[karach123]

Thanks for looking into my complaint. Basically, I am trying to find out that as an airpassenger, if I am denied a seat in an airplane because of a credit card glitch what are my rights. When I showed up for boarding in Karachi, I showed Qatar Airways boarding staff all the credit cards I had and none matched what they had in their system. My travel agent says he does not have any credit card that matches what was tagged to my ticket by Qatar Airways. I believe the credit card glitch happened because of an error on part of Qatar Airways. As I could not board on the flight, I missed my onward connections and also had to buy a ticket at the spur of the moment at a very high price. I feel that Qatar Airways should compensate for all my losses and not only return me the price of the ticket that I paid to Qatar Airways. This is where the dispute is. I have been very disturbed with this, and would like to know what aviation law says about this. I just do not know. I would appreciate if you could give me some guidance about this. I still would like to resolve this with Qatar Airways, but it has gone nowhere in the last couple of months. Below you will find my narration as well. I have attached some documentation that I have about this, however, I can provide you more if you would need, particularly with Qatar Airways customer relation officer. I appreciate your thoughtful review of my complaint.

Abdul Nadir



"I had bought a ticket to go from Islamabad to London-
Heathrow by Qatar Airways on Sunday March 13th 2011. I used
my American express to pay for this ticket on January 4,
2011. Subsequently, I had my travel agent (Travel
international-New York) reroute this ticket to travel from
Karachi to London-Heathrow on the same date using my Master
Card. I was supposed to fly from London-Heathrow to Phoenix
using British Airways to arrive in Phoenix on the evening
of Sunday March 13th.

When I arrived at Karchi Airport on the morning of March 13th, Qatar's
boarding agent asked me to produce the Master Card used to
purchase this ticket (He specifically asked me to give me the last 4 of the Master Card).
I gave him the only Master Card I had to the agent
and he told me that it does not match the Master
Card they had in the system. I told him that it may be an
error and showed him all the credit cards including my
American express that I had used to purchase this ticket
originally and he told me that nothing matched the card
number in their system. The boarding agent asked me to go
out and resolve the issue with their ticketing agent
outside the airport. The Qatar ticketing agent tried to
resolve this issue, however, he did not succeed in
rectifying the problem. I gave him the option to take my
Master Card or Visa or American express and reissue me
another ticket but he could not and I missed my flight.
I am a physician and had to get back to work on Phoenix on
Monday March 14th. I had to purchase a one-way ticket from
Karachi to Toronto on the spur of the moment that cost me $
2260 and subsequently had to purchase another ticket to go
from Toronto to Phoenix for another $ 400 to finally arrive
late at night on March 13th.

Before I left Karachi, I called and also e-mailed British
Airways that I would not be able to make my London-Heathrow-
Phoenix flight on March 13th. When I reached Phoenix and
called British Airways, they stated that by their policy
they had cancelled my entire return ticket from London
Healthrow to Phoenix on March 13th and Phoenix to London
Heathrow on April 23 rd that originally cost me GBP 928.50.
As a result I had to purchase another one way ticket from
Phoenix to London for April 23 rd that cost me 45,000 miles
and taxes. Moreover, I did not get tier points from British
Airways for the ticket that I originally purchased as well.

I have corresponded with Qatar Airways during last several
weeks and they say that based on the IATA ticketing
regulatioins, aviation business practise and contract of
carriage they could only refund me the unused sectors of
my original ticket which totals USD344.80 and they would
give me a check for USD 250 as a courtesy. My estimated
losses, however, are $4500.
Qatar Airways has given me the following information about
the credit card they have tagged with my ticket
(CCCAXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998). I have no credit card
that matches these numbers. I have repeatedly asked my
travel agent and he does not have any card that matches
this card either. I have also gotten this explanation from
Qatar Airways about this credit card issue:
From: Odete Maria Costeira <ocosteira@us.qatarairways.com>
To: 'anadir786@aol.com' <anadir786@aol.com>
Sent: Tue, May 10, 2011 1:07 pm
Subject: CR Ref 201104-1391
Dear Mr. Nadir,
Thank you for your patience.
We have reviewed your case with the staff in Karachi and
found that your ticket was tagged to present credit card.
This is a result of your ticket having been reissued by our
Contact Center here in the US. This tag is attached to all
tickets issued by our offices in the US. Unfortunately the
only way the staff in Karachi could check you in was to
have a new ticket issued and refund the remaining open
tickets you held since you did not present the original
credit card.
While I can appreciate that this caused disruption to your
travels, we cannot refund the amount you are asking for.
The ticket you held was for the final destination of
London’s Heathrow Airport so that remains the extend of our
Contract of Carriage. This means that we cannot compensate
for other tickets you held with other carriers.
I am waiting for our Ticketing Auditors to reply with the
residual value of the ticket you held and we will assist
you with the processing of that refund.
Again, I am sorry we could not agree to your terms on this
occasion.
With Regards,
Odete Costeira
Customer Relations Officer, USA & Canada
World's 5-star airline. qatarairways.com/us

