[PurpleSwamper]

I can't believe a company would treat a customer so poorly...

I booked a flight online at Avianca.com to fly from NYC to South America. Although the website gave me a Reservation number it also popped up a somewhat confusing message about my credit card. So I called Avianca in Canada to confirm that the reservation was in place. They said the reservation was in place but they didn't have access to the credit card info. But since I had a reservation that I needn't worry. But I was worried because I'd received that message. So I called Avianca in NYC. They also confirmed the reservation and said that they were able to see the payment processing and that everything was OK. So based on their reassurance I booked a connecting flight with another airline.

On the day of travel, I drove from Canada to Buffalo NY, and flew to NYC. when I arrived in NYC Avianca refused to let me on the plane. They said they had cancelled my reservation. I had not been notified that the reservation was cancelled even though Aviance had my telephone number and email contact info when booking the flight. The reason they cancelled was due to a payment processing issue.

The ticketing agent called a supervisor. They insisted the only way I could get on the flight was to purchase a new ticket - at 3 times what I had paid for the reservation they'd cancelled. For the better part of an hour the ticket agent and supervisor argued over this. Finally 10 minutes before the flight left, the supervisor agreed to honor the original reservation. Then became a mad panic to get me on the flight. The ticket agent rushed to get the ticket ready but the Avianca gate staff refused to let me on.

The supervisor then suggested that if I made my own way to Ft Lauderdale within the next 4 hours that he *might* be able to get me on a later flight from there. I wasn't about to purchase a ticket from another airline for NYC/FLL on the speculation that he *might* be able to get me on the next flight.

Instead I bought a ticket from NYC to BUF and went back to Canada. All-in-all a stressful waste of a day. I called my friend in Colombia. That day he had already travelled to another city to meet me at the airport and had already booked into the hotel where we were to stay. He too booked out and went home.

I wrote to the executives at Avianca asking that they reimburse me for my wasted flight BUF/NYC and to compensate me with a free ticket to Colombia. But they simply denied any responsibility.

How dare they cancel my reservation and not even inform me!!!
.....Victor K. Elms

[Cicero]

Yes how dare they!

Did you want advice? If so there is a member here, Silent Bob Jerkero who we all recognise as the expert on travel law on this forum. He is usually quite busy and only comes on when his expertise is called upon. I am his lieutenant so I will send him a private message to ask him to advise you of your rights.

In the meantime since Silent Bob Jerkero likes detail a little more information is needed.

Originally Posted by PurpleSwamper

For the better part of an hour the ticket agent and supervisor argued over this. Finally 10 minutes before the flight left, the supervisor agreed to honor the original reservation.

When you tried to board the flight in New York, had your credit card already been charged by Avianca?

Where were you physically when you used your credit card to pay? In Canada? Are you living in Canada?

When the supervisor agreed to honor the original reservation, were you required to pay again?

Do you know the nature of the argument between the ticket agent and supervisor that went on for the better part of an hour (must have been some argument)

Approximately what was the cost of your Avianca flight? Did you get any refund?


As you can tell from his surname "Jerkero" Silent Bob Jerkero is Spanish, and is particularly sympathetic to people flying to South America.

If he does not come on soon enough, I will advise you, after consulting him, of course.

[Silent Bob]

{quote]Did you want advice? If so there is a member here, Silent Bob Jerkero who we all recognise as the expert on travel law on this forum. He is usually quite busy and only comes on when his expertise is called upon. I am his lieutenant so I will send him a private message to ask him to advise you of your rights.

In the meantime since Silent Bob Jerkero likes detail a little more information is needed.

As you can tell from his surname "Jerkero" Silent Bob Jerkero is Spanish, and is particularly sympathetic to people flying to South America.

If he does not come on soon enough, I will advise you, after consulting him, of course.[/quote]

Actually putz, Jerkero was my name for you. I mean i always knew you were stupid, but I never thought you were that stupid.

Cicero is so stupid he tripped over a wireless phone.

Cicero is so stupid he bought a video camera to record cable TV.

Cicero is so stupid he stole free cheese.

Cicero is so stupid he bought a solar powered flashlight.

And boom goes the dynamite. Sinfail, really. Stop playing on your mommy's and/or daddy's computer and go focus on your schoolwork. All this attacking in main and in PM is just annoying.

[Cicero]

Silent Bob Jerkero is such a genius and like most geniasses gets angry very quickly. I don't mind because he has taught me most of what I know about travel law. So it is a game we have called "so stupid"

We get our "so stupid" jokes from this website.



http://www.thebartend.com/jokes/Insu...es.php?id=4942

Anyway if you let us have some more information we'll advise you.

[Silent Bob]

I didn't see anger in my response, sinfail. In a way... you're kinda helpin me out. Like helpin me out you as a child? yea it was that easy. The stupid jokes, any kid knows so of course you would respond in kind. And the jerkero, again... maybe a kind with a lack of orginality? Yea sounds like it.

So I can't believe they let you sign back on under another name so you can harass the "airline defenders". Any doofus knows its you and really, you're bringin down this board with your stupidity.

But hey since no one will step in, we'll we dance the dance.

[Leatherboy2006]

are you two having an affair
Sounds like you would make a good couple
The scene from Cheers when Sam and Diana were agruing like that and one asked the other "are you turned on" and they other said "yes" and next thing you knew they were kissing

[Cicero]

Originally Posted by Silent Bob

we'll we dance the dance.

