T5 this morning

Back to Forum
Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 19 total)

  • Anonymous
    Guest

    HedgeFundFlyer
    Participant

    Checked in. Got offered a good price on an upgrade to F. After ten minutes got told my ticket was in fact ineligible to upgrade. It’s fully flex so God knows what it takes to be eligible to spend more money with BA.

    Joined the queue just by F check in for the new “Fast Track” which was total chaos and is nowhere near big enough to deal with the numbers of eligible pax.

    Walked through the building site / Discount shopping mall that T5 seems to have descended into. It’s finally achieved that T3 feeling. Eventually got to the F lounge. Nowhere to sit, nothing worth eating. Place filthy dirty with plates and cups everywhere and people arguing over tables.

    Walked straight back out. Refunded my ticket, took an Uber to T3 and am now sat waiting for my EK flight in F, having a delightful breakfast in the lounge.

    I’m slightly better off too.

    Well done, BA.


    seasonedtraveller
    Participant

    Unbelievable that this should happen.

    Something similar with me this week in as much as we were just about to board SAS from CPH to ORD on Friday when it was suddenly cancelled (quite literally as we were about to board) due to cabin crew industrial action.
    Finally routed via FRA with Lufthansa the next day arriving 20 hours late.

    However, the upshot is that the 747.8 Lufthansa flight was SO much better than the rather dated SAS cabin coupled with excellent food and an extremely pleasant crew, that I will now book my next 2 transatlantic flights with Lufthansa rather than SAS (not that the strikers give a toss I’m sure).


    Eastbourneguy
    Participant

    I hope you email BA with your story,
    The desk clerk won’t do anything…


    Henryp1
    Participant

    One of the benefits of not purchasing restrictive tickets.


    DoorsToManual
    Participant

    To help all readers, since October BA has created an algorithm that determine which passengers are allowed Airport Upgrades. Previously they were offered to all passengers but of course some people were making maximum use of them so BA in effect will stop you if you’ve used them before or had other upgrades within a certain timeframe. Unfortunately you only find out AFTER you’ve been offered it and accepted it. A friend of mine had paid the £499 for J to F and then was told he wasn’t eligible and it’d take up to 14 days for the money to go back into his account. It’s shoddy work on the part of BA. Well done Hedge Fund Flyer, you voted with your feet and had a better First Class experience on your trip to Dubai.


    SimonS1
    Participant

    Indeed well done to the OP. If more people did that then it might make a difference.

    Great tactic by the airline though, take your money, then 5 mins later they say you are not entitled after all and it will take 14 days to get your money back. Handy way of reducing borrowing costs.


    Travellator
    Participant

    Transferred from T3 to T5 this afternoon via Flight Connections – queued from top of the stairs for bus – took one hour just to get on bus – great hello to the UK for all the foreign tourists in front of us !


    TheRealBabushka
    Participant

    DoorToManual,

    Are you aware of the parameters for the rationing exercise, so that we may self-monitor and accept offers of upgrades wisely.


    SGJNI1961
    Participant

    I’m happy to hear your good luck/forward thinking. If this should happen to me, how do I book the ticket on EK while departing the lounge in T 5 for a flight leaving within ? hours? In F.


    MartynSinclair
    Participant

    @DoorsToManual – a company taking money for a service/product and within minutes refuses to supply (for whatever reason) and then states 14 days to refund the money is very very shoddy. By all means decline to sell, but don’t take someone’s money before telling them..

    When I left for HKG last weekend, I did ask whether a J to F upgrade was available. The ticket agent saw one available at a very favourable price – but when she tried to “grab” it, she had to phone through and whoever she spoke to withdrew it and would not release. No credit card had been given at that stage..

    @HFF, well done with your change… I hope someone takes notice…


    KarlMarx
    Participant

    I am not a lawyer, but I would have thought that offer and acceptance had occurred after payment was taken and that withdrawing eligibility was breach of contract? I know that different laws apply for web transactions and error fares, but as this was face to face, I would personally have applied for EU261 downgrade compensation.


    IanFromHKG
    Participant

    KarlMarx – I *am* a lawyer, and I completely agree with you. I struggle to see how that form of offer and acceptance doesn’t create a contract, provided the language used was sufficiently clear. Whether EU261 compensation is payable is a different matter, though, since it appears the ticket wasn’t issued – would the loss flowing from the breach of contract (that is to say, the contract to upgrade) include that compensation? I suspect not – damages for breach of contract are supposed to put the injured party in the same position as they would have been in if the contract had been performed, which presupposes travel in the higher class. It would be an interesting point to argue, though


    KarlMarx
    Participant

    Ian_from_HKG – 02/03/2015 07:49 GMT

    Is there a need for a ticket to be issued? I reproduce Article II, (g) from EC261:

    “reservation” means the fact that the passenger has a ticket, or other proof, which indicates that the reservation has been accepted and registered by the air carrier or tour operator;

    As a non-lawyer, I don’t really understand whether a receipt for payment would count as proof that the reservation was accepted and registered, what do you think?


    IanFromHKG
    Participant

    I think the issue here, though, is that the proof needs to show that the reservation was accepted and registered by the airline. A receipt might be prima facie evidence, but may not be conclusive. I can certainly imagine that any airline that has the gall – not to mention the complete absence of ethical standards – to take someone’s money for something they don’t deliver and then hang on to it for two weeks would also be prepared to argue the toss. Sadly.

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 19 total)
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Be up-to-date
Magazine Subscription
To see our latest subscription offers for Business Traveller editions worldwide, click on the Subscribe & Save link below
Polls