I would like to know what my rights are. I did present all
my credit cards at the airport but still Qatar Airways did
not allow me a seat on the plane and that caused me
significant monetary loss. I would appreciate if you could
let me know the rules with which the Airline industry
operates so I can look into this further. Thanks for
looking into this matter for me."

Sincerely,
Abdul Nadir

[jimworcs]

Where did this journey begin...? I think the only way to win thus is in court. I think they would be liable for your consequential damages if you can establish it was their negligence. However, the tricky issue is which court you should fie, if you are working in Phoenix and bought the ticket in Islamabad

[Ombudsman]

Originally Posted by jimworcs

Where did this journey begin...? I think the only way to win thus is in court. I think they would be liable for your consequential damages if you can establish it was their negligence. However, the tricky issue is which court you should fie, if you are working in Phoenix and bought the ticket in Islamabad

It is further conmplicated by the fact that the original ticket was changed by the travel agent in New York. It seems to me that things went wrong after that transsaction was processed since it changed the form of payment from his Amex to another CC. Travel agents will sometimes pay the airline out of a corporate account and then bill the client's CC for the transaction plus any fees the agency charges. This may be why the CC# Qatar had on file did not match any of Mr. nadir's CCs. If this was the case it mauy be your travelagent and not the airline who owes you the compensation for your additional expenses since they should have known of any airline requierments to verify/produce the CC at check-in.

[karach123]

Dear All,

I wanted to give you follow up on the issue of Qatar airways last posted June 26th. Since your last reply, I have communicated with both Qatar airways and my travel agent. Qatar Airlines has tagged FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998
to my ticket. I do not understand these numbers, but apparently 3998 was the last four of the credit card used to pay for this ticket and then 1548 were the last four of the second credit card used to reissue this ticket. Again, I do not have any credit card that matches these numbers, and then I e-mailed my travel agent and he has written back to me and says that he is totally confused and none of these numbers match the credit cards they have in their system. I have already filed a complaint about Qatar Airways with Better business bureau who have cleared them. Qatar Airways has clearly stated that they have followed their procedure and had e-mailed my itineary to my travel agent.

I would appreciate if you could first explain to me what these numbers really mean that were attached to my ticket and based on which I was denied boarding. Secondly, I would like to know what course of action I can take? My ticket from karachi to London was issued by my travel agent and he put my entire itineary including Karachi London and London to Phoenix together on PDF for me. I booked my own ticket from London to Phoenix, but the itineary was prepared by the travel agent and he was fully aware of my connections. I appreciate any direction in this matter.

Sincerely,

Karach

[karach123]

Originally Posted by Ombudsman

It is further conmplicated by the fact that the original ticket was changed by the travel agent in New York. It seems to me that things went wrong after that transsaction was processed since it changed the form of payment from his Amex to another CC. Travel agents will sometimes pay the airline out of a corporate account and then bill the client's CC for the transaction plus any fees the agency charges. This may be why the CC# Qatar had on file did not match any of Mr. nadir's CCs. If this was the case it mauy be your travelagent and not the airline who owes you the compensation for your additional expenses since they should have known of any airline requierments to verify/produce the CC at check-in.

I wanted to give you follow up on the issue of Qatar airways last posted June 26th. Since your last reply, I have communicated with both Qatar airways and my travel agent. Qatar Airlines has tagged FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998
to my ticket. I do not understand these numbers, but apparently 3998 was the last four of the credit card used to pay for this ticket and then 1548 were the last four of the second credit card used to reissue this ticket. Again, I do not have any credit card that matches these numbers, and then I e-mailed my travel agent and he has written back to me and says that he is totally confused and none of these numbers match the credit cards they have in their system. I have already filed a complaint about Qatar Airways with Better business bureau who have cleared them. Qatar Airways has clearly stated that they have followed their procedure and had e-mailed my itineary to my travel agent.

