Hi all,
I have good news - i've finally managed to get the deal I wanted with Virgin after much tooing and froing.
After receiving the pitiful reply to my original letter I felt compelled to reply that this was just not good enough so I sent a series of letters:
- the first was an email to the CS operative who sent the original reply
- the second was a hard copy with the copies of my receipts
- the third was another email to Steve Ridgeway asking him whether he was aware just how bad this now was.
In my final letter I reiterated my disappointment with Virgin - that my ideals of what they stood for had been tarnished and that they were no longer the poster boy for customer service in my eyes. For here we were being treated in the same way as any large corporation does when confronted with poor service complaints.
Very quickly I received a call from "Lou" who apologised for my treatment and that they were going to offer me everything that I had requested: a Full refund on my BA ticket, my expenses (phone and taxis) and two Virgin Return Tickets.
I couldn't believe it. I have to say I am happy but at the same saddened that it took such a huge amount of effort to actually get my point heard. This should have been the standard respone but the fact that I had to send so many emails and set up this blog is a disgrace really.
I have also received some emails from other passengers since my refund and it seems that so far I am in the minority in terms of finalising my offer. Virgin has ignored a lot of the complaints so far - a case of he who shouts loudest gets heard.
Let's hope you get your results too.
By the way - the contact was:
Lou Longworth (Miss), Customer Liaison Manager - Louise.A.Longworth@fly.virgin.com
Directors Correspondence Unit - Customer Relations Virgin Atlantic Airways
Tel: 08704 646747
Fax: 08701 434547
Good luck.
Charlie
Monday 30 April 2007
Tuesday 24 April 2007
Still avoiding Virgin...
I did eventually get 50000 miles from Virgin (which is 50% of an Upper Class trip to NYC), but can report that my commitment to not use Virgin for my long haul business trips is still underway.
I am following the approach Virgin took with us, and ignoring them.....
Since that trip I have done 6 long haul trips and all of these have been on BA (Club). They have been quite amazing and I forgot how slick and professional their Cabin Staff are. I have also been upgraded twice from Club to First without asking on return trips overnight so that has been an extra perk/ treat.
At this stage, the 1st time I use Virgin is due to be 1st week of May on a trip to Los Angeles as our corporate deal is £1500 (!!!!!) cheaper in Upper Class Virgin versus Club on BA so I am afraid money has to talk......
I am still amazed at how a simple round of letters and a genuine apology would have made everyone happy and they missed that opportunity...
I am following the approach Virgin took with us, and ignoring them.....
Since that trip I have done 6 long haul trips and all of these have been on BA (Club). They have been quite amazing and I forgot how slick and professional their Cabin Staff are. I have also been upgraded twice from Club to First without asking on return trips overnight so that has been an extra perk/ treat.
At this stage, the 1st time I use Virgin is due to be 1st week of May on a trip to Los Angeles as our corporate deal is £1500 (!!!!!) cheaper in Upper Class Virgin versus Club on BA so I am afraid money has to talk......
I am still amazed at how a simple round of letters and a genuine apology would have made everyone happy and they missed that opportunity...
Wednesday 18 April 2007
The nightmare continues
Hi All
Following on from the standard email from the Virgin customer services advisor I replied as I wasnt happy with the answers to my questions. They came back to me again with a rewording of the original response. I have since emailed their CEO Steve Ridgway. This was over a month ago and I got no reply, however when I resent the email on Monday I had an email from his PA saying she missed my original email and would get a representative from the team who look after complaints directed to Steve to answer my questions, she did promise this by the next day but surprise surprise still nothing to report. I also heard from a passenger I was travelling with and she has only just had a reply from Virgin, that is over 2 MONTHS since we travelled, this is not what I call even close to being acceptable.
I will keep emailing Virgin until I get an acceptable repsonse
Emma
Following on from the standard email from the Virgin customer services advisor I replied as I wasnt happy with the answers to my questions. They came back to me again with a rewording of the original response. I have since emailed their CEO Steve Ridgway. This was over a month ago and I got no reply, however when I resent the email on Monday I had an email from his PA saying she missed my original email and would get a representative from the team who look after complaints directed to Steve to answer my questions, she did promise this by the next day but surprise surprise still nothing to report. I also heard from a passenger I was travelling with and she has only just had a reply from Virgin, that is over 2 MONTHS since we travelled, this is not what I call even close to being acceptable.
I will keep emailing Virgin until I get an acceptable repsonse
Emma
Tuesday 17 April 2007
Well well well....
Following my last email to Virgin they had gone very quite. Not one person called or emailed so in a fit of anger I emailed Steve Ridgeway (VA CEO) AGAIN and finally got an answer.
A customer liaison manager within the customer care team called me to apologise and offer me our out of pocket expenses and to honor the original offer. To say I am pleased is not the half of it. The whole experience has been incredibly draining and frustrating.
The Customer Liaison Manager also said that the US Vice President of VA is taking a great interest in all the responses and that they are investigating how this could have gone so badly. I hope for other passengers sake that they learn something from all this - being quick, efficient and keeping customers informed is imperative.
Interestingly this all comes after I had an email from Emma Doyle, another passenger, this week - who said WatchDog is thinking of doing a story!!! Interesting. She had an email from the CEO's PA saying that they were going to get back to her asap. Are the two related I wonder?
Anyone else had offers in?
Charlie
A customer liaison manager within the customer care team called me to apologise and offer me our out of pocket expenses and to honor the original offer. To say I am pleased is not the half of it. The whole experience has been incredibly draining and frustrating.
The Customer Liaison Manager also said that the US Vice President of VA is taking a great interest in all the responses and that they are investigating how this could have gone so badly. I hope for other passengers sake that they learn something from all this - being quick, efficient and keeping customers informed is imperative.
Interestingly this all comes after I had an email from Emma Doyle, another passenger, this week - who said WatchDog is thinking of doing a story!!! Interesting. She had an email from the CEO's PA saying that they were going to get back to her asap. Are the two related I wonder?
Anyone else had offers in?
Charlie
Monday 2 April 2007
Shockingly poor
We finally received a response from Virgin and yes you've guessed it - it was the standard reply. To say we were livid is an understatement, so we drafted this response last week but as yet no reply (surprise surprise!)
Dear Sanchia,
Thank you for your email last week.
We have to say that we are both extremely disappointed and angry by your response -not least because this is clearly the standard reply you have sent to other passengers including the repetition of grammatical mistakes – do you actually proof read your emails?
Quite frankly your offer is insulting, especially as on Saturday 18th February we received a letter from Susan Ratigan offering us two free round trips – the letter indicated that this was for those who were travelling on VS118 but upon asking Susan she confirmed that as we had waited patiently with the other passengers, and were inconvenienced for some considerable time, we would of course be allowed the tickets or a complete refund of our Virgin Tickets. For you to now offer LESS than what was agreed is disgraceful.
You mentioned that you would ordinarily have rebooked your passengers with other carriers or new flights but there were just a “handful of seats”, we refer to our previous email where we explained that when we left on Sunday morning there was actually just a few of the original group left as the rest had clearly found alternative routes home. This highlights that your team had not tried hard enough to place us elsewhere – when we finally gave in to buy a new ticket it took us just TEN minutes, thus proving the point this was not difficult at all.
In addition, your letter says that Virgin realised "from the outset" that the necessary repairs would take "some time" yet it took your team a day and a half to tell us this - your lack of customer respect is astounding. This basic information would have prepared customers to what lay ahead and by not sharing it has merely compounded the aggravation.
You state below that staff were sent to the Hotel but “some” arrived after the coaches arrived – not “some” Sanchia but ALL, and when we say ALL we actually mean just one - a poor inexperienced young lady. And, despite trying to make it sound like it was 5 minutes afterwards it was actually more like FIVE hours which quite frankly is appalling.
It is offensive that you have requested for our receipts for “consideration” only as we believe this should be a given and not just something you wish to peruse. We will be sending copies of receipts to you today for your files but after all this we fully expect ALL expenses to be paid, including the new flights we were forced to pay for.
We look forward to receiving your reply this week - and not in your "usual" 21 days please.
Many thanks,
Charlie Morgan & Ben Fowler
Dear Sanchia,
Thank you for your email last week.
