How NOT to treat your customers
Good morning from Belfast International Airport!
This morning I am heading on a short flight to Edinburgh in Scotland to help my daughter move into a new apartment. She has just recently finished her training as a midwife and is starting a new job as a community midwife in Edinburgh.
It's my first journey anywhere since my trip to Poland last year and it's a totally different experience now due to all the Covid regulations. Sitting in the departure lounge with face mask on is not much fun. I have to wear it throughout the journey, including flight and train journey at the other end. I'm glad I'm not on a long haul flight somewhere!
There are people going on slightly longer flights than me - to Spain and other Mediterranean holiday destinations. I'm sure I could tolerate it for the 3 hours it takes to get some sunshine. I wonder what effect it will have on the travel industry. Clearly the airport is nowhere near as busy as it wouldn't be on a normal July morning.
(EDIT: I started this post 2 days ago while at the airport but my flight was called 30 mins early so I didn't get finished)
I have some sympathy with the travel industry but not much, based on my experience this year. I was supposed to be going on a cruise in April but it was cancelled in mid March due to the pandemic. I applied for refunds for my cruise and flights and was told it would take 4-6 weeks due to volume of refunds.
I accepted that and waited patiently.
As the weeks passed so the time period for refunds got pushed back and back. 3 weeks ago I contacted the cruise line to complain and they confirmed that my money had already been refunded to my travel agent. I then contacted my travel agent but no matter who I emailed I either got no reply or a generic reply about "volume of refunds"
Last week I was starting to despair of ever seeing my money again when I got an email from a UK based money expert called Martin Lewis. He sends out emails every week with money saving tips (his business is worth studying for anyone wanting to learn how to do business online - but that's another story)
One of his articles in this email was about "what to do if your travel agent won't issue a refund". To cut a long story short - he advised to ask your credit card company to enforce a "charge back". In this case the credit card company bypasses the company and goes straight to their bank to get the money. It essentially creates a huge hassle and paperwork for the company involved.
I emailed my travel agent and gave them 3 days to issue the refund or informed them of my plans to seek a charge back. Lo and behold the next day I got a reply to say that they had just received my money back from the cruise line (lies) and they would like my bank details to issue my refund.
Amazing what they can do when the right threat is made!
Looking after customers
Look, I understand that the past few months have been difficult for many companies, especially in the travel industry.
However the way most travel companies have treated customers is a disgrace. They have now created a situation where people have no confidence whatsoever in the industry and once the initial burst of people desperate for a week in the sun has passed there will be a time of reckoning for many travel companies.
In the UK the airline FlyBe (AKA Fly-maybe) went bust at the very start of the pandemic. I have no doubt that others will fail in the coming months.
If they had only treated people properly and looked after them then I am sure that people would now be trying to get back to something approaching normal and making bookings for the coming months and probably next year too. As it stands I reckon that the only people with travel plans for next year are those who postponed this year's trip.
Looking after customers is vital in any industry - online as well as offline. As your business grows be sure to always be thinking about how you can offer your customers great value and great service. People will not tolerate anything less!
Good luck
Dave
Recent Comments
31
Incredible story of how not to treat your customers. Unfortunately, there are some who never do learn such a valuable lesson. In the end, such actions result in very negative results.
Wishing you alla' best as you go forward. May your journey thru' business an' thru' life always bring joy an' prosperity.
Warmly,
~ Yaya
Hi Yaya
Thanks for your kind comment.
It's very unfortunate when companies take a short-term approach and fail to look after customers. They will learn the hard way!
Thanks
Dave
Hello Bond,
I see you are back to your international jet setting.....😉
Actually before I worked in substance misuse field I was a travel and cruise consultant (for 27 years). I guess I kind of know what is going on behind the scenes and hanging onto your money gives them a little longer with cashflow (fake as it is) you are so spot on, come the winter (when summer should have been the cash builder) they will not have enough fat to allow them to hibernate.
Martin Lewis is outstanding at what he does, he has so many helpful clauses that if used can pull the various industries into line especially in terms of Travel, Utilities, Phone and Cable companies.
When I was a working Travel agent he was the bain of our life as he would or could be partially but not wholly accurate in terms of cheapest time to travel, searching for the cheapest “tailor made” how to get cheap travel and would and did leave many of the “not so savvy travellers” who had been encouraged to book their own flights, transfers hotels etc without any fall back, eg errors in terms of connections, time zones and worse cancellations for part of the journey, acts of god and collapse of a segment.
Never the less when you need support taking on the large companies he has your back... and I use him often, in fact recently to take BA to task surrounding a last minute cancellation an additional night in a hotel plus a 20 hour layover, last min change of departure airport and a different arrival airport, to be fair it was the start of the pandemic but never they had a responsibility to fly us home, initially they denied any responsibility but after Martin Lewis input we retrieved £465 from BA 👍
Good lesson in your post, thankyou 👏
Hi Cordelia
I can just see you selling me a holiday! I'm sure you'd get me a great deal.
I'm glad Martin Lewis came up with this tip because otherwise I'm sure I'd still be trying to get them to answer an email.
Thanks
Dave
Glad to hear you got your money back, Martin Lewis is a good lad. I always watch his money show.
I think a lot of companies will try to take advantage of the situation unfortunately. They will come unstuck though because people are much better informed about their consumer rights and have long memories for the ones who treat them well.
Hope everything went ok in Edinburgh.
Take care and stay safe.
Gaz
Hi Gaz
Yes I have taken some good advice from Martin Lewis in the past.
It's disappointing that companies don't act honorably in these circumstances but its a short sighted action because, as you say, customers remember who treats them well and who messes them about
Cheers
Dave
Try telling this to Jeep it's looking by the latest adds they are actually looking after customers now Maybe taking out one with a Caterpillar may have been a bit harsh but that will teach them for not honouring the warranty period I don't know why but your post instantly reminded me of this scenario Excellent
Hi Doug
I’m not familiar with the Jeep situation but any company that fails to properly look after customers or behave honourably deserves to feel the wrath of those they screw over.
Cheers
Dave
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So glad you got your refund finally! Martin Lewis is awesome on most things financial I’ve often taken his advice - shame he can’t help me with HAIL 🤣!
Hope you got Abbie sorted and enjoyed your long weekend and took a well needed break. Now, enough resting and get back to work on your online project! 😉
Hi Alex
Thanks - it was a really good weekend although it was mostly work and minimal chilling. It was just great to spend some time with her.
Thanks for cracking the whip! I am back at it today!
Yes Martin Lewis has some great tips but I agree - I don't think even he could sort Sleet out.
Chat soon
Dave
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