I would appreciate if you could first explain to me what these numbers really mean that were attached to my ticket and based on which I was denied boarding. Secondly, I would like to know what course of action I can take? My ticket from karachi to London was issued by my travel agent and he put my entire itineary including Karachi London and London to Phoenix together on PDF for me. I booked my own ticket from London to Phoenix, but the itineary was prepared by the travel agent and he was fully aware of my connections. I appreciate any direction in this matter.

Sincerely,

Karach

[lostinlondon]

Originally Posted by karach123

FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998. I do not understand these numbers, but apparently 3998 was the last four of the credit card used to pay for this ticket and then 1548 were the last four of the second credit card used to reissue this ticket.

I would appreciate if you could first explain to me what these numbers really mean that were attached to my ticket and based on which I was denied boarding.

FP stands for Form of Payment
O= Old (as this transaction refers to a reissue of a ticket already paid)
CC= Credit Card CA= Mastercard
The card used finishes with 1548 and expires in July(07)2012(12). All other digits of the card's number are replaced by Xs for confidentiality reasons.
N003998 is the authorisation number issued by the card issuer for this transaction.

Both QR and your travel agent should have been able to explain that to you.
Every entry in a booking will be signed with a unique reference belonging to whoever it was made by. It should be very easy for both QR and your travel agent to trace who recorded that credit card and supply you with that information.

[karach123]

Originally Posted by lostinlondon

FP stands for Form of Payment
O= Old (as this transaction refers to a reissue of a ticket already paid)
CC= Credit Card CA= Mastercard
The card used finishes with 1548 and expires in July(07)2012(12). All other digits of the card's number are replaced by Xs for confidentiality reasons.
N003998 is the authorisation number issued by the card issuer for this transaction.

Both QR and your travel agent should have been able to explain that to you.
Every entry in a booking will be signed with a unique reference belonging to whoever it was made by. It should be very easy for both QR and your travel agent to trace who recorded that credit card and supply you with that information.

Thank you very much for your response, it is very helpful and increased my awareness about these numbers (how ignorant I am!). Now how do I prove whose Master Card was attached to my ticket based on which I was denied to board on Qatar Airways. My travel agent says that he does not have any numbers that match these numbers in his office. Qatar Airways replied, "The credit card provided during the reissue of your ticket on March 3rd has not been disputed and it cleared based on the CCV code provided as well address used against the account.As procedurally required, the Contact Center agent than emailed the itinerary to your travel agent. We are not prepared to pay for tickets you held in different reservations with different carriers. Nor can we pay for any new tickets you purchased. Our previous offer remains the same." Qatar Airways has the following itineary in their system; again I reall do not understand all of the information in it:
TKT-1572322134634 RCI- 1A LOC-8VNGNE

> OD-KHILON SI- FCMI-1 POI-FLL DOI-03MAR11 IOI-10855062

> 1.NADIR/ABDUL ADT S I

> 1 OKHI QR 0319 Q 13MAR 0610 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> 2 XDOH QR 0011 Q 13MAR 0745 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> LHR

> FARE R PKR 63250

> TOTALTAX USD 0.00

> TAXES PD

> TOTAL USD 10.00A

> /FC ISB QR X/DOH QR LON363.84/-KHI QR X/DOH QR LON373.75NUC737.5

> 9END ROE85.751000

> FE NON END/VALID QR ONLY

> FO 157-7946008136ORD04JAN11/14635574/1577946008136-37

> FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998

> NON-ENDORSABLE

> FOR TAX/FEE DETAILS USE TWD/TAX

> PRESENT CREDIT CARD


Skytrax Airline of the Year 2
I would really appreciate if anybody could let me know what my options are here. Because of this credit card glitch, I had to buy an expensive on-the-spot ticket; my ongoing reservations were cancelled; and I inclucated a damage of $4500.00. It is for no fault of mine. I have no credit card with last four of 1548. My travel agent says he does not have any credit card like this and Qatar Airways has already been cleared by Better Business bureau and when I had American express, which I originally used to pay for this ticket, investigate, they also cleared Qatar Airways, giving me a very non-specific reply that because of legal hurdles they cannot disclose communication between Qatar Airways and them. Thanks

Abdul Nadir

[karach123]