We have to say that we are both extremely disappointed and angry by your response -not least because this is clearly the standard reply you have sent to other passengers including the repetition of grammatical mistakes – do you actually proof read your emails?
Quite frankly your offer is insulting, especially as on Saturday 18th February we received a letter from Susan Ratigan offering us two free round trips – the letter indicated that this was for those who were travelling on VS118 but upon asking Susan she confirmed that as we had waited patiently with the other passengers, and were inconvenienced for some considerable time, we would of course be allowed the tickets or a complete refund of our Virgin Tickets. For you to now offer LESS than what was agreed is disgraceful.
You mentioned that you would ordinarily have rebooked your passengers with other carriers or new flights but there were just a “handful of seats”, we refer to our previous email where we explained that when we left on Sunday morning there was actually just a few of the original group left as the rest had clearly found alternative routes home. This highlights that your team had not tried hard enough to place us elsewhere – when we finally gave in to buy a new ticket it took us just TEN minutes, thus proving the point this was not difficult at all.
In addition, your letter says that Virgin realised "from the outset" that the necessary repairs would take "some time" yet it took your team a day and a half to tell us this - your lack of customer respect is astounding. This basic information would have prepared customers to what lay ahead and by not sharing it has merely compounded the aggravation.
You state below that staff were sent to the Hotel but “some” arrived after the coaches arrived – not “some” Sanchia but ALL, and when we say ALL we actually mean just one - a poor inexperienced young lady. And, despite trying to make it sound like it was 5 minutes afterwards it was actually more like FIVE hours which quite frankly is appalling.
It is offensive that you have requested for our receipts for “consideration” only as we believe this should be a given and not just something you wish to peruse. We will be sending copies of receipts to you today for your files but after all this we fully expect ALL expenses to be paid, including the new flights we were forced to pay for.
We look forward to receiving your reply this week - and not in your "usual" 21 days please.
Many thanks,
Charlie Morgan & Ben Fowler
Sunday 11 March 2007
A month later
Hi All,
Sorry for the lack of posts lately but i've been away. I have YET to receive a response from Virgin, despite it being a month since our trip. It seems incredible to me that such a prestigous company such as Virgin would let their customers down in this way. Anyone else managed to get a suitable reply yet?
Charlie
Sorry for the lack of posts lately but i've been away. I have YET to receive a response from Virgin, despite it being a month since our trip. It seems incredible to me that such a prestigous company such as Virgin would let their customers down in this way. Anyone else managed to get a suitable reply yet?
Charlie
Monday 5 March 2007
The compensation is less than the letter says it is...
After sending and email chasing them, I got a reply over the weekend from their Customer Services Team. This was interesting in itself since they had about 10 days ago sent an email saying my complaint had been forwarded to Richard Branson's office.
What I got, despite the detailed letter I had sent, was the same standard reply someone earlier has posted but with a change saying as Upper Class I would get 50000 miles. The letter clearly states that they were offering a free round trip and miles. But when I queried how to claim the flight they sent an email back saying you can choose EITHER the miles OR the flight. 50000 miles is not an upper class return flight.
Here is the text of the email they sent:
"Dear Mr Bembridge
Thank you for your email. Please accept my sincere apologies for the delay in responding.
I’m so sorry to read that you were delayed by two days after flight VS18 diverted to JFK, following its departure from Newark on 15 February. The precautionary decision to divert was taken after the crew discovered a technical problem. It was clear from the outset that the necessary repairs would take some time and two engineers were flown in from London to start
work.
Ordinarily we would have re-booked everyone onto other flights with us, or with other airlines, but there were only a handful of spaces available. We arranged hotel rooms in New Jersey as there weren’t enough in the New York area, and five coaches to take everyone there. A combination of bad weather and confusion over the correct route meant that this was a very
long journey too. We accept that this wasn’t handled very well and we took this up with the bus company before they returned on Saturday 17 February to collect everyone again.
Although Virgin Atlantic staff were sent to the hotel, we’re aware that some didn’t arrive until after the coaches. By early morning on Friday 16, we knew that the flight wouldn’t be leaving until Saturday so staff were on hand to answer questions and handed out letters explaining this.
On Saturday 17 February, your flight was re-numbered VS118 and left JFK at 10:43, 50 hours and 23 minutes late.
It’s very difficult in a letter, to acknowledge how much frustration an experience like this causes and we’re so sorry that you were affected. Of course, we occasionally have flight delays but rarely this long and very rarely when there are no options to move people to other flights. It was
for this reason that we offered you a free round-trip ticket on a future service, which I do hope you’ll get a chance to use.
Regarding the compensation, all Upper class passengers were offered 50,000 miles to be credited to their flying club account, which I have done for you.
If you incurred any costs for your immediate needs during the delay, like meals, phone calls, emails etc, please send us the receipts for consideration. We will also be passing on your comments within the airline, when we assess how this was handled.
Thanks very much for taking the time to write.
Yours sincerely
Nella Ellams (Mrs)
Customer Relations Executive"
What I got, despite the detailed letter I had sent, was the same standard reply someone earlier has posted but with a change saying as Upper Class I would get 50000 miles. The letter clearly states that they were offering a free round trip and miles. But when I queried how to claim the flight they sent an email back saying you can choose EITHER the miles OR the flight. 50000 miles is not an upper class return flight.
Here is the text of the email they sent:
"Dear Mr Bembridge
Thank you for your email. Please accept my sincere apologies for the delay in responding.
I’m so sorry to read that you were delayed by two days after flight VS18 diverted to JFK, following its departure from Newark on 15 February. The precautionary decision to divert was taken after the crew discovered a technical problem. It was clear from the outset that the necessary repairs would take some time and two engineers were flown in from London to start
work.
Ordinarily we would have re-booked everyone onto other flights with us, or with other airlines, but there were only a handful of spaces available. We arranged hotel rooms in New Jersey as there weren’t enough in the New York area, and five coaches to take everyone there. A combination of bad weather and confusion over the correct route meant that this was a very
long journey too. We accept that this wasn’t handled very well and we took this up with the bus company before they returned on Saturday 17 February to collect everyone again.
Although Virgin Atlantic staff were sent to the hotel, we’re aware that some didn’t arrive until after the coaches. By early morning on Friday 16, we knew that the flight wouldn’t be leaving until Saturday so staff were on hand to answer questions and handed out letters explaining this.
On Saturday 17 February, your flight was re-numbered VS118 and left JFK at 10:43, 50 hours and 23 minutes late.
It’s very difficult in a letter, to acknowledge how much frustration an experience like this causes and we’re so sorry that you were affected. Of course, we occasionally have flight delays but rarely this long and very rarely when there are no options to move people to other flights. It was
for this reason that we offered you a free round-trip ticket on a future service, which I do hope you’ll get a chance to use.
Regarding the compensation, all Upper class passengers were offered 50,000 miles to be credited to their flying club account, which I have done for you.
If you incurred any costs for your immediate needs during the delay, like meals, phone calls, emails etc, please send us the receipts for consideration. We will also be passing on your comments within the airline, when we assess how this was handled.
Thanks very much for taking the time to write.
Yours sincerely
Nella Ellams (Mrs)
Customer Relations Executive"
Friday 2 March 2007
Inconsistent
Hi All
Just to let you know I received a totally different letter from Virgin (shocking that they are inconsistent!!!) Mine was a standard letter confirming I am entitled to a free round trip as long as I send in my receipts and travel within the next 18 months. What annoys me about this is they are obviously trying to get more business as I will have to take someone with me who will have to buy a ticket which means more profit for Virgin!!!!!!! They are obviously trying to profit from our unfortunate situation. The other 2 people I travelled with have still had nothing even though we all emailed and posted our letters on the same day!! Surely Virgin can do so much better than this
I also received a random email from their customer service team asking for the home addresses of the people I was travelling with, why is it up to me to provide them with this?????
Just to let you know I received a totally different letter from Virgin (shocking that they are inconsistent!!!) Mine was a standard letter confirming I am entitled to a free round trip as long as I send in my receipts and travel within the next 18 months. What annoys me about this is they are obviously trying to get more business as I will have to take someone with me who will have to buy a ticket which means more profit for Virgin!!!!!!! They are obviously trying to profit from our unfortunate situation. The other 2 people I travelled with have still had nothing even though we all emailed and posted our letters on the same day!! Surely Virgin can do so much better than this
I also received a random email from their customer service team asking for the home addresses of the people I was travelling with, why is it up to me to provide them with this?????
