[SRSNOOPY]

The flight I purchased was canceled sometime after I purchased and had confirmed seat assignments in July.
I was never informed that the flight was to be canceled and changed, not a phone call ,
not an e-mail, not any communication from United what-so-ever !!
I found out on 12 hours before my out bound flight , All the flights that fit our schedule were
already booked, and I had to take what ever was left over to be able to bring my family home from Orlando.
I don't know why United did not contact me as soon as the change was made.
Our ticket's were bought and paid for already. United cut my 1st vacation with my family
in 3 and 1/2 years short.
And made it very uncomfortable to know weather or not we could get home ( in case United canceled the flight again)
on schedule.
We had to cancel other reservations to leave early.
Very disappointing and upsetting that United can just make changes without notification of them,
To a family that planned ahead and bought the tickets United advertised for sale.
Then United give us something else that we did not want.
I believe that is called the bait and switch.

[Ombudsman]

Were your tickets purchased directly from United (either on the phone or from Unitted.com) or from a third party such as Orbitz/Travelocity or a travel agent?

[SRSNOOPY]

They were purchased through a third party.
However the flights purchased were advertised on United's web site at the time of purchase. And I confirmed the reservation on United's site and they gave me the seat assignments.

[The_Judge]

I understand it's easy to blame the airline, however, when you give your money to a 3rd party for service, they take on the responsibility to contact it's customers in situations like this. I believe there was a former poster who maybe is still lurking that claimed the 3rd party is blameless as they are an acting agent for the airline but they are a separate entity that enters into an agreement with it's customer (you) and then has the liability to, in this case, contact you about the canceled flight.

[Ombudsman]

If you book through a third party the airline does not have your contact info and it is up to the third party (website or travel agency) to inform you of any itinerary/schedule changes. If you were not informed you should file a complaint with whoever you booked the tickets through. Perhaps they will issue some form of compensation for your inconvenience.

[The_Judge]

Echooooo........Echooooo

[SRSNOOPY]

I guess just because I went to United after I purchased and gave them all my contact info and United gave me seat assignments and United gave me confirmation #'s and they knew I was a customer.
They really have no responsibility to inform me of a change at any time.
It sounds like The airline wants my money no matter who they authorize to sell tickets for them, then want no responsibility for those tickets sold.
I am not getting on the travel agents airplane I am getting on their plane.

[The_Judge]

The airline should take some initiative, I agree. They don't. It's the nature of the beast. They will never change. All I can suggest is that all parties involved have ALL your contact info, phone, email, etc.

[Crocky]

I had the same issue (see my thread), but I had booked my trip on United.com. They sent me NO notification that my schedule had changed, and they only alotted 35 minutes for me to make my connection at ORD for my trip from Memphis to Ottawa. Fortunately, I listened to my gut and checked my reservation a month in advance and was able to change my flight from MEM to ORD. Yeah, I'll be stuck in Chicago for 5 hours, but I'd rather do that than risk missing my connection and not being able to see my parents for Christmas.

My suggestion? Fly Delta and book on their website. They are EXCELLENT at sending scheduling updates! I'm flying Delta for Thanksgiving, and my flight back to Memphis was changed 3 times. How many emails did I get from Delta, notifying me of the schedule changes? 3...one for each time it changed.

[jimworcs]

OMG... from frying pan into the fire.... if the solution to a problem with United is to fly with Delta, then United must be worse than I thought. Delta are the bottom of the pile when it comes to customer focus....

[Crocky]

To be honest, most of my travel nightmares have been with United, and I have, up to this point, never had problems traveling on Delta. However, I think part of it is that I know that traveling through ORD is a nightmare, and I find DTW and MSP much more passenger-friendly when it comes to making connections. Plus, I have a healthy skepticism of the entire airline industry, so I keep my expectations VERY low.

You know what they say: beauty is in the eye of the beholder.