Thank you very much for your response, it is very helpful and increased my awareness about these numbers (how ignorant I am!). Now how do I prove whose Master Card was attached to my ticket based on which I was denied to board on Qatar Airways. My travel agent says that he does not have any numbers that match these numbers in his office. Qatar Airways replied, "The credit card provided during the reissue of your ticket on March 3rd has not been disputed and it cleared based on the CCV code provided as well address used against the account.As procedurally required, the Contact Center agent than emailed the itinerary to your travel agent. We are not prepared to pay for tickets you held in different reservations with different carriers. Nor can we pay for any new tickets you purchased. Our previous offer remains the same." Qatar Airways has the following itineary in their system; again I reall do not understand all of the information in it:
TKT-1572322134634 RCI- 1A LOC-8VNGNE

> OD-KHILON SI- FCMI-1 POI-FLL DOI-03MAR11 IOI-10855062

> 1.NADIR/ABDUL ADT S I

> 1 OKHI QR 0319 Q 13MAR 0610 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> 2 XDOH QR 0011 Q 13MAR 0745 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> LHR

> FARE R PKR 63250

> TOTALTAX USD 0.00

> TAXES PD

> TOTAL USD 10.00A

> /FC ISB QR X/DOH QR LON363.84/-KHI QR X/DOH QR LON373.75NUC737.5

> 9END ROE85.751000

> FE NON END/VALID QR ONLY

> FO 157-7946008136ORD04JAN11/14635574/1577946008136-37

> FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998

> NON-ENDORSABLE

> FOR TAX/FEE DETAILS USE TWD/TAX

> PRESENT CREDIT CARD


Skytrax Airline of the Year 2
I would really appreciate if anybody could let me know what my options are here. Because of this credit card glitch, I had to buy an expensive on-the-spot ticket; my ongoing reservations were cancelled; and I inclucated a damage of $4500.00. It is for no fault of mine. I have no credit card with last four of 1548. My travel agent says he does not have any credit card like this and Qatar Airways has already been cleared by Better Business bureau and when I had American express, which I originally used to pay for this ticket, investigate, they also cleared Qatar Airways, giving me a very non-specific reply that because of legal hurdles they cannot disclose communication between Qatar Airways and them. Thanks

Abdul Nadir

[karach123]

Thank you very much for your response, it is very helpful and increased my awareness about these numbers (how ignorant I am!). Now how do I prove whose Master Card was attached to my ticket based on which I was denied to board on Qatar Airways. My travel agent says that he does not have any numbers that match these numbers in his office. Qatar Airways replied, "The credit card provided during the reissue of your ticket on March 3rd has not been disputed and it cleared based on the CCV code provided as well address used against the account.As procedurally required, the Contact Center agent than emailed the itinerary to your travel agent. We are not prepared to pay for tickets you held in different reservations with different carriers. Nor can we pay for any new tickets you purchased. Our previous offer remains the same." Qatar Airways has the following itineary in their system; again I reall do not understand all of the information in it:
TKT-1572322134634 RCI- 1A LOC-8VNGNE

> OD-KHILON SI- FCMI-1 POI-FLL DOI-03MAR11 IOI-10855062

> 1.NADIR/ABDUL ADT S I

> 1 OKHI QR 0319 Q 13MAR 0610 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> 2 XDOH QR 0011 Q 13MAR 0745 OK QLOWPK O 13MAR 23K

> LHR

> FARE R PKR 63250

> TOTALTAX USD 0.00

> TAXES PD

> TOTAL USD 10.00A

> /FC ISB QR X/DOH QR LON363.84/-KHI QR X/DOH QR LON373.75NUC737.5

> 9END ROE85.751000

> FE NON END/VALID QR ONLY

> FO 157-7946008136ORD04JAN11/14635574/1577946008136-37

> FP O/CC+/CCCAXXXXXXXXXXXX1548/0712/N003998

> NON-ENDORSABLE

> FOR TAX/FEE DETAILS USE TWD/TAX

> PRESENT CREDIT CARD


Skytrax Airline of the Year 2
I would really appreciate if anybody could let me know what my options are here. Because of this credit card glitch, I had to buy an expensive on-the-spot ticket; my ongoing reservations were cancelled; and I inclucated a damage of $4500.00. It is for no fault of mine. I have no credit card with last four of 1548. My travel agent says he does not have any credit card like this and Qatar Airways has already been cleared by Better Business bureau and when I had American express, which I originally used to pay for this ticket, investigate, they also cleared Qatar Airways, giving me a very non-specific reply that because of legal hurdles they cannot disclose communication between Qatar Airways and them. Thanks

Abdul Nadir

[karach123]

sorry to post my reply thrice, I was trying to fix the font. Let me complete my post.
I am thinking of bringing legal action but I am not sure if I should bring against Qatar or my travel agent. Finally, I believe that the reply from both of them would be that they are not responsible for any damages beyond London because of some legal ramifications. Thanks again

[karach123]

Originally Posted by karach123

sorry to post my reply thrice, I was trying to fix the font. Let me complete my post.
I am thinking of bringing legal action but I am not sure if I should bring against Qatar or my travel agent. Finally, I believe that the reply from both of them would be that they are not responsible for any damages beyond London because of some legal ramifications. Thanks again

one more question if somebody would answer for me particularly ombudsman, is there anyway for me to find out whose master card is attached to my ticket? Who could possibly provide that infomation? Is that a breach of confidentiality for the merchant? Thanks again in advance for useful information.