Hello is anybody out there?
Weirdly, I had a letter this morning ... again nothing about what they'll be doing about it, just a holding message saying they'll be in touch within 21 days. TWENTYONE DAYS! That's completely ridiculous don't you think? Why am I surprised. This is typical of Virgin's lackadaisical approach to customers. In case you're wondering who Steve and Anna are - they're they CEO and Head of Communications for Virgin Atlantic. Let me know if you'd like their details - if you all email them maybe they'll take more notice. Maybe.
---------------------
Dear Miss Morgan
Thank you for taking the time to write to us with your feedback. Steve Ridgway and Anna Knowles have also taken note of your concerns and have asked us to reply on their behalf.
I have passed your comments over to our team of customer relations executives and they'll get back to you in the next 21 days.
Thank you for your patience while waiting for our reply.
Yours sincerely
Nikko Rocha (Miss)
Customer Relations
---------------------
Dear Miss Morgan
Thank you for taking the time to write to us with your feedback. Steve Ridgway and Anna Knowles have also taken note of your concerns and have asked us to reply on their behalf.
I have passed your comments over to our team of customer relations executives and they'll get back to you in the next 21 days.
Thank you for your patience while waiting for our reply.
Yours sincerely
Nikko Rocha (Miss)
Customer Relations
Thursday 1 March 2007
has anyone heard from Virgin, got compensation??
It is now a LONG time since the experience and I still have had no letter, no offer of compensation from Virgin...
As you will have seen from an earlier posting I did get an email on 23 Feb that my complaint had/ was being sent to Richard B's office..... and nothing..
I am still sticking to my guns and have made NO bookings on Virgin despite having flown with them long haul on average twice a month. I am using BA. It is costing more as my company has better route deals with Virgin but until I get a reply I will stick to BA.... I don't think Virgin cares anyway but it makes me feel better....!
As you will have seen from an earlier posting I did get an email on 23 Feb that my complaint had/ was being sent to Richard B's office..... and nothing..
I am still sticking to my guns and have made NO bookings on Virgin despite having flown with them long haul on average twice a month. I am using BA. It is costing more as my company has better route deals with Virgin but until I get a reply I will stick to BA.... I don't think Virgin cares anyway but it makes me feel better....!
Monday 26 February 2007
On Behalf of Frances Burgess
I emailed Virgin customer services and I put a letter of complaint in the post (with a full report of the events, a copy of my eticket and copies of 3 letters whihc I picked up from Virgin reps). I did both of these things on Tuesday, and now it is Saturday. I have not received any communication from Virgin, not even an acknowledgement of receipt of my email. I am very intrigued to read the response which one person has got from them - why are they not doing this for all of us? In that response, they say that they cannot give a cash refund, but I clearly remember Susan Ratigan telling us that we would get a full refund. It would be very good to hear from the person who was videoing her when she was speaking.
Posted on behalf of Michelle Payne
I would like to re-iterate everything that my friends Emma have Claire have written. The American ground crew working for Virgin are an embarrassment to the company and totally incompetent. We were made to feel like a huge inconvenience and were treated with total disrespect. It seemed like the excuses just kept rolling off their tongues in place of genuine support and concern. I would like to express my profound disappointment with a company I had always thought highly of.
Friday 23 February 2007
Jet Blue apology letter
Having seen Virgin's frankly laughable attempt to address a fellow passenger's concerns about the way we were treated, I think we should all send Virgin a copy of Jet Blue's apology letter, with a suggestion they might learn a thing or two about customer service.
I've always been rather sceptical of Branson's chummy blokiness, he is a master of the PR stunt after all but have been prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt ( until now ). Seems like he has rather more in common with his balloon antics after all - just a lot of hot air.
By the way, anyone read Airline Babylon ?
Tyketto
I've always been rather sceptical of Branson's chummy blokiness, he is a master of the PR stunt after all but have been prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt ( until now ). Seems like he has rather more in common with his balloon antics after all - just a lot of hot air.
By the way, anyone read Airline Babylon ?
Tyketto
Wow!
I am amazed with all these posts - thank you to everyone who is getting in on the act. I think it's a fantastic idea about Watch Dog, so I am going to drop an email to some consumer affairs and news journalists today. Fingers crossed they think it's worth some attention.
Had a "sort of response" from Virgin..
I have just got this reply from my letter to Virgin. Which says not a lot other than my letter has been passed on to "Richard Branson's Office"....... !?
No apolpogy or anything yet....
"23 February 2007
Mr Gary David Bembridge
Dear Mr Bembridge
Thank you for taking the time to write to us with your feedback.
I have passed your email to Richard Branson's office and they'll get back
to you just as soon as they can.
Thank you for your patience while waiting for our reply.
Kind regards
Heena Sayyed (Miss)
Customer Relations"
No apolpogy or anything yet....
"23 February 2007
Mr Gary David Bembridge
Dear Mr Bembridge
Thank you for taking the time to write to us with your feedback.
I have passed your email to Richard Branson's office and they'll get back
to you just as soon as they can.
Thank you for your patience while waiting for our reply.
Kind regards
Heena Sayyed (Miss)
Customer Relations"
Hi All
I just wanted to add my comments about how shockingly we were all treated by Virgin, from the nightmare bus journey with an unsafe driver and nearly 7 hours with no food, drink or toilet facilities, to the constant lies from all Virgin staff and the rude attitudes from them all, I have never felt so annoyed and stressed out after a holiday. I also wanted to add when we eventually got back to Newark airport after it was clear the driver didnt know where he was going, we tried to get a Virgin rep to come help but the only one there ran away from us!!! Here is the response I got from Virgin, after reading it I felt again let down, they have avoided the issues totally and again fobbed off our complaints. What about the letter that Jet Blue passengers received? Just wanted to add I emailed Watch dog with my complaints, if we all do it they may listen!!
Our Ref: 943940/WNSCRW/1
Dear Ms Doyle
I'm so sorry to read that you were delayed by two days after flight VS18 diverted to JFK, following its departure from Newark on 15 February.
The precautionary decision to divert was taken after the crew discovered a technical problem. It was clear from the outset that the necessary repairs would take some time and two engineers were flown in from London to start work.
Ordinarily we would have re-booked everyone onto other flights with us, or with other airlines, but there were only a handful of spaces available.
We arranged hotel rooms in New Jersey, as there weren't enough in the New York area, and five coaches to take everyone there. A combination of bad weather and confusion over the correct route meant that this was a very long journey too. We accept that this wasn't handled very well and we took this up with the bus company before they returned on Saturday 17 February to collect everyone again.
Although Virgin Atlantic staff were sent to the hotel, we're aware that some didn't arrive until after the coaches. By early morning on Friday 16, we knew that the flight wouldn't be leaving until Saturday so staff were on hand to answer questions and handed out letters explaining this.
On Saturday 17 February, your flight was re-numbered VS118 and left JFK at 10:43, 50 hours and 23 minutes late.
I appreciate what you have said about some passengers being offered an upgrade. I'm disappointed if this happened as I can appreciate how annoying this must have been. Unfortunately, I'm unable to confirm this.
It's very difficult in a letter, to acknowledge how much frustration an experience like this causes and we're so sorry that you were affected. Of course, we occasionally have flight delays but rarely this long and very rarely when there are no options to move people to other flights. It was for this reason that we offered a free round-trip ticket on a future service. Could I request you to send us the postal addresses of Ms Michelle Payne and Ms Claire Watson, so that we can send these free tickets to you. I'm afraid though, that I can't offer you a refund of your ticket fare.
If you incurred any costs for your immediate needs during the delay, like meals, phone calls, emails etc, please send us the receipts for consideration.
Our address is
Virgin Atlantic
Customer Relations
PO Box 747
Dunstable
LU6 9AH
We will also be passing on your comments within the airline, when we assess how this was handled.
Thanks very much for taking the time to email us and once again we're sorry about what happened.
