My name is David Andrew Fuller. I am a British citizen working in Thailand. I am writing to complain about my return flight from Manchester to Bangkok. I work for a prominent school in Bangkok and I usually volunteer full time during April as it is my school’s main holiday. I returned this year to England to see my new born nephew.
During my stay I received an urgent message that a volunteer had not shown up and I was need back at the school quickly. I called the Ethihad number and asked if I could alter my return ticket. I was told that I would have to pay extra 140 pounds for an upgrade. I didn’t want an upgrade but was reassured that I would have a higher baggage allowance, so I agreed to the upgrade.
I then used my extra baggage allowance to purchase second hand (cheap) books for the poor school I volunteer at. I was even asked to purchase some prizes which could be awarded to the students who had improved the most. The total cost of these book and prizes came to about 20 pounds.
When I arrived to collect ticket I was told I was only upgraded to another level of economy and was not entitled to extra baggage. I voiced my concern about my bag weight to the ticket office but was told to talk to the check-in people. When I checked in I was charged 260 pounds for extra baggage. I was told to pay the fine or throw away the books and prizes. I remade calm I explained what I was told when I booked the ticket but the man in charge was not interested, he claimed there was a miscommunication to me but I was told to pay the fine or leave the line.
So I paid 140 pounds for an upgrade I didn’t want and 260 pounds for extra baggage I would never have bought. The final cost was almost as high as the original return ticket going both ways.
I felt that no one wanted to deal with this problem and I was been pushed away with no help or explanation. Each station just wanted my money and to get rid of me. The standard answer to my questions was “Go to the website”.
A similar event happed to a fellow teacher traveling on Emirates Airline. The teacher explained he was carrying materials for a charity school and the airline found a way to help the teacher.
My experience was that no-one was willing to listen, explain anything to me, or take responsibility for their actions. I was even asked why I was not returning to England afterwards and asked to prove that I was employed in Thailand even though I have the relevant visa and work permit!
Then when I arrived at Abu Dhabi I was told that I could not board my connecting flight as I didn’t have a valid ticket. I was told to leave the line and wait. After waiting for an hour where I was told that I may not be able to take my flight, I was then told that the mistake was made in Manchester and I could board the plane. Again, no apology or explaination.
I have been traveling between England and Thailand for the past 10 years and this is my worst experience ever. I usually travel with Emirates but my travel agent suggested Etihad as an alternative. This was a decision which I regret and will not be using this airline again. If it had been clearly explained to me when I phoned to alter my ticket none of the following mistakes would have happened. I should have realized that I was dealing with someone with communication difficulties after giving my reference 3 times to the phone operator.
I will now be unable to return to England next year as I had to use 3 months salary to cover the extra cost I have incurred trying to return to Thailand. In my opinion a sign of a good company is how it deals with problems. My experience was that this problem was pushed away and I was left taking responsibility for the mistakes made by the people I was interacting with. These types of mistakes cannot be allowed to go unchecked.
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