[reznmel]

Below is the letter that I wrote to Delta (Delta Response After letter) - PLEASE HELP:

I regret that I have to send this letter to you. My wife, Melissa, and I
have been exclusive Northwest/Delta customers for the nine years that we
have lived in the Detroit area, typically taking two to four flights a
year on average. Almost all of our experiences with your airline to date
have been uneventful. I am disappointed to write, however, that we
recently had a horrible experience. If this had simply been a vacation,
it would have been bad enough. But, because this was a flight to my
sister’s wedding in the Bahamas, it was terribly stressful and
upsetting. I must mention that this is not just a "normal" wedding. My
mom and dad both passed away at the ages of 62 and 63 in 2006 and 2008,
and my little sister only has 3 brothers that HAD to be at the wedding.
I should note that this flight to Lisa’s wedding in the Bahamas was
actually not the flight that Melissa and I paid for. We paid for a
non-stop flight that was cancelled several months after booking. We were
booked on this flight without any compensation; upsetting since I do not
enjoy flying (particularly take-off and landing) and strive to always
book flights with the fewest, zero if possible, connections.
After rebooking, our itinerary was:
Delta Flight 1295 March 31st Detroit Metro to Atlanta 9:00am
Delta Flight 375 March 31st Atlanta to Nassau 12:18pm
On March 31, 2010, we arrived at the airport at 7:15am. After boarding
the plane, we were told by the captain that our plane would be delayed
because a light in the cockpit would not go out. After approximately 45
minutes the captain announced to deboard the plane and that the flight
was cancelled. They sent all persons on our flight to Gate 43 to
negotiate our auto-rebooking.
As you might imagine, mayhem ensued at Gate 43. I stood in line to speak
to a gate agent while Melissa grabbed a courtesy phone line to speak
with a Delta representative. Melissa connected with an agent on the
phone, who rebooked us on American Airlines (Flight AA4953) to Miami
scheduled to leave Detroit at 2:30 with connection to Nassau scheduled
to arrive at 7:30 pm. As Melissa confirmed rebooking on the phone, a
Delta representative on the airport intercom announced that our original
Delta flight was NOT cancelled but delayed until 11am, that we should
all return to the original gate, and that she was very sorry for any
misinformation we "may" have received. Melissa and I were immediately
concerned that we would now arrive in the Bahamas on this new flight
later than if we had stayed on the delayed flight; we obviously wanted
to arrive as soon as we could to partake in pre-wedding festivities.
Melissa and I decided to reconnect with Delta at the phone bank to make
sure that the American rebooking was in our best interest. The Delta
representative on the phone, Carla, assured us that the American
Airlines rebooking was probably best because her data indicated that the
1295 flight would almost assuredly be cancelled, leaving us stranded
overnight in Detroit and causing us to miss my sister Lisa’s wedding.
The American flights are in a different terminal, which meant we had to
lug our stuff on a 5 minute shuttle bus ride and go through security a
second time. At the American gate, we spoke to a representative who
stated that she would work on getting us seats since our boarding passes
did not have seat assignments. At boarding, however, we were informed
that we would not be getting on the flight and that Delta should not
have booked us on this American flight. At this point our frustration
peaked.
We explained our situation to the American agent, and she stated that
Delta did not "confirm" us on the flight so this was a Delta problem NOT
an American problem. She and another agent looked up yet another flight
for us to take on Delta and recommended we return to the Delta gates
back at the other terminal to demand to get on that flight.
We again lugged our stuff on another 5 minute shuttle ride and then
proceeded to the Delta ticket counter, where we asked the agent (Safia
Adam) to speak to a manager. Safia called the on-duty supervisor
(Lawrence S.) over and explained our situation. Lawrence curtly stated
that our American fare type should have guaranteed our seats on the
American flight and that this was absolutely an American Airlines issue.
Both Lawrence and Safi were quite doubtful that they would be able to
book us on a flight since it was Spring Break week and our stomachs sank
to the floor. I was panicking at the thought of missing Lisa’s wedding
and was thoroughly exhausted. It was 4pm, and we had been at the
airport since 7:30am.
Fortunately, Safia was a wonderful Delta representative, doggedly
searching, typing, calling, and verifying for 3 hours until she found a
set of flights that would take us to the Bahamas during Spring Break
week.
Our final itinerary was:
Delta Flight 2403 March 31st Detroit Metro to Miami 8:15pm
Bahamas Air 222 April 1st Miami to Nassau 9:05am
We proceeded through security for a THIRD time and took the Miami flight
without incident, arriving at our hotel in Miami at 12:30am without any
luggage (which was in the Bahamas). We got 4 hours of sleep and returned
to Miami International Airport. Unfortunately, our Miami to Bahamas
flight was also delayed, but we arrived at our resort a mere three hours
before the wedding, having missed a night of wedding festivities and a
night of pre-paid stay at our all-inclusive resort.
The purpose of this letter is to notify you of the mismanagement of our
flight arrangements as well as to seek compensation for our wasted time,
our missed hotel stay, and the mental distress this event caused. In
sum:
•We were at Detroit Metro Airport (20 minutes from our home) for 13
hours
•We had to go through security 3 separate occasions
•We spent countless hours fighting to get on a flight when each airline
pointed fingers at the other
•We spent a lot more money at the airport (food) than what was received
in $14 of food vouchers. We spent approximately $150.00.
•We experience considerable anguish at the near miss of Lisa’s wedding.
•We had only 4 hours of sleep in Miami – our first night of a four night
"vacation"
•We were in no way compensated for cancellation of our original non-stop
flight
We are requesting the following compensation:
$915.46 (Reimbursement for flights to-from Bahamas) +
$372.89 (Missed day/night of resort stay for night of 3/31/10) +
$150 (Airport expenses incurred 3/31/10) +
$500 (Inconvenience, lost time, and mental distress)
$1,938.35 TOTAL

DELTA RESPONSE:
In conclusion, I was very concerned the way your reservation was
handled. Hence, I personally, reviewed your records and realized that
you have already received an Electronic Transportation Credit Voucher
(eTCV) in the amount of $200.00 for each passenger. While we would like
to offer special consideration in cases such as yours, we are unable to
honor the many requests that we receive from others in similar
situations. We follow a consistent policy to ensure that Delta is fair
to everyone who travels with us. Accordingly, we must respectfully
decline your request for a reimbursement of $1938.35. I am truly sorry
to disappoint you, as I am sure this is not the answer you expected.
Finally, I am forwarding your comments to the appropriate department to
be reviewed and for proper actions to be taken to ensure this never
happens again

WHAT ARE MY NEXT OPTIONS. WITH THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE LOST I FIND THIS TO BE UNACCEPTABLE.