Kind regards
Winston D'Lima
Customer Relations Executive
I just wanted to add my comments about how shockingly we were all treated by Virgin, from the nightmare bus journey with an unsafe driver and nearly 7 hours with no food, drink or toilet facilities, to the constant lies from all Virgin staff and the rude attitudes from them all, I have never felt so annoyed and stressed out after a holiday. I also wanted to add when we eventually got back to Newark airport after it was clear the driver didnt know where he was going, we tried to get a Virgin rep to come help but the only one there ran away from us!!! Here is the response I got from Virgin, after reading it I felt again let down, they have avoided the issues totally and again fobbed off our complaints. What about the letter that Jet Blue passengers received? Just wanted to add I emailed Watch dog with my complaints, if we all do it they may listen!!
Our Ref: 943940/WNSCRW/1
Dear Ms Doyle
I'm so sorry to read that you were delayed by two days after flight VS18 diverted to JFK, following its departure from Newark on 15 February.
The precautionary decision to divert was taken after the crew discovered a technical problem. It was clear from the outset that the necessary repairs would take some time and two engineers were flown in from London to start work.
Ordinarily we would have re-booked everyone onto other flights with us, or with other airlines, but there were only a handful of spaces available.
We arranged hotel rooms in New Jersey, as there weren't enough in the New York area, and five coaches to take everyone there. A combination of bad weather and confusion over the correct route meant that this was a very long journey too. We accept that this wasn't handled very well and we took this up with the bus company before they returned on Saturday 17 February to collect everyone again.
Although Virgin Atlantic staff were sent to the hotel, we're aware that some didn't arrive until after the coaches. By early morning on Friday 16, we knew that the flight wouldn't be leaving until Saturday so staff were on hand to answer questions and handed out letters explaining this.
On Saturday 17 February, your flight was re-numbered VS118 and left JFK at 10:43, 50 hours and 23 minutes late.
I appreciate what you have said about some passengers being offered an upgrade. I'm disappointed if this happened as I can appreciate how annoying this must have been. Unfortunately, I'm unable to confirm this.
It's very difficult in a letter, to acknowledge how much frustration an experience like this causes and we're so sorry that you were affected. Of course, we occasionally have flight delays but rarely this long and very rarely when there are no options to move people to other flights. It was for this reason that we offered a free round-trip ticket on a future service. Could I request you to send us the postal addresses of Ms Michelle Payne and Ms Claire Watson, so that we can send these free tickets to you. I'm afraid though, that I can't offer you a refund of your ticket fare.
If you incurred any costs for your immediate needs during the delay, like meals, phone calls, emails etc, please send us the receipts for consideration.
Our address is
Virgin Atlantic
Customer Relations
PO Box 747
Dunstable
LU6 9AH
We will also be passing on your comments within the airline, when we assess how this was handled.
Thanks very much for taking the time to email us and once again we're sorry about what happened.
Kind regards
Winston D'Lima
Customer Relations Executive
Has anyone heard from Virgin yet?
It is now over a week since the whole fiasco began. I have emailed the Customer Services team, written to them and even (via a contact) had the link to this blog sent to the Virgin Group Communications Team a few days ago... and there seems to be complete silence. Not even a "thanks we got your message and are investigating and will get back to you as soon as we can with the full story"...
Has anyone actually heard from Virgin since getting back??
I was checking my Virgin Frequent Flyer account online to see if by some miracle they had put something in there as a "surprise". The only thing I did note is that they have put the normal miles for the Thursday VS18 flight (about 8000 miles) and also show the VS4 flight I took that got me home on Saturday as if it was a whole new trip and put the 8000 miles for that in. So either this is the exciting compenstation - or their system has not picked up that they were off the same ticket. I think I can safely assume it is the latter...
Has anyone actually heard from Virgin since getting back??
I was checking my Virgin Frequent Flyer account online to see if by some miracle they had put something in there as a "surprise". The only thing I did note is that they have put the normal miles for the Thursday VS18 flight (about 8000 miles) and also show the VS4 flight I took that got me home on Saturday as if it was a whole new trip and put the 8000 miles for that in. So either this is the exciting compenstation - or their system has not picked up that they were off the same ticket. I think I can safely assume it is the latter...
Thursday 22 February 2007
It was all lies ..
Hey all, just wanted to add my feelings on the whole fiasco. Makes me so angry reading over everyones comments. I've gotta say the worst part has to be the lies they decided to tell us all - How stupid do Virgin really think the public are. Well all I can say if Virgin can't even manage a decent apology thats the last time I will use any business attached to the name. Hope all my fellow passangers have recovered although I'm sure were all still fuming. Claire.
Trekking to Philadelphia
David Freedman, a fellow passenger, writes: Thanks for setting this up. Reading it again makes me angry all over again!
We were so disheartened by the way we had been treated and - in particular - by the complete lack of proper information and any credible plan to get us home that, once the Friday morning flight had been cancelled, we decided to do what you ended up doing and look into booking something separately ourselves.
Because there were 4 of us (my wife and I and our two children), it was not straightforward finding 4 seats near each other but our travel agent in the UK found us a BA flight out of Philadelphia at 9.55 pm on Friday evening (he also found us a couple of other flights from JFK and Newark - but not until Saturday morning). I called Virgin Customer Services and spoke to someone at the call centre in Mumbai. He assured me (several times) that Virgin would reimburse us for our BA flights.
We had to take a 2 hour taxi ride to Philadelphia but that worked out fine and BA were just great to us (really kind and understanding). We got home on Saturday late morning. I then emailed Virgin Customer Services to find out about how to claim our refund (for the taxi, the BA tickets and a host of other expenses) but just got the standard automated response email saying that they would get back in touch within the next 21 days. Seems par for the course with them and fits with the standard of customer service we all received last week. I also asked about what compensation they were proposing to give us for the way we had been treated.
My kids (9 and 11) were fantastic - I couldn't believe how well they dealt with the whole thing - but not having anything to eat or drink from 4.45 am to 6 pm on Thursday (apart from some chocolate we had with us and a part bottle of water we happened to have left) - with 3 hours on a stiflingly hot bus with no loo on the way to the Ramada Inn - was outrageous. They were both really frustrated at giving up the best part of 2 days of their precious half-term and one of them was worried because she was supposed to be revising for an exam straight after half-term and she was worried she wouldn't be able to.
Frankly, I'm not holding my breath about the compensation - we'll see what happens - but I will fight tooth and nail for the reimbursement. Like you, I also phoned my travel insurer when we got back and I think we would be covered for the additional costs if Virgin don't pay up - but I don't want to have to claim on the insurance - I think Virgin should pay.
Because there were 4 of us (my wife and I and our two children), it was not straightforward finding 4 seats near each other but our travel agent in the UK found us a BA flight out of Philadelphia at 9.55 pm on Friday evening (he also found us a couple of other flights from JFK and Newark - but not until Saturday morning). I called Virgin Customer Services and spoke to someone at the call centre in Mumbai. He assured me (several times) that Virgin would reimburse us for our BA flights.
We had to take a 2 hour taxi ride to Philadelphia but that worked out fine and BA were just great to us (really kind and understanding). We got home on Saturday late morning. I then emailed Virgin Customer Services to find out about how to claim our refund (for the taxi, the BA tickets and a host of other expenses) but just got the standard automated response email saying that they would get back in touch within the next 21 days. Seems par for the course with them and fits with the standard of customer service we all received last week. I also asked about what compensation they were proposing to give us for the way we had been treated.
My kids (9 and 11) were fantastic - I couldn't believe how well they dealt with the whole thing - but not having anything to eat or drink from 4.45 am to 6 pm on Thursday (apart from some chocolate we had with us and a part bottle of water we happened to have left) - with 3 hours on a stiflingly hot bus with no loo on the way to the Ramada Inn - was outrageous. They were both really frustrated at giving up the best part of 2 days of their precious half-term and one of them was worried because she was supposed to be revising for an exam straight after half-term and she was worried she wouldn't be able to.
Frankly, I'm not holding my breath about the compensation - we'll see what happens - but I will fight tooth and nail for the reimbursement. Like you, I also phoned my travel insurer when we got back and I think we would be covered for the additional costs if Virgin don't pay up - but I don't want to have to claim on the insurance - I think Virgin should pay.