[karach123]

Originally Posted by lostinlondon

FP stands for Form of Payment
O= Old (as this transaction refers to a reissue of a ticket already paid)
CC= Credit Card CA= Mastercard
The card used finishes with 1548 and expires in July(07)2012(12). All other digits of the card's number are replaced by Xs for confidentiality reasons.
N003998 is the authorisation number issued by the card issuer for this transaction.

Both QR and your travel agent should have been able to explain that to you.
Every entry in a booking will be signed with a unique reference belonging to whoever it was made by. It should be very easy for both QR and your travel agent to trace who recorded that credit card and supply you with that information.

could you please let me know how could I find whose credit card was attached to my ticket? Both my travel agent and airlines have not or do not want to or unable to provide this information to me. Thanks again.

[lostinlondon]

Originally Posted by karach123

could you please let me know how could I find whose credit card was attached to my ticket? Both my travel agent and airlines have not or do not want to or unable to provide this information to me. Thanks again.

Do you live in the UK? If so, the Data Protection Act 1998 provides a right of access to personal information about yourself held by public authorities and private bodies, regardless of the form in which it is held. Under the DPA you can request to be provided with the complete copy of your booking.
This will not tell you whose card it is that was used but should clarify who recorded the card number in the booking.
Every European country has a similar law/act.

Question: since this was not your card, you have not been charged for the change of your ticket? Correct?

[karach123]

Originally Posted by lostinlondon

Do you live in the UK? If so, the Data Protection Act 1998 provides a right of access to personal information about yourself held by public authorities and private bodies, regardless of the form in which it is held. Under the DPA you can request to be provided with the complete copy of your booking.
This will not tell you whose card it is that was used but should clarify who recorded the card number in the booking.
Every European country has a similar law/act.

Question: since this was not your card, you have not been charged for the change of your ticket? Correct?

I live in US. No the change of ticket has not charged to my credit card, however, my travel agent I believe has put a charge on my credit card on the same day that the ticket was changed. This charge was not for Qatar Airways but for his travel company for his commission etc. I wonder what the rules are in US? Could you shed some light on it and let me know how can I prove that somebody's elses credit card was linked to my ticket? and then would the party that gave wrong credit card information would pay all my damages? I want to be prepared before I take this issue to court.

[lostinlondon]

Originally Posted by karach123

I live in US. No the change of ticket has not charged to my credit card, however, my travel agent I believe has put a charge on my credit card on the same day that the ticket was changed. This charge was not for Qatar Airways but for his travel company for his commission etc. I wonder what the rules are in US? Could you shed some light on it and let me know how can I prove that somebody's elses credit card was linked to my ticket? and then would the party that gave wrong credit card information would pay all my damages? I want to be prepared before I take this issue to court.

Cannot answer about US laws. Sorry.
Now, if your travel agent charged you for the work they did on your ticket it seems more than likely that the mistake comes from them.
It will be very difficult however for you to find out to whom the card recorded in your booking belongs to, The issuer will certainly not volunteer that information.

[karach123]

Originally Posted by lostinlondon

Cannot answer about US laws. Sorry.
Now, if your travel agent charged you for the work they did on your ticket it seems more than likely that the mistake comes from them.
It will be very difficult however for you to find out to whom the card recorded in your booking belongs to, The issuer will certainly not volunteer that information.

perhaps the issuer will volunteer the information in a court of law. Unfortunately, I live in Phoenix and Qatar airways offices are in Chicago, Houston, New York and DC. The most convenient place for me to bringthem to a small claim court would be in Houston, however, Qatar may say that their main office is in DC. So I am not sure where to bring law suit against them. Then I am not even sure if they are the ones that are responsible. Any other advice? Can I go to media? Should I raise this issue again with Better business bureau? Should I raise it to the attorney general's office in Phoenix or DC or ?? Thanks again for good advice.