[ccorl2002]

To whom it may concern:

My fiancé and I chose United to get us to our destination wedding in Saratoga Springs, NY based on positive experiences I recently had traveling for work. Sadly the experience we have had in the past 36 hours has been beyond comprehensible and we are so disappointed with United Airlines and the lack of ownership with each and every employee we have encountered along the way. We are getting married today 6/17 at noon in Saratoga Springs, meaning we needed to apply for our marriage license by noon Monday to meet the NY state 24 hr requirement. The ONLY way to make it to Saratoga to get our marriage license by noon today was to rent a car and drive, also an option United wouldn't offer to us. No matter who we tried to get to help us all people could do was send a message or telex to Newark to try to get our bags. Since this was for our wedding we plead with employees to try to help, to make this a priority, and while people said they noted this and they were sorry, no one was empowered to actually do anything about it.

Below is the timeline of events that has led me to this email and my complete lack of trust in United Airlines on the eve of my wedding.

-Sunday 6/15 11:30am we departed Orlando bound for Newark.
-Sunday our 4:00pm connecting flight to Albany was cancelled due to weather, rebooked on a 10:00pm flight to Albany.
-Sunday our rebooked flight was delayed three times for mechanical issues, then cancelled at 11:30pm, rebooked again on a 2:30pm Monday flight.
-Sunday, since this was the last flight out TSA stored all bags and would not give us our baggage so we could find other travel to Albany.
-Sunday we rented a car at midnight to drive to Albany to retrieve our bags, which we were told would be on the first flight out of Newark.
-Monday 2:00am we needed to stop at the Quality Inn in Kingston, NY to sleep since we had been up now for 20 hours.
-Monday 10:00am arrived at Albany airport to retrieve our bags, which were not on the first flight.
-Monday 10:30 rented our car and raced to Saratoga Springs, in the same clothes from 24 hrs earlier, to apply for our marriage license.
-Monday 2:00pm went to the Gap in Saratoga Springs to get get a change of clothes.
-Monday 9:22pm still no bags and only 14 hrs before our wedding, no one has taken ownership and no clothes for our wedding.

Out of Pocket Cost:
United Club - $100 to wait 7 hours in Newark and have internet access
Budget - $160.37 rental car to get to Albany
Quality Inn - $138.59 lodging for the night
Gas - $19.11 gas for rental car
Toothbrush and toothpaste - $10.34
Gap - $223.27 clothes for two passengers
Old Navy - $25.59 footwear for two passengers
TOTAL: $577.27

As I sit here lamenting over the past 36 hours I wonder how one of the largest airlines in the world has no way to connect passengers with their bags. Even worse can't tell a passenger where there bag is, even after 12 calls to the 1-800-335-BAGS number to confirm if our bags made it onto one of the 5 flights from Newark to Albany today. We still do not have our bags and our wedding is at 12:00pm today 6/17 in Saratoga Springs. As of now all of our wedding clothes are sitting somewhere, but not anywhere a United employee can find. No one has offered to make this right and the responsibility to get to our destination has been solely left up to us. Reservations said they couldn't refund us because the tickets were booked using points through Bank of America, no hotel, no car rental, NOTHING! The only choice was to be rebooked on a flight that wouldn't have gotten us to New York in time to apply for our marriage license. The level of service we have experienced in the past 36 hours is beyond comprehension.

We finally received one bag at 2:55am EST and my fiancee sat up all night waiting for the driver to deliver the bags, yet there was only one. His bag is still yet to be found and we have no idea if this will make it here from Newark for our wedding. The only silver lining in this dark cloud is that no matter what he's wearing, specific outfits we brought to wear, or shorts from the Gap, I will marry my best friend and the love of my life.

United Airlines Flight 4783
Jun 15-Confirmation #FJXQEK
Newark EWR
4:26 PM
Albany ALB
5:37 PM

Thank you,
Chris Craigie