Delta Fares

Unfair airline and travel agency policies. How can I claim?

Due to incompetency of travel agency (the flight on itinerary had wrong departure time) and lame airline staff (delayed checking due to very slow operation - at least half an hour per passenger and complete lack of care for people waiting) we are on the verge of losing a trip of a lifetime in which my parents invested all their savings. We are currently stranded at the airport, waiting for the next day flight, for which we don't have guarantee we can be boarded. We already lost one day of our 8 days trip which is a big thing, because we planned couple of events today (and paid for the hotel). In the meantime I wonder what is the best way to approach both travel agency and airline to get reimbursed for our losses. If we won't get on the plane, we lose at least 3000$ for hotel and planes reservation (we were supposed to go to Hawaii and move from island to island). Before I do anything stupid I would appreciate your advice. I am bringing my camera to the airport today to film the outrageous negligence of Delta workers at LAX. What other suggestions do you have?

Public Comments

1. Checking in at the airport is time consuming. This is why they say to arrive early. This is not negligence at all. It is called complying with the rules/law. Welcome to the result of 9/11. The departure time being wrong should fall on the travel agent and your parents also. If this was a trip of a lifetime then they should have confirmed all dates and times themselves. Not sure if you would be able to get any money back for this.
2. Nothing you can do about the airport. You're supposed to get their plenty early to get through the check in process. The airline employees do their best to get people through, but they can't bump you to the head of the line because you were late. They also shouldn't be expected to skip lunch/breaks because the line is long. It's a business. As for your travel agent, most of the paperwork you get will tell you to call and confirm the flight time the day before, in case something changes. It happens all the time. If they gave you info that was completely wrong, you might have a reason to ask for a refund. You'll need to have a strong case that it's their fault because if you missed your plane because you didn't arrive early like suggested, that's your own fault.
3. If your parents invested their 'Life Savings' on a vacation, missing a plane is the least of their problems. Quit whining.... things happen.
4. The only reason that the travel agency could be "incompetent" is if they scheduled you for a flight time that never existed. If the departure time changed after you received the itinerary, as sometimes happens with planes, then no one is incompetent except you. I feel you're exaggerating about the wait for checked bags, as well. If the trip was so important, you should have double checked the times and been there way early. Oh, and you can bring your camera if you want, but just because the airline employees aren't falling all over themselves to let you cut in front of others who were responsible, doesn't mean that they're "negligent". You might be refunded for the plane tickets if this incident was in fact the airline's fault, or if they feel sorry enough for you, but there's no way that they'll refund you for hotels or anything else even if it was their fault.