[classact1060]

What an outrage.

When my luggage did not arrive from Miami to Liberia Costa Rica, an agent issued me a Baggage report form, indicated she'd called Miami, the luggage was there, would come the next day to Liberia, would be shipped out to my Hotel some 3 1/2 hrs. away. Great start! I could check the status online.

Problem was, she (Yessica) issued a report WITHOUT a phone number I could call, and NO numbers on the phone enabled me to find out online the status.

After ONE day without a change of clothes, I was disappointed, as it didn't arrive. Airport and main phone numbers in CR NOT AVAILABLE evening.

TWO days later, A.M. I had my hotel call them. The airline inisted they'd tried to deliver, but NO ONE registered at the hotel by my name. What a crock! Then they proceeded to tell me it would go OUT BY 1.00 pm.

Well, maybe or maybe not. That evening, I called AA again, this time using the 1800 number to US at great expense, that even.

The rep, Skye Weatherley (does that sound like a false name or what)? in baggage was anything but helpful. She insisted on the truth of their claim (tried to deliver)) without any supporting evidence. The hotel I was at keeps a log of all arrivals, deliveries, etc.; they have a gate, etc. The story was totally fabricated.

After registering my dissatisfaction, we proceeded to have her "deliver a message" to the AA baggage people in Liberia. Never mind the fact that her office "didn't have access to the Internet or international calling." Can you believe that? An office in charge of handling baggage problems to international destinations doesn't have internet access?

After relaying info to her about my NEW hotel destination for delivery of said luggage, day 3, it became apparent I didn't have full address/contact info, so I asked the agent to wait while I obtained it over internet. Meantime, she insisted that the solution was for ME TO GO TO THE AIRPORT AND PICK IT UP, even though the latest word was, (and I quote) BAGGAGE PICKED UP FROM AIRPORT. So, in her view, the luggage was STILL IN THE AIRPORT (!) and I SHOULD PICK IT UP!

After about two minutes searching online, I was at the point of asking for her to wait a bit more until I got the exact contact info (hotels/street addresses in CR not exactly easy). At this point she interjected "That's OK, we don't need that (!)." I insisted. After attempting to register my reasoning for getting AA the exact address (seeing also that SHE "didn't have internet access"), she told me that she WOULD NOT WAIT anymore and issued an insincere apology, saying that the call was over.. At this point I became livid.

Here I am, without clothes for 3 days, and she is essentially telling me that the call is over and she is hanging up (!). I wish you could hear the patronizing tone of her response. If *I* were abusive, this might be justified. But I was left essentially BEGGING this person to remain to help after being on the phone with her for just 15 minutes!

I've never encountered such callous disregard and lame attempts at "service" in my life. The record of incompetency on the front end and the patronizing "I-can-dish it out-and you can't do anything about it" attitude was a shocking reminder of how crappy a situation you can be put it by these companies.

D.D. Upton, MA USA