Jon G.

We had a beautiful trip to Portugal planned, our first time away together in 8 years. Then we made the mistake of flying @british_airways.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

I know this is a crazy idea, but what if we skipped all that and one of you tried to actually help me? Sure, YOU can't contact the claims department, but you have a manager, and they have a manager, etc... C'mon! Experience the thrill of actually making a difference!

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

Hey @British_Airways! It's been a week and 10K views, and still no word back from your mysterious "claims" department. Is anybody from your social team up for trying to impotently placate me today?

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

Hello! Strap yourself in to hear a tale of how @british_airways screwed me out of $6000 that it refuses to give back. I'm writing this as a last ditch effort to shame them into doing the right thing before I have to turn to lawyers. Signal boosting is kindly appreciated. 1/18

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

The legal options are in progress but it occurred to me that publications like the @nytimes travel section might be interested a story about major airlines taking thousands of dollars from customers and refusing to help them. So pitching some columnists is my weekend project.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@InfamousGrouse I've talked to CS folks who seemed truly mortified but unable to help me (and of course, others who didn't seem to really care). But the fact that there doesn't seem to be even an internal escalation process feels damning.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@InfamousGrouse Hard to say where the mistake came from; the post-hoc addition of a new flight is a real head scratcher. The larger issue here is that they've created a system where it's either impossible for representatives to help or they're not incentivized to do so.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@_raymondrose @British_Airways I don't even need to look up the booking reference number anymore, it's burned into my brain forever. I remember it like my kids' birthdays.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

Hello! Strap yourself in to hear a tale of how @british_airways screwed me out of $6000 that it refuses to give back. I'm writing this as a last ditch effort to shame them into doing the right thing before I have to turn to lawyers. Signal boosting is kindly appreciated. 1/18

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@_raymondrose @British_Airways Sound advice, and thanks again. I get an error when I try to manage my booking now, the earlier post where I had a screenshot of the itinerary with the third flight is what I got last time I checked. No mention of the return flights.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@British_Airways Are they on an island? In a volcano fortress? Do they communicate only by raven? Are we dealing with a Silo situation here? (Alternately, a TVA situation if you're more into Loki.)

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@British_Airways I understand that you (David + the social media team) have minimal sway here, and also that you wouldn't want to comment on claims online. I get it! What I don't understand is how the claims department is completely unreachable by ANYONE, even BA employees internally.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@_raymondrose @British_Airways And I can confirm that the e-tickets start with 125-

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@_raymondrose @British_Airways Thank you for the helpful info! We booked directly through @British_Airways & all the flights were directly operated by them.

I agree the glitch is weird. That 3rd flight showed up AFTER we landed in Lisbon, I distinctly recall looking at the online itinerary during our layover.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@CeoSeen_ @_raymondrose Wow, sounds good, sketchily-named account that joined this month! Blocked and reported.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@RoyBatty666 @Backstabbr @British_Airways Right in the wallet!

The next time another player is angry at my betrayal in Diplomacy, I'm going to tell them that they need to file a complaint with the claims department and that someone will get back to them in the unspecified future.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

If you're looking for an airline whose track record of success has led to a claims department so overwhelmed they've literally turned off the phones, look no further than @British_Airways.

[British Airways @British_Airways]

@ScrewedByBA I'm afraid Customer Relations don't have an inbound phone line at the moment, due to the current volume of claims, but if you have respond to the last email you received, a member of the team will review your claim and be in touch as soon as possible. David

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@British_Airways You know what, though? Why not.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@British_Airways Given that I waited 12 weeks for the first reply and it's been 6 weeks since the last, how long do you think I should expect to wait to hear back about my $6000? How long would YOU want to wait? And why can't anyone at @British_Airways help me talk to Claims on the phone?

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

It sounds like the social media team has just as hard a time contacting the claims department as I do!

[British Airways @British_Airways]

@ScrewedByBA I'm sorry to hear that you're still waiting for a resolution. If you have replied to the email you received, the Customer Relations team will be back in touch as soon as they can. Unfortunately, we are unable to help with these cases through our social media channels.

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

Man, that's a good idea. I wish I'd thought to contact them again before going to the trouble of creating this account, typing up my story, and gathering screenshots which required blurring of personal info. I feel like such an idiot!

[British Airways @British_Airways]

@ScrewedByBA Hi Jonathan. If you're not happy with the response received from our Customer Relations team, you will need to reply by using the blue link at the bottom of the email. PhilGW

[Jon G. @ScrewedByBA]

@British_Airways Hi Phil! I did that. They told me I'm not eligible for compensation, and my most recent messages were not responded to. I would love very much to resolve this amicably with you guys, but your company has not been helpful in this (or really any) regard.