This is the way he speaks. He doesn't say "We..." he says "We'll we ... "

He's Latin and never learnt English but we speak to each other in Spanish. You can post back in Spanish if you want to answer the questions we asked.

And he wants to dance the jerkero dance with you. It's a Cuban folk dance. The steps are easy and it's very nice.

[PurpleSwamper]

I'm not sure what game you folks are playing. But I find Cicero's questions reasonable so I'll provide further information in the interest of venting this further.

>When you tried to board the flight in New York, had your credit card already been charged by Avianca?
ANSWER: At the time of original booking, I called Avianca in NYC and they verbally confirmed that the payment had been properly processed. My monthly statement - which I received after my travel day - showed the charge along with a reversal.

Where were you physically when you used your credit card to pay? In Canada? Are you living in Canada?
ANSWER: I was in Canada and living there at the time of booking. However I booked using a visa card issued in the USA.

When the supervisor agreed to honor the original reservation, were you required to pay again?
ANSWER: Yes. At the ticket counter I provided the original USA visa card along with a Canadian issued Mastercard.

Do you know the nature of the argument between the ticket agent and supervisor that went on for the better part of an hour (must have been some argument)
ANSWER: The "argument" was not heated. Perhaps "discussion" would have been a better choice of description. They discussed whether or not a seat was available. Also I spoke to the supervisor and explained how after receiving the pop-up message about my credit card at the time of booking, I'd called their Canadian office and their NYC office to confirm payment processing, that I had a reservation #, that I had not been informed of the cancellation, that I'd just travelled from Canada to Buffalo and flew to NYC to make this flight, etc. At times we were put on hold while the supervisor spoke to their manager.

Approximately what was the cost of your Avianca flight? Did you get any refund?
ANSWER: Approximately $400. The ticket price was refunded to my credit card. But I was out of pocket my return ticket from BUF/NYC, cost to change ticket, airport parking, auto costs between Canada & Buffalo, and lost income for the day. My friend in Colombia was also out-of-pocket travelling from Cartegena to Barranquilla and back.

I have since travelled to Colombia several times and avoid using Avianca - maybe once in the last 5 visits and only because there was no other option that met my need. This year I'll likely go another 5-6 times. Since Aviance has never made this right with me, I continue to avoid them.

[Silent Bob]

The scene from Cheers when Sam and Diana were agruing like that and one asked the other "are you turned on" and they other said "yes" and next thing you knew they were kissing

LOL Leatherboy, I see that happening between Sinfail and I. He thinks I'm Latin, which must be his taste. And he keeps calling me Jerkero, which was the pet name I gave him. Isn't it grand? lol And you know what's funny? The dude came on to me first, even in this post that I never replied to. I never approached him in main, never approached him in a PM. all of a sudden BOOM! This idiot is on my lap. What god in hell has blessed me with such a gift?

But jerkero/ sinfail (sinbad for those who don't remember this clown), you're really lame, and a sad little man (i'll bet in more ways than one) so please, go back to your legos and maybe swallow a few. m'kay? m'kay.

Sad, stupid, little man.

[Cicero]

TO the OP: It may go against you that your payment was reversed. So when you tried to check in for your flight, Avianca had not received any payment. If a credit card company reverses the payment, the merchant is entitled to cancel the transaction. However that is not the end of the matter and Silent Bob Jerkero says you may still have a claim. But let us know if you have been able to ascertain if there was something wrong with the card. Did you for instance exceed your limit?

[PurpleSwamper]

As I found out later, the card had expired and Visa had mailed another to me. At the time of booking I hadn't received the new one and activated it. This was the only transaction that was affected. As stated, I called Avianca NYC office and they confirmed that the payment transaction took place OK. So I believed them.

Avianca may be within their rights to cancel the transaction based on payment cancellation by a third party. Nonetheless as a customer with a reservation number, they owed to me notification that they were cancelling the reservation. If they had contacted me to inform me they were cancelling the reservation, I could have corrected the payment situation or chosen not to fly to NYC.

But instead, they chose to cancel the reservation without informing me. That's just bad customer service. Even if they get away with not reimbursing me for my damages, they lose future business.

[Cicero]

As I told you it was not the end of the matter that your card was at fault.

Silent Bob Jerkero agrees that the airline had a duty to notify you and give you a chance to make the payment. Especially when they would know that to cancel your reservation suddenly without notice would cause the kind of damage you suffered.

In addition it is in your favor that you contacted their Canadian and New York offices and was told that all is well.

But the real cause of the damage, was the one hour delay they took in initially refusing to reinstate your reservation at the old price. It was eventually done showing that it could have been done all along.

Silent Bob Jerkero suggests that a claim in Small Claims Court is open to you.

You booked using your credit card in Canada so you can file in Canada. Silent Bob Jerkero says that the law was unsettled as to which country has jurisdiction for internet purchase of a ticket. This was decided in 2005 by a California Court of Appeals in Polanski v KLM. KLM sought to argue that the country of jurisdiction was the Netherlands where it had its office and where its internet computers were set up.

However the Court found that the Plaintiff had used his credit card from his home at his computer in California and so California had the jurisdiction.

Silent Bob Jerkero says this will be advantageous to you. Avianca has its head office in Bogota and only a token presence in Canada. They will hardly send Attorneys and witnesses to Canada to argue this case and you will be on your own setting out your case before the Judge. You don't need a lawyer.

If you feel we've helped you please let the Administrator know that Silent Bob Jerkero was of assistance.