[sankirk]

Our mistake: we booked a 4:30 PM SUNDAY flight from Calgary, Canada to Rochester, NY with one stop in Chicago. Should have booked earlier in the day.
Their mistakes: We left 1 hour late because our plane had been given to another flight in San Francisco and this was the sub that was found. We arrived in Chicago with a few minutes to spare, however that went away because a disabled plane was at our arrival gate and had to be moved.

We raced from C to B (long way) and arrived 10 minutes late.

The next confirmed flight we could get was TUESDAY AFTERNOON and this was SUNDAY EVENING!

The desk attendent said "It's okay, the airport is quiet at night so you can sleep." --FOR 2 NIGHTS! Honestly, I wouldn't believe this if I were reading it.. BUT IT IS TRUE. They expected us to sleep in the airport for 2 nights. Right beside me, a customer was getting vouchers for a hotel stay and food. I asked, "Could we have some too?" Again, unbelievablely, the agent said, "Oh no.... you see, that person volunteered to get off the plane because we were overbooked." Like, it should have been clear to me... this person, by virtue of volunteering, deserved the reward of vouchers... plus a FREE 2-way trip anywhere in the US.

The next morning, we were in line at 6:00 for standbys. no luck. We asked 3 different agents what else we could do. Nothing but wait--- all trips were oversold.

Remarkably...I talked with a 4th agent... who found a flight--which required our changing to USAir in Boston... we could arrive that night in Rochester. When we boarded the flight, there were 30 standbys!... How we were ever so lucky I don't know.

And how an airline could be so callous, I also don't know.

Consider the extra costs of the flight:
2 nights either in the airport or $200 plus for a hotel;
food for 2 nights, 2 days: $120 (conservatively);
dogs in kennel---$120 (3 extra days);
work-related costs... difficult to estimate.. other people had to change their schedules.

This was not a weather-related event---It was a business decision to use our designated plane for another flight.

[Silent Bob]

I wouldn't blame the airline as a whole, because I've had mostly great experiences with United and you did the one thing most people would not have done, which was persist on getting a flight out. If their plane delayed and you missed your connection, they have to get you out "by any means neccessary", which includes flying out on another airline. I've only had an issue once on a misconnect with United where I did get an agent who would not rebook me on another airline. Turns out she was a new agent and did not know the rules when it comes to misconnects (I didn't even ask for a hotel or anything I just wanted a flight, which like you would, have been two days away). A senior agent came over and explained how it works. Also you can talk to reservation, they understand the rules and will normally accommodate. Or better yet book through Orbitz, honestly they do great, GREAT work when you have a misconnect or cancellation. If it's available they will rebook you in seconds and you're on you're way. Hope this helps.

[sankirk]

Thanks.... Your information is helpful... Orbitz did rebook me once, however it was not as favorable as one an agent arranged for me. And it probably could have happed visa versa too.

[btrock]

I had a similar experience to Sankirk's.
On January 7,2008 my wife and I were supposed to fly from Washington DC to London, England. I was flying for a business meeting on January 9, and my wife was accompanying me. Because of severe weather in Chicago, our flight was repeated delayed in leaving Washington. Worrying that we would miss our connection, we repeatedly asked the United agent to get us an alternative flight, but she insisted that we'd get to Chicago in time for the connection to London. But after a 3 hour delay, by the time we arrived in Chicago our connection had already left. Because so many Washington passengers missed the connection to London, it took more than 2 hours in line before we were able to talk to a Customer Service agent in Chicago, who told us she couldn't confirm us on a flight to London until 2 days later. This would make me miss half of my meeting in London. The agent listed us on standby for the next afternoon, and we went to an airport hotel - by then it was after midnight. The agent didn't help us find a hotel, and because the problem was caused by weather, didn't give us a voucher to pay for
the hotel or food. We returned to the airport more than 2 hours before the flight to try for stand-by but there weren't any available seats. The next available flight would get me in too late for my meeting, so we just told United to put us on a plane back to DC. Somehow, this whole experience doesn't seem to fit with United's 12 point Customer Commitment pledge, especially point #3 (notify customers of long delays and work proactively to help them reach their intended destinations), and point #8 (meet customer's needs during long delays). Now I'm trying to get a refund for my wife's ticket. After an email contact from United Customer Relations assuring me someone would call me I've waited more than 3 weeks without a call. I've tried to call them but just get shuffled through one recorded message after another - even after clicking on one that was supposed to put me through to a live agent. I won't fly United again, and am telling everyone I work with to avoid them.

[btrock]

I had a similar experience to Sankirk's.
On January 7,2008 my wife and I were supposed to fly from Washington DC to London, England. I was flying for a business meeting on January 9, and my wife was accompanying me. Because of severe weather in Chicago, our flight was repeated delayed in leaving Washington. Worrying that we would miss our connection, we repeatedly asked the United agent to get us an alternative flight, but she insisted that we'd get to Chicago in time for the connection to London. But after a 3 hour delay, by the time we arrived in Chicago our connection had already left. Because so many Washington passengers missed the connection to London, it took more than 2 hours in line before we were able to talk to a Customer Service agent in Chicago, who told us she couldn't confirm us on a flight to London until 2 days later. This would make me miss half of my meeting in London. The agent listed us on standby for the next afternoon, and we went to an airport hotel - by then it was after midnight. The agent didn't help us find a hotel, and because the problem was caused by weather, didn't give us a voucher to pay for
the hotel or food. We returned to the airport more than 2 hours before the flight to try for stand-by but there weren't any available seats. The next available flight would get me in too late for my meeting, so we just told United to put us on a plane back to DC. Somehow, this whole experience doesn't seem to fit with United's 12 point Customer Commitment pledge, especially point #3 (notify customers of long delays and work proactively to help them reach their intended destinations), and point #8 (meet customer's needs during long delays). Now I'm trying to get a refund for my wife's ticket. After an email contact from United Customer Relations assuring me someone would call me I've waited more than 3 weeks without a call. I've tried to call them but just get shuffled through one recorded message after another - even after clicking on one that was supposed to put me through to a live agent. I won't fly United again, and am telling everyone I work with to avoid them.