Val
I reported a requset for a name change on a ticket purchased October 2007 for my wife on BA to London, UK. On June 13, 2008 I noticed that the passenger name was mine not hers. Yes I made a mistake! You all know the answer I got by e-mailing customer service call a service rep! I called customer service and was assured (verbally guaranteed) by the representative that the my name would be changed to hers BEFORE the flight date (Sept 4th) but the changes are made in the order they are received. The flight leaves in 26 days and the name has not been changed so I called again and was reassured that the change would occur 2 weeks before Sept 4th. Meanwhile, I am stressing over this issue while planning a 60th birthday reception for my wife that will be in 2 weeks. As for those of you who put down customers who make mistakes when booking online I would remind you that::A/ An online service if programmed correctly would be sensitive to potential errors made by customers booking on their own.B/ The small print warning on the online booking screen should be in colour and much LARGER print and emphasize the consequences of a mispelled or mistyped name. C/ If I was going to sell my ticket to someone for a higher price, it wouldn't be my wife whose relationship I can prove, ergo no penalty required for that change.D/ Remedy the situation by insisting that passport information be entered at the same time and have the computer do a comparison on the names this is not rocket science and would eliminate any discrepencies. Keep in mind that not all pasenger fly on a regular basis and the airlines heavily promote self booking online at there websites. I can see where (some) airline employees contributing to this rant have lost any concept of fairness and understanding when dealing with passengers who do not fly regularily.
Val I reported a requset for a name change on a ticket purchased October 2007 for my wife on BA to London, UK. On June 13, 2008 I noticed that the passenger name was mine not hers. Yes I made a mistake! You all know the answer I got by e-mailing customer service call a service rep! I called customer service and was assured (verbally guaranteed) by the representative that the my name would be changed to hers BEFORE the flight date (Sept 4th) but the changes are made in the order they are received. The flight leaves in 26 days and the name has not been changed so I called again and was reassured that the change would occur 2 weeks before Sept 4th. Meanwhile, I am stressing over this issue while planning a 60th birthday reception for my wife that will be in 2 weeks. As for those of you who put down customers who make mistakes when booking online I would remind you that::A/ An online service if programmed correctly would be sensitive to potential errors made by customers booking on their own.B/ The small print warning on the online booking screen should be in colour and much LARGER print and emphasize the consequences of a mispelled or mistyped name. C/ If I was going to sell my ticket to someone for a higher price, it wouldn't be my wife whose relationship I can prove, ergo no penalty required for that change.D/ Remedy the situation by insisting that passport information be entered at the same time and have the computer do a comparison on the names this is not rocket science and would eliminate any discrepencies. Keep in mind that not all pasenger fly on a regular basis and the airlines heavily promote self booking online at there websites. I can see where (some) airline employees contributing to this rant have lost any concept of fairness and understanding when dealing with passengers who do not fly regularily.