A United Airlines Premier 1K member named Terence sent me an email about a denied boarding situation he faced on a recent itinerary, which I think makes for an interesting story (he has also written about it on FlyerTalk). I can see how something like this can happen, though what’s most disappointing is how the airline is basically denying this happened…
United passenger with confirmed seat denied boarding
On June 1, 2024, Terence was scheduled to fly on United from Tokyo (NRT) to Houston (IAH) to New York (LGA). Due to bad weather in Houston, the long haul flight ended up diverting to San Antonio (SAT) to refuel.
While the Houston to New York flight was initially supposed to depart at 4:20PM, he wouldn’t be able to make that, and while on the ground in San Antonio, he noticed that he was automatically rebooked on another flight at 6:35PM. Kudos to United… so far!
After landing in Houston and clearing immigration, Terence headed to the United Polaris Lounge at around 5:50PM. The app wouldn’t let him check-in (which is common during irregular operations), so he immediately went to see an agent in the lounge.
The agent in the lounge issued him a boarding pass for the flight, but without a seat assignment. It’s worth emphasizing that this was a confirmed boarding pass, and not a standby boarding pass (standby boarding passes are clearly marked as such), and the agent also confirmed that.
He then arrived at the gate 20 minutes before departure, but was informed by the gate agent that he was never booked on the flight, that it was full, and that he was only on standby.
He was then rebooked on a flight the next day. He wasn’t offered any hotel accommodation or involuntary denied boarding compensation.
Executive customer care brushes off Premier 1K
Once back at home, Terence sent an email to the CEO’s office. 24 hours later, he received a response from an “executive solutions manager,” who wrote the following:
We expect all United employees to always be friendly, professional and be knowledgeable about excepted documentation. Based on your comments, we did not meet expectations. I appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Although I can’t provide specific details about the internal investigation, please know we take these concerns very seriously.
I am sorry we did not get you to your destination ontime.
I can certainly understand your disappointment, and I’m going to share your comments with the appropriate teams. We’ll use your feedback to review our procedures with your point of view in mind.
On behalf of United, we thank you for reaching out to us and hope to see you on board again soon.
As you can see, the representative didn’t in any way address the passenger’s concerns.
My take on this strange situation
I can totally understand Terence’s frustration, and how this situation is leaving a bad taste in his mouth. First he was involuntarily denied boarding, and then United basically denied that this even happened. On top of that, he’s a Premier 1K member, and was traveling in business class.
We can only speculate as to how he had a confirmed boarding pass for the flight, but was then told by the gate agent that he was never on the flight. Was there some issue with the ticket being reissued? Did the agents remove him from the flight, assuming he wouldn’t make it?
Airline operations can be complicated, and I’m sure it was a chaotic day in Houston, given the weather. I don’t think there was any ill will here. However, when mistakes happen, airlines should take accountability and provide decent service.
So first he had an awful experience at the airport where gate agents denied the reality. That was strike one. Then when he brought this to the attention of what’s supposed to be the best customer service at the airline, he received a generic response dismissing his concerns. Really that’s the most disappointing part of this. United messed up in the first place, and then failed with the service recovery.
With that in mind, I have a couple more thoughts, both regarding what I would have done differently, and what I would do now. If I were in Terence’s situation, I would have gone back to the United Polaris Lounge to try to see the same agent who helped me previously. At a minimum, I’d ask the agent to notate my record regarding what happened, so that there’s a “trail.” But he wouldn’t have been unreasonable to also ask for hotel accommodation and denied boarding compensation on the spot, in line with regulations.
At this point, I think Terence’s best course of action is filing a consumer complaint with the Department of Transportation (DOT). He has basically already gone up the totem pole when it comes to customer service at the airline, with no success. The government route is now the best option. It might not be a fast process, but it’s the most likely to yield results.
Bottom line
A United Premier 1K member traveling in business class is understandably frustrated after he was involuntarily denied boarding, only for both gate agents and customer service to deny it ever happened. While it was a messy day of irregular operations, that doesn’t excuse this level of service, and I hope he gets the resolution he deserves.
What do you make of this United denied boarding situation?
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