Tyketto gives us his opinion
What a vast difference from Virgin Atlantic's position ( I was on VS18 too ).
interestingly I came across Virgin America's site today - check it here. http://letvafly.com/
This is the first paragraph on the homepage:
"Who here is happy with airline service? Do you love your airline? Most Americans say no.
Virgin America would like to change the way America flies. Our mission is to provide you with a better option in domestic air travel. How about an airline filled with people who have a passion for progress and a fascination with technology? How about massage chairs? How about a self-service minibar and snack fridge?"
Hey I'd just settle for an airline that gave a sh*t.
interestingly I came across Virgin America's site today - check it here. http://letvafly.com/
This is the first paragraph on the homepage:
"Who here is happy with airline service? Do you love your airline? Most Americans say no.
Virgin America would like to change the way America flies. Our mission is to provide you with a better option in domestic air travel. How about an airline filled with people who have a passion for progress and a fascination with technology? How about massage chairs? How about a self-service minibar and snack fridge?"
Hey I'd just settle for an airline that gave a sh*t.
Wednesday 21 February 2007
Jet Blue does the right thing - come on Virgin, pull your finger out!!
An Apology from JetBlue Airways. Where is the one from VIRGIN ATLANTIC?!?
Dear JetBlue Customers,
We are sorry and embarrassed. But most of all, we are deeply sorry.
Last week was the worst operational week in JetBlue's seven year history. Following the severe winter ice storm in the Northeast, we subjected our customers to unacceptable delays, flight cancellations, lost baggage, and other major inconveniences. The storm disrupted the movement of aircraft, and, more importantly, disrupted the movement of JetBlue's pilot and inflight crewmembers who were depending on those planes to get them to the airports where they were scheduled to serve you. With the busy President's Day weekend upon us, rebooking opportunities were scarce and hold times at 1-800-JETBLUE were unacceptably long or not even available, further hindering our recovery efforts.
Words cannot express how truly sorry we are for the anxiety, frustration and inconvenience that we caused. This is especially saddening because JetBlue was founded on the promise of bringing humanity back to air travel and making the experience of flying happier and easier for everyone who chooses to fly with us. We know we failed to deliver on this promise last week.
We are committed to you, our valued customers, and are taking immediate corrective steps to regain your confidence in us. We have begun putting a comprehensive plan in place to provide better and more timely
information to you, more tools and resources for our crewmembers and improved procedures for handling operational difficulties in the future. We are confident, as a result of these actions, that JetBlue will emerge as a more reliable and even more customer responsive airline than ever before.
Most importantly, we have published the JetBlue Airways Customer Bill of Rights-our official commitment to you of how we will handle operational interruptions going forward-including details of compensation. I have a video messageto share with you about this industry leading action.
<http://recp.jetbluepromotions.com/ctt?kn=5&m=508334&r=NjE4NTczNzM4S0&b=0&j=Nzk5NzE5ODUS1&mt=1>
You deserved better-a lot better-from us last week. Nothing is more important than regaining your trust and all of us here hope you will give us the opportunity to welcome you onboard again soon and provide you the positive JetBlue Experience you have come to expect from us.
Sincerely,
David Neeleman
Founder and CEO
JetBlue Airways
Dear JetBlue Customers,
We are sorry and embarrassed. But most of all, we are deeply sorry.
Last week was the worst operational week in JetBlue's seven year history. Following the severe winter ice storm in the Northeast, we subjected our customers to unacceptable delays, flight cancellations, lost baggage, and other major inconveniences. The storm disrupted the movement of aircraft, and, more importantly, disrupted the movement of JetBlue's pilot and inflight crewmembers who were depending on those planes to get them to the airports where they were scheduled to serve you. With the busy President's Day weekend upon us, rebooking opportunities were scarce and hold times at 1-800-JETBLUE were unacceptably long or not even available, further hindering our recovery efforts.
Words cannot express how truly sorry we are for the anxiety, frustration and inconvenience that we caused. This is especially saddening because JetBlue was founded on the promise of bringing humanity back to air travel and making the experience of flying happier and easier for everyone who chooses to fly with us. We know we failed to deliver on this promise last week.
We are committed to you, our valued customers, and are taking immediate corrective steps to regain your confidence in us. We have begun putting a comprehensive plan in place to provide better and more timely
information to you, more tools and resources for our crewmembers and improved procedures for handling operational difficulties in the future. We are confident, as a result of these actions, that JetBlue will emerge as a more reliable and even more customer responsive airline than ever before.
Most importantly, we have published the JetBlue Airways Customer Bill of Rights-our official commitment to you of how we will handle operational interruptions going forward-including details of compensation. I have a video messageto share with you about this industry leading action.
<http://recp.jetbluepromotions.com/ctt?kn=5&m=508334&r=NjE4NTczNzM4S0&b=0&j=Nzk5NzE5ODUS1&mt=1>
You deserved better-a lot better-from us last week. Nothing is more important than regaining your trust and all of us here hope you will give us the opportunity to welcome you onboard again soon and provide you the positive JetBlue Experience you have come to expect from us.
Sincerely,
David Neeleman
Founder and CEO
JetBlue Airways
The cherry on the cake...
Hi guys,
I just wanted to let you all know, well those who of you who didn't get to hear about it. That once we were waiting in the departure lounge we got talking to four couples opposite us and they told us that they had been upgraded to Upper Class due to the fact their previous flight had been over-booked and they had been waiting three hours to join our flight!!! Well, we coudn't believe what we were hearing. The nerve Virgin had to upgrade them and not the people that had been waiting 52 hours at this point. We wanted to discuss this with the manager of the Virgin desk and whilst we were waiting for him I asked a Virgin supervisor for his name and she said it was Nigel, when I asked if he had a surname she replied "NO". When Nigel emerged he simply said that " he did not authorise any upgrades and knew nothing about it ". He was so rude and unhelpful that I was left standing in complete shock! He then walked away whilst another one of the passengers was talking to him... I can honestly say I have never been so angry in my whole life. I boarded the VS118 flight feeling completely drained physically and mentally. The cherry on the cake for me was missing my 21st birthday party!!!
I just wanted to let you all know, well those who of you who didn't get to hear about it. That once we were waiting in the departure lounge we got talking to four couples opposite us and they told us that they had been upgraded to Upper Class due to the fact their previous flight had been over-booked and they had been waiting three hours to join our flight!!! Well, we coudn't believe what we were hearing. The nerve Virgin had to upgrade them and not the people that had been waiting 52 hours at this point. We wanted to discuss this with the manager of the Virgin desk and whilst we were waiting for him I asked a Virgin supervisor for his name and she said it was Nigel, when I asked if he had a surname she replied "NO". When Nigel emerged he simply said that " he did not authorise any upgrades and knew nothing about it ". He was so rude and unhelpful that I was left standing in complete shock! He then walked away whilst another one of the passengers was talking to him... I can honestly say I have never been so angry in my whole life. I boarded the VS118 flight feeling completely drained physically and mentally. The cherry on the cake for me was missing my 21st birthday party!!!
More seats on flights and a letter
Hi Charlie and all,
Is everyone home now?
I went over to Newark on the Friday morning and found Susan Ratigan in the Upper Class lounge. She had started work at 4:30am and found herself in the middle of the mess. It appears there was no duty manager in US or UK to manage the situation until that time.
Incidentally, I used to be resort rep in Spain for First Choice and if no manager was available, we had a 24/7 hotline in the UK to managers who could handle crisis situations - also available to customers.
She assured me verbally that Virgin would cover the cost of the flight we had booked and I also do have a letter (I think it is at home) signed by Virgin member of staff assuring me that they would refund the extra flight I bought to take home. (I had to be back for my own 40th birthday party Sat night!)
My travel agent who booked me on the BA flight on Friday evening said that there were flights available although some via Europe. He got 4 of us home Friday pm without too much trouble.
I also have the card of a travel agent who I met in the hotel lobby Friday lunchtime as I was leaving, representing virgin and Max Jet who said he had 12 seats on Max Jet at $799 Friday night. I was told that virgin wouldn't refund this cost as it was 'business' even though it was cheaper than the 'economy' fares some of us had just paid.
