[madison1137]

I had an extremely stressful and frustrating experience with a person handling the Air Canada check-in at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Dec. 23, and was wondering if anyone else has encountered this situation before.

I was scheduled on the 4pm flight from LaGuardia to Ottawa (flight AC7733) on Dec. 23. I arrived at the airport at 2:40pm and was pleased when I saw only about seven people in the lineup ahead of me. I soon discovered though that only one person was handling the main check-in for Air Canada and she was taking about 10 minutes per person. (There was a second person who was handling the “Executive” check-in and another person handling the line for people who already had seats and just needed to drop off luggage - but only one person handling the main check-in).

Since she was taking about 10 minutes per person, I didn’t get to the check-in counter until about 3:05PM OR 3:10PM. And when I got to the front, the woman – “Maureen” (she refused to give me her last name) told me I was too late to check in because my luggage needed to be checked in by 3pm. I explained to her that I had been standing in the line since 2:40pm.

She ignored this and claimed that she had asked if anyone was on the 4pm Ottawa flight and nobody had come forward. I told her that I never heard her call out – and asked if she had stood up from her desk to ask everyone. She “claimed” she had a loud voice and that I should have heard it from behind her desk. Another passenger behind me told her he had not heard her “announcement” either. She ignored him too.

She then told me that she’d put my luggage on “stand-by” – which I strongly objected to. I had booked this flight several weeks in advance, and planned my travel schedule around this 4pm flight, and I certainly did not want to have my luggage arrive several hours after I did. Since I kept arguing with her – I was pretty angry at this point – she then said I couldn’t even be on standby and that I’d have to wait FIVE HOURS for the next flight at 8pm. She was extremely rude, arrogant and patronizing - even putting her hand to her lip with a "zip it" signal when she wanted me to stop talking.

I repeatedly asked to speak to a manager, and she refused to get one.

I then told “Maureen” that I didn’t want to check any luggage – and that I’d bring the bag to the gate. (The passenger behind me agreed that my bag was small enough to easily fit into the overhead compartment on the plane and that I should be able to bring it with me). But “Maureen” refused to even look at my bag or to check me in. She was extremely rude – and insisted I had to wait the five hours for the 8pm flight and would not give me my ticket unless I agreed to check my bag on the 8pm flight. Unbelieveable!

This Air Canada employee clearly has no regard for Air Canada’s customers and no idea what customer service means. This long pointless delay was extremely inconvenient for me and it affected the person who was picking me up at the airport in Ottawa. (The person who was picking me up was on the road driving from Sault Ste. Marie and was going to be meeting me at the airport at 5:20pm when my flight was scheduled to arrive – and I had no way of reaching this person to tell them that Air Canada had bumped me from my flight for no reason).

When I got to the gate, I told the Air Canada person about my experience with "Maureen" - and she actually tried to help. She tried to call down to the baggage area to retrieve my luggage so that I could still get on the 4pm flight as there were clearly plenty of seats still available. Unfortunately, the bag had not gotten through security clearance at that point. So, I was stuck waiting until 8pm.

This entire experience was extremely stressful and frustrating for me,and it will certainly make me think twice before ever booking a flight with AC again.

I don’t know if AC reads this forum or not – if they do, I hope they have the courtesy and respect of offering a response. I certainly didn’t get one at the airport.

I think Air Canada should compensate me for the rude and disrespectful way I was treated by “Maureen,” for being forced to wait five extra hours due to an Air Canada employee error (I was there at 2:40pm – well ahead of the 3pm check-in deadline for my 4pm flight), and for the inconvenience it caused my friend who arrived at the airport to meet me in Ottawa at 5:20pm and had no idea what happened to me. I also think AC should seriously reconsider having such a rude and incompetent employee on the front line dealing with customers.

[Survivor]

I understand your frustration in this matter and I encourage you to go to aircanada.com and make a complaint. I have to advise you that the agent 'procedurally' did everything that she was supposed to based on the circumstances related.. and I know thats going to grind you. However, the bigger issue has to be how you were handled by Maureen. There is no excuse for bad behaviour or unprofessionalism. Every agent is assigned a duty and a time and can easily be traced back. If you want your wish to seriously have this persons employment 'reconsidered' = complain. Yours may be the complaint that tips the scale.

Try this link:
http://help-aircanada.com/aircanada/...ue.do?lang=ENU

If that doesn't work go to aircanada.com; then contact us; then Past Travel - Comments, Compliments or Complaints and choose send an email. You will get a 'canned response' thanking you for your comments but a rep will respond to you.

Your arguement has to be how you were treated in light of the circumstances; not because you were in the terminal before the 60min cutoff.