm a high status flier on United. I have flown several million miles lifetime on the airline, and I'm ready to quit.
It seems to me that the short term thinking that creates this kind of user-hostile experience is endemic in modern business. It's what Umair Haque calls "thin value." And I'm fed up with companies like United that think that it's OK to plump up their bottom line by screwing their customers.
I should add that the representative who helped me on the phone was kind and patient, and sorry that she was helpless in the grasp of a soulless machine.
P.S. I'm working on a piece called "Our Skynet Moment" about the many ways that "the market" -- not hostile AI -- is what we should be worrying about: a human creation gone seriously awry, no longer serving humans but too often inimical to them!
So please share your stories of humans (and their companies) caught in the machine, unable to exert their better instincts because "the market" won't let them, or rewarded by the market for doing something hostile to their customers, as well as stories about companies bucking the trend. (As you can see, the airline industry is a poster child for this kind of behavior, though their impact is dwarfed by that of the financial firms that brought us the 2008 financial crisis.)
Supply Chain Consulting, Industry & Solutions Marketing, Seeking Board Positions
8 年Similar poor customer experience with Dish Network and DirecTV. I was a loyal customer of DirecTV for 10+ years. DirecTV was offering their new customers all kinds of discounts and new equipment. I called them up and asked for new equipment and they said the best they could do, since I was an existing customer, was a $50 credit. I replaced them with Dish Network. DirecTV called a few days later and told me to hang on to my old equipment because you never know when I might want to come back. They just didn't get it and I told them my old equipment was on the curb waiting for trash pickup. Well fast forward 10 years and I had the same experience with Dish Network. I wanted new equipment and the same deal they were offering new customers fully willing to sign a new two year agreement. After talking with multiple customer service people at multiple levels they offered a $75 credit. So I switched to Prism TV from CenturyLink and love it. Dish contacted me a few months later and wanted to see if I would come back offering an existing customer deal that was not as good as the deals they were offering to new customers. So now I am wondering what will happen when my two year agreement is up with CenturyLink and I want the same deal with upgraded equipment they are giving to new customers at that time. Will I have to switch back to Dish or DIRECTV? In my opinion treating an existing customer worse than a new customer is just bad business. They should be offering better deals for an existing customer if they are willing to sign a new agreement. After all I always paid my bill on-time so there should be less risk with renewing my agreement then going after new business.
Business Development Engineer...
8 年Unfortunately the traditional tier 1 airlines in recent years have pretty much all adopted the same/similar business/charging models as the low cost airlines. So rather than loyalty towards our previously favourite airline I suspect if the trend continues the frequent flyer will adopt an avoid the worst airline loyalty model.
Innovating Ways to Improve Human Connection
8 年Curious to see if anyone from United is on this thread?
Technology executive bridging AI innovation with human potential. MSc Cyberpsychology | Strategic transformation leader | AI, Ethics & Privacy expert
8 年Wow ... this is an experience I myself have had. I was supposed to travel with my family to a funeral and two days before the trip I got news I needed emergency eye surgery. The hotels, the car rentals and everyone else made the change easy. The airline ... a complete mess. Confusing. No transparency. No attempt to help .. just the same story ... sorry but we have no ability to actually help you in any way other than to follow this process which we ourselves are embarrassed about. In my mind it is simple ... their outdated business models do not reflect the reality of the humans they serve. They believe they have a monopoly ... but I will tell you this ... my family and I have been enjoying taking the train whenever possible. Legroom, the ability to get up walk around, stretch out ... a food car ... decent bathrooms and no one constantly bumping me!!
Founder. Executive. Performance Supercharger for Leaders and their Companies. Business Buyer.
8 年Tim, well written post about a terrible situation. You couldn't be more correct. Brian Rivera, was just writing about another incident on Delta Air Lines which exposes how entirely ambivalent to customers the airline is - much like United Airlines in your posting here. There's good news in all this - Alaska, Southwest, and American are going strong and, sooner or later, will probably put some of these dinosaurs to bed. Would also love to see some disruptive innovation in aviation, as well...