I took the evening BA flight home from Newark (was first in checkin about 4 hours early! - just in case it was full and they bumped people off). Glad to report that check-in, boarding and flight were perfect (though I was a bit on edge the whole time kind of expecting something to happen :( )
I hate to tell you this, but the BA flight had empty seats - don't know how many exactly but there was one to my left, one to my right and there were two seats behind me that were empty!
Hope this info is useful
regards
Rob
Is everyone home now?
I went over to Newark on the Friday morning and found Susan Ratigan in the Upper Class lounge. She had started work at 4:30am and found herself in the middle of the mess. It appears there was no duty manager in US or UK to manage the situation until that time.
Incidentally, I used to be resort rep in Spain for First Choice and if no manager was available, we had a 24/7 hotline in the UK to managers who could handle crisis situations - also available to customers.
She assured me verbally that Virgin would cover the cost of the flight we had booked and I also do have a letter (I think it is at home) signed by Virgin member of staff assuring me that they would refund the extra flight I bought to take home. (I had to be back for my own 40th birthday party Sat night!)
My travel agent who booked me on the BA flight on Friday evening said that there were flights available although some via Europe. He got 4 of us home Friday pm without too much trouble.
I also have the card of a travel agent who I met in the hotel lobby Friday lunchtime as I was leaving, representing virgin and Max Jet who said he had 12 seats on Max Jet at $799 Friday night. I was told that virgin wouldn't refund this cost as it was 'business' even though it was cheaper than the 'economy' fares some of us had just paid.
I took the evening BA flight home from Newark (was first in checkin about 4 hours early! - just in case it was full and they bumped people off). Glad to report that check-in, boarding and flight were perfect (though I was a bit on edge the whole time kind of expecting something to happen :( )
I hate to tell you this, but the BA flight had empty seats - don't know how many exactly but there was one to my left, one to my right and there were two seats behind me that were empty!
Hope this info is useful
regards
Rob
More updates
Hi all,
I've had a few more emails from passengers and I have to say that this is unfolding nicely. Thanks to everyone who has been in touch.
Relating to the question I posted earlier I received this reply from Emma Doyle. She said this...
"Myself, Michelle Payne, Claire Watson and Cassie all heard her say this, in fact she said it directly to us. She promised us a letter would arrive the next morning, however a few hours later we had a letter confirming only a free future flight. By this point Susan had disappeared so we could not question it. Susan also promised to be at the airport when our flight boarded, again she wasn't so we were given no other chance to talk to her. I have emailed out my complaint letter to her but don't really expect to hear from her ... I still feel so strongly about the way we were treated."
I also had a very interesting email from Gary Bembridge, who mentioned that there was actually some Upper Class customers with us at the hotel. Thanks for letting us know about that - seems that Virgin actually treated everyone the same!
I've had a few more emails from passengers and I have to say that this is unfolding nicely. Thanks to everyone who has been in touch.
Relating to the question I posted earlier I received this reply from Emma Doyle. She said this...
"Myself, Michelle Payne, Claire Watson and Cassie all heard her say this, in fact she said it directly to us. She promised us a letter would arrive the next morning, however a few hours later we had a letter confirming only a free future flight. By this point Susan had disappeared so we could not question it. Susan also promised to be at the airport when our flight boarded, again she wasn't so we were given no other chance to talk to her. I have emailed out my complaint letter to her but don't really expect to hear from her ... I still feel so strongly about the way we were treated."
I also had a very interesting email from Gary Bembridge, who mentioned that there was actually some Upper Class customers with us at the hotel. Thanks for letting us know about that - seems that Virgin actually treated everyone the same!
Gary also mentioned that he has sent an email complaint to Virgin but received the standard "out of office" type message saying the email arrived and has followed it up with a letter which has a a series of questions. He's asked me to add two things to the blog (taken directly from his email) - see below:
1) Upper Class were not looked after any differently (which is unusual for an airline). I (and a lady I met) were flying Upper Class, and we were not looked after or sorted out any differently and were on the same bus, hotel etc. We eventually started to get really pushy and demand to be looked after and (as your blog points out) found out by calling Virgin in the UK that there were (in the booking agent words) "lots of availability out of JFK on Friday". We got on the VS4 at 6.30pm on Friday. BUT only through ignoring what the reps were telling us. We came across 2 other people who had been in Upper Class and were now also on the VS4 flight (people who lived in New York) and they told us that as they lived locally they refused to get on the busses and had gone to the ticket desk (contrary to the advice of the Virgin people downstairs) and were rebooked to the VS4 which was the next available flight (They say another NYC couple also got on the last flight on Thursday). This will sound terrible and am sure will annoy some people, but I was extra annoyed that they had not sorted out Upper Class passengers as I fly Virgin Upper Class long haul at least once a month (last year 15 times) so when things go wrong be nice if they made an effort and having been caught up in similar issues with BA and Continental they did.
2) I have added a posting to my blog with the questions I sent to Virgin: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MyTravelReviewswithGaryBembridge/~3/93741689/virgin-atlantic-nightmare-on-vs18.html
Thanks Gary - Your questions on your blog are really good, if it's ok with you I think they should go up here too.
Charlie
Thanks Gary - Your questions on your blog are really good, if it's ok with you I think they should go up here too.
Charlie
Another passenger gets in touch...
"Myself and my Colleague, Rob Trup, were also caught up in the fiasco. Rob actually went to the airport and had the supervisor there sign a piece of paper to say that they would refund the cost of flights that we managed to book ourselves. Susan Ratigan also confirmed this to me at the hotel, and so we managed to book flights on BA and Lufthansa to get ourselves home. Why Virgin were seemingly unable to get people on other flights is a mystery since various others found flights themselves." Andrew Bacon.
Tuesday 20 February 2007
Compensation?
I've just had an email from another passenger, Frances - thanks for emailing.
Apparently Susan Ratigan, the Service Delivery Manager, told her that we would get our fare refunded, and she said this on a number of occasions! She also said that compensation would not be affected if we had found an alternative carrier. Did Susan tell anyone else this? Because no-one, as far as I know, received a letter confirming this.
Apparently Susan Ratigan, the Service Delivery Manager, told her that we would get our fare refunded, and she said this on a number of occasions! She also said that compensation would not be affected if we had found an alternative carrier. Did Susan tell anyone else this? Because no-one, as far as I know, received a letter confirming this.
Monday 19 February 2007
It gets worse
3:30am: We're woken by a call from a rude and abrupt Virgin rep., apparently the plane is fixed. We have to be downstairs between 6 and 7am.
We rise at 5:30am. I am very nervous about having to get on the plane (despite Virgin saying it's fixed) but I try and steal myself. We both just want to get home and back to work.
6:30am: We're in the lobby. Amazing ! - THREE Virgin reps. All here to tell weary and angry customers that there is no flight. Rumours abound that the pilot refused to take the plane back up. Customers are crying out for a manager. The reps are rude, unhelpful and bolshy. When I request a status report, I have to ask one to stop raising her voice. Everyone is now very concerned about how we're going to get home, especially as the Virgin staff re-iterate that there are no seats on any other flights - in fact every carrier is apparently over-booked because of the holiday weekend.
We start to chat to the other passengers. There are some very unhappy people:
- The lovely Sikh couple who just got married in New York and are now missing their traditional ceremony in the UK - their parents have spent a fortune on it.
- The stressed-out Indian family on their way back to see a sick mother who is having open-heart surgery.
- The woman who is on her way back to a poorly child
- Over ten teachers desperate to get back to their respective schools
- The terrified children
- People who own companies, losing money every day they are stuck in the US.
- The New Jersey family who hadn't flown since 9/11 because they were understandably very concerned at the prospect - and now this!
Every person we came across had a story.
The reps start handing out a compensation letter but they don't have enough for everyone. I sneak a look at someone else's - 50% off the next flight!! This is pathetic.
I ask a rep. if we could book with another carrier and am told that I could but there is no guarentee we could get on that flight. Plus we'd be worse off because Virgin would no longer be looking after our interests and we'd definitely not get a refund. I am shocked. I notice customers calling travel agents and getting flights - the group starts to dwindle.
We go upstairs to check online - there are LOADS of flights out of there. What the heck is going on?
10:20am. We're told by the reps that we're flying on Saturday but they're not 100% sure the plane is fixed. Again they tell us not to re-book elsewhere, as there are so many cancellations due to the recent bad weather. We're all furious - these reps are useless and just inflaming the situation. Customers are extremely agitated.
