[dawnd470]

My father in law passed away in June 2009, in Louisville, KY. I had to fly in from Baltimore for his funeral, and wanted to use my skymiles for the flight. I hadn't flown Delta for a long time, but recalled that I had several Sky Miles available for use. Imagine my surprise when I booked the flight and was charged $160 for my "free" flight! However, it was still less expensive (but not by much) than a regular fare on another airline, so I went ahead with it...I didn't have much choice. My entire experience with that flight was horrible, from the check in disaster to the rude gate crew. Once I returned home, I contacted Delta's customer service, and told them that not only did they have lousy service, but that I thought it was outrageous to charge $160 for a SkyMiles "redemption fee". I told them I would never fly Delta again, and they could take my remaining miles and do whatever they wanted with them.

When I got a response, I was sent a $50 travel voucher with an explanation that I was charged so much because I booked less than 21 days out. I replied back, stating that I couldn't plan to have a death in the family more than 21 days out, and that I still didn't see why they needed to charge so much for a flight that was supposed to be free. I also said they obviously didn't read my response completely, since their $50 voucher will be wasted as I don't plan to use Delta again. The only response I got was to again apologize, but say there was nothing more they can do.

This is exactly why airlines are hurting....they're so out of touch with people! You would think they'd get smart and follow the lead of Southwest..instead of overcharging people, and charging for things that should be free, why not try actually treating people right and doing the right thing? Southwest doesn't seem to be hurting at all by not charging outrageous fees. The more the airlines such as Delta continue to treat people so badly, the more they'll drive us to their competitors.