12 noon. The nice hotel manageress directs us to the conference room, so we have somewhere to sit. The reps join us and try to talk to us - everyone gets frustrated and starts shouting for the manager again.
1pm Susan Ratigan - 'Service Delivery Manager' - arrives and takes control. She's like a negotiator trying to deal with a bank siege - soothing words, promising that everything will be okay, she'll get us "outta here" but just trust her - "okay ?". Finally an apology but we're told if we want to leave we HAVE to get on the plane. As far as they know there is nothing wrong with this plane. However, some engineers flown in especially from London, will be conducting a 'borascope examination' of the engines. She's not sure what it means but it's a fairly thorough procedure. Although she can't 100% guarantee it, the flight should leave on Saturday morning. I notice someone is recording the whole thing - if you're reading this please upload it to YouTube and send us the link. I am sure we'd all like to see this again.
Another offer arrives - this time it says they're checking other carriers to get us out (hmmm) and that we can re-book on another flight with Virgin later, if we want.
People are shouting, some are crying, others are leaving to book with other carriers. If they can get seats - why can't Virgin ?. it's totally unacceptable.
Later on, another letter arrives. This one says we can get a free round trip flight but we get nothing if we book else where ( apart from a refund ) and there is nothing about compensation for the distress and delays. We go off and call work. A chink of light ! It appears we have travel insurance and following a couple of calls, we're booked on a BA flight the following morning. Unfortunately not everyone is quite so lucky. We check in online and go downstairs to tell Susan.
She acts surprised and the other passengers look cross that we have clearly managed to get other flights despite assurances there are none. It's obvious they don't want us flying with someone else and are happy to have us stay put, rather than placing us with another carrier. I'm livid.
I notice Susan picking customers off to do different deals - people start leaving to get on other Virgin flights. Again we all note that Business and First Class were obviously sorted out at the terminal. We're being punished for buying cheaper tickets. I get a call from one of the passengers, now at Newark airport. He tells me he's about to get on a Virgin Flight and they are STILL selling tickets for it. He's very upset.
Saturday
The next morning we get up at 3am (again) and head to JFK for our flight. Of course, this time everything passes without incident and we arrive on time at Heathrow.
I check the 'Arrivals' to see if the newly named flight VS118 is in - nothing there (it was supposed to arrive at the same time as the BA flight). When I get home I look online. It says the plane is due in at midnight, so clearly there were more delays but I still do not know if everyone is back safely. Despite Susan's best efforts to salvage a bit of Virgin's integrity, she's failed miserably. Hats off though Susan - great 'strategies'. But really...too little, too late!
During this whole miserable experience, I called Virgin's customer services THREE times. The first time I spoke to a woman (Danielle, very kind) who had no idea what was going on or how to help me. Twice I was put on hold for over 20 minutes (on my mobile, at my expense) until I gave up. I can not believe such a high profile company can be so bad at this kind of thing. No contingency plans, no real idea at all.
I have always respected Richard Branson but he should take notice of this - his reputation is being damaged by a team who clearly are unable to cope in a crisis. It's embarrassing.
I'm a reasonable person, I understand that planes are prone to occasional mechanical problems but surely a company's reputation is measured by it's response to such a situation.
So Virgin please tell us. What are you going to do about this?
I am now even more afraid of flying - getting on that BA flight took some serious guts, and I only did it so I could get home. They made me feel as comfortable as I could be but that doesn't mean I'll be getting on a flight anytime soon. This experience has opened my eyes - you're only as good as the ticket you buy!
We rise at 5:30am. I am very nervous about having to get on the plane (despite Virgin saying it's fixed) but I try and steal myself. We both just want to get home and back to work.
6:30am: We're in the lobby. Amazing ! - THREE Virgin reps. All here to tell weary and angry customers that there is no flight. Rumours abound that the pilot refused to take the plane back up. Customers are crying out for a manager. The reps are rude, unhelpful and bolshy. When I request a status report, I have to ask one to stop raising her voice. Everyone is now very concerned about how we're going to get home, especially as the Virgin staff re-iterate that there are no seats on any other flights - in fact every carrier is apparently over-booked because of the holiday weekend.
We start to chat to the other passengers. There are some very unhappy people:
- The lovely Sikh couple who just got married in New York and are now missing their traditional ceremony in the UK - their parents have spent a fortune on it.
- The stressed-out Indian family on their way back to see a sick mother who is having open-heart surgery.
- The woman who is on her way back to a poorly child
- Over ten teachers desperate to get back to their respective schools
- The terrified children
- People who own companies, losing money every day they are stuck in the US.
- The New Jersey family who hadn't flown since 9/11 because they were understandably very concerned at the prospect - and now this!
Every person we came across had a story.
The reps start handing out a compensation letter but they don't have enough for everyone. I sneak a look at someone else's - 50% off the next flight!! This is pathetic.
I ask a rep. if we could book with another carrier and am told that I could but there is no guarentee we could get on that flight. Plus we'd be worse off because Virgin would no longer be looking after our interests and we'd definitely not get a refund. I am shocked. I notice customers calling travel agents and getting flights - the group starts to dwindle.
We go upstairs to check online - there are LOADS of flights out of there. What the heck is going on?
10:20am. We're told by the reps that we're flying on Saturday but they're not 100% sure the plane is fixed. Again they tell us not to re-book elsewhere, as there are so many cancellations due to the recent bad weather. We're all furious - these reps are useless and just inflaming the situation. Customers are extremely agitated.
12 noon. The nice hotel manageress directs us to the conference room, so we have somewhere to sit. The reps join us and try to talk to us - everyone gets frustrated and starts shouting for the manager again.
1pm Susan Ratigan - 'Service Delivery Manager' - arrives and takes control. She's like a negotiator trying to deal with a bank siege - soothing words, promising that everything will be okay, she'll get us "outta here" but just trust her - "okay ?". Finally an apology but we're told if we want to leave we HAVE to get on the plane. As far as they know there is nothing wrong with this plane. However, some engineers flown in especially from London, will be conducting a 'borascope examination' of the engines. She's not sure what it means but it's a fairly thorough procedure. Although she can't 100% guarantee it, the flight should leave on Saturday morning. I notice someone is recording the whole thing - if you're reading this please upload it to YouTube and send us the link. I am sure we'd all like to see this again.
Another offer arrives - this time it says they're checking other carriers to get us out (hmmm) and that we can re-book on another flight with Virgin later, if we want.
People are shouting, some are crying, others are leaving to book with other carriers. If they can get seats - why can't Virgin ?. it's totally unacceptable.
Later on, another letter arrives. This one says we can get a free round trip flight but we get nothing if we book else where ( apart from a refund ) and there is nothing about compensation for the distress and delays. We go off and call work. A chink of light ! It appears we have travel insurance and following a couple of calls, we're booked on a BA flight the following morning. Unfortunately not everyone is quite so lucky. We check in online and go downstairs to tell Susan.
She acts surprised and the other passengers look cross that we have clearly managed to get other flights despite assurances there are none. It's obvious they don't want us flying with someone else and are happy to have us stay put, rather than placing us with another carrier. I'm livid.
I notice Susan picking customers off to do different deals - people start leaving to get on other Virgin flights. Again we all note that Business and First Class were obviously sorted out at the terminal. We're being punished for buying cheaper tickets. I get a call from one of the passengers, now at Newark airport. He tells me he's about to get on a Virgin Flight and they are STILL selling tickets for it. He's very upset.
Saturday
The next morning we get up at 3am (again) and head to JFK for our flight. Of course, this time everything passes without incident and we arrive on time at Heathrow.
I check the 'Arrivals' to see if the newly named flight VS118 is in - nothing there (it was supposed to arrive at the same time as the BA flight). When I get home I look online. It says the plane is due in at midnight, so clearly there were more delays but I still do not know if everyone is back safely. Despite Susan's best efforts to salvage a bit of Virgin's integrity, she's failed miserably. Hats off though Susan - great 'strategies'. But really...too little, too late!
During this whole miserable experience, I called Virgin's customer services THREE times. The first time I spoke to a woman (Danielle, very kind) who had no idea what was going on or how to help me. Twice I was put on hold for over 20 minutes (on my mobile, at my expense) until I gave up. I can not believe such a high profile company can be so bad at this kind of thing. No contingency plans, no real idea at all.
I have always respected Richard Branson but he should take notice of this - his reputation is being damaged by a team who clearly are unable to cope in a crisis. It's embarrassing.
I'm a reasonable person, I understand that planes are prone to occasional mechanical problems but surely a company's reputation is measured by it's response to such a situation.
So Virgin please tell us. What are you going to do about this?
I am now even more afraid of flying - getting on that BA flight took some serious guts, and I only did it so I could get home. They made me feel as comfortable as I could be but that doesn't mean I'll be getting on a flight anytime soon. This experience has opened my eyes - you're only as good as the ticket you buy!
VS18 The nightmare begins
Am not sure about you but I've flown a few times with Virgin and generally I've not had a problem. Well their magazine racks are in an annoying place (right in front of the knee with a solid wire frame!) but other than that it's a fairly cheap and easy ride.
Unfortunately last week, I and all of Economy class on flight VS18, had an experience we'd all rather have escaped. So let's start at the beginning.
New York, 4AM. My partner and I are in Newark Airport. Our JFK Virgin VS26 flight has been cancelled and we are re-routed to Newark for the 8:20AM flight to Heathrow. Unfortunately all online 'Check In's' had not been re-booked so we are put on stand by.
8AM: We board the plane, sitting 7 rows from the back.
8:20AM: We're supposed to have taken off but have just heard from the Captain that the navigation devices are not working. 1 of the 2 computers is kaputt. Uh oh. A bit later he makes a further announcement - 'not to worry, we'll manage with one (!?!) and go the long way round'. Am very uneasy about this, I hate flying and nothing stresses me out more, than learning there's a fault before a long-haul flight.
10AM: We finally take off. But hang on a cotton-picking moment !. What's that noise? and why the hell are we not getting much lift here. Am starting to feel very panicky. This is not a good take off.
45 minutes later the Captain announces we're turning back. There is SMOKE in the cabin!. I am now an absolute wreck. Captain is on again. We're flying into JFK and we're dumping all fuel so it's safer to land. Oh, that's what all that stuff pouring out of the wings is !!!
About 45 minutes later we've landed and a number of fire tenders are trailing us. Scary. Thankfully we're down safely. Unfortunately we have to sit tight - for now. In the meantime we're given water and a muffin (the first thing we've had since 4am). Ground staff board to assess the problem.
An hour or so later everyone is off and heading to baggage to pick up our luggage but none of us know what's going to happen from there on. A Virgin rep. is there and tells us they're taking us back to Newark and a coach will be here soon (but no information where the coach will be). We pick up our luggage and hunt down the Virgin rep. and ask her where to go, "upstairs" she says - to the Virgin Desk. ?!? Off we go.
A huge, rowdy line with only 2 Virgin reps at the counter. After some time, a Virgin rep. comes up to me and tells me to go downstairs as there is a coach there. "But I was told to come upstairs". Am told that I am a liar and to go downstairs or we'd be "on our own without any Virgin help". Bleeee.
We've found the coach. Hmmm...no Business or First Class customers here. Just Economy. Interesting. We're off to Newark but the drivers don't know where they are going, and we seem to be driving right through Manhattan. This is a 45 minute journey - max. - but is taking ages. No food, no water, no toilets. We're all starving. It's getting on now - around 5 O'clock. Driver stops ( at the wrong hotel ) to clean windows. No screenwash. God. This is awful. I start to cry.
6:30PM: We find our hotel. A huge line of people trying to check in from the flight. Lots of children crying, frail people in wheelchairs, a lady with a neck brace. This is terrible. Worst of all NO VIRGIN REP!!! We are all livid. The lovely manager at the Ramada Inn, Newark, tells us that the Virgin rep. will be here by 9 and in the meantime here are some food vouchers. Thank God.
9PM: We've eaten and now in the lobby waiting for the rep. No show.
9:55PM: She arrives. A young girl who knows a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y nothing. This large crowd is moving in and she's looking pretty scared. Everyone here is tired, angry, upset, emotional and this girl from Virgin doesn't know a thing. She can't tell us when we're leaving, what was wrong with the plane... nothing. Except that Virgin has oversold their flights out of New York for 5 days and we've got two hopes of getting out of here before Tuesday, unless they fix the plane.
She tells us that she *thinks* the plane will be fixed tomorrow, so assemble at 6am tomorrow, all ready to go. We go to bed. The crowd is getting nasty and we've had enough.
... MORE TOMORROW ON THE NEXT PHASE OF THIS VIRGIN NIGHTMARE!!!
Unfortunately last week, I and all of Economy class on flight VS18, had an experience we'd all rather have escaped. So let's start at the beginning.
New York, 4AM. My partner and I are in Newark Airport. Our JFK Virgin VS26 flight has been cancelled and we are re-routed to Newark for the 8:20AM flight to Heathrow. Unfortunately all online 'Check In's' had not been re-booked so we are put on stand by.
8AM: We board the plane, sitting 7 rows from the back.
8:20AM: We're supposed to have taken off but have just heard from the Captain that the navigation devices are not working. 1 of the 2 computers is kaputt. Uh oh. A bit later he makes a further announcement - 'not to worry, we'll manage with one (!?!) and go the long way round'. Am very uneasy about this, I hate flying and nothing stresses me out more, than learning there's a fault before a long-haul flight.
10AM: We finally take off. But hang on a cotton-picking moment !. What's that noise? and why the hell are we not getting much lift here. Am starting to feel very panicky. This is not a good take off.
45 minutes later the Captain announces we're turning back. There is SMOKE in the cabin!. I am now an absolute wreck. Captain is on again. We're flying into JFK and we're dumping all fuel so it's safer to land. Oh, that's what all that stuff pouring out of the wings is !!!
About 45 minutes later we've landed and a number of fire tenders are trailing us. Scary. Thankfully we're down safely. Unfortunately we have to sit tight - for now. In the meantime we're given water and a muffin (the first thing we've had since 4am). Ground staff board to assess the problem.
An hour or so later everyone is off and heading to baggage to pick up our luggage but none of us know what's going to happen from there on. A Virgin rep. is there and tells us they're taking us back to Newark and a coach will be here soon (but no information where the coach will be). We pick up our luggage and hunt down the Virgin rep. and ask her where to go, "upstairs" she says - to the Virgin Desk. ?!? Off we go.
A huge, rowdy line with only 2 Virgin reps at the counter. After some time, a Virgin rep. comes up to me and tells me to go downstairs as there is a coach there. "But I was told to come upstairs". Am told that I am a liar and to go downstairs or we'd be "on our own without any Virgin help". Bleeee.
We've found the coach. Hmmm...no Business or First Class customers here. Just Economy. Interesting. We're off to Newark but the drivers don't know where they are going, and we seem to be driving right through Manhattan. This is a 45 minute journey - max. - but is taking ages. No food, no water, no toilets. We're all starving. It's getting on now - around 5 O'clock. Driver stops ( at the wrong hotel ) to clean windows. No screenwash. God. This is awful. I start to cry.
6:30PM: We find our hotel. A huge line of people trying to check in from the flight. Lots of children crying, frail people in wheelchairs, a lady with a neck brace. This is terrible. Worst of all NO VIRGIN REP!!! We are all livid. The lovely manager at the Ramada Inn, Newark, tells us that the Virgin rep. will be here by 9 and in the meantime here are some food vouchers. Thank God.
9PM: We've eaten and now in the lobby waiting for the rep. No show.
9:55PM: She arrives. A young girl who knows a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y nothing. This large crowd is moving in and she's looking pretty scared. Everyone here is tired, angry, upset, emotional and this girl from Virgin doesn't know a thing. She can't tell us when we're leaving, what was wrong with the plane... nothing. Except that Virgin has oversold their flights out of New York for 5 days and we've got two hopes of getting out of here before Tuesday, unless they fix the plane.
She tells us that she *thinks* the plane will be fixed tomorrow, so assemble at 6am tomorrow, all ready to go. We go to bed. The crowd is getting nasty and we've had enough.
... MORE TOMORROW ON THE NEXT PHASE OF THIS VIRGIN NIGHTMARE!!!
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