They just wanted to go home after a long trip through Europe. Once they arrived at the Fiumicino International Airport in Rome, an Australian couple, accompanied by their 13-month-old baby, had the unpleasant surprise of discovering a serious error in her reservation. According to Business InsiderWhen they were due to board a first flight to Amsterdam, they were informed by Qantas partner airline KLM Royal Dutch that their baby was only included in their booking for the next flight. Once in Amsterdam, the little family should have gone back to Bangkok, Thailand.
“He was on a different flight that left 40 minutes after ours,” Stephanie told the outlet. “Initially, we had booked flights via Qantas with British Airways. A few months later I was informed that there was a problem with one of the connecting flights and Qantas booked us on those KLM flights over the phone, so I think that’s where the ‘mistake’ occurred, the mother assumed.
20 hours and 47 minutes with Qantas customer support
The couple then tried to negotiate, in vain, for almost 1h30 at the KLM counter, explaining in particular that their daughter remained on her knees during the plane ride. But the company did not want to hear anything, relying on the fact that the full flight could not accommodate an additional passenger. After these discussions, the flight finally departed without them.
Six hours after arriving, Stephanie and Andrew left the Rome airport for a nearby hotel. They then spent the night calling Australian airline Qantas customer service to try to book return flights. The couple described a veritable phone marathon, claiming to have called the company 55 times in total. Among them, they even estimate that they have spent 20 hours and 47 minutes talking with representatives of the company.
Quanta’s Apologies
The next day, Qantas contacted the couple again to inform them that they had a new booking. But the plane tickets were not issued correctly and the family was ultimately unable to travel that day. Finally, a Qantas agent called them back shortly after to say that a reservation had been made on behalf of the three relatives for July 26. The couple and their baby were thus able to return home… Twelve days after the initially planned departure.
In a statement to Business Insider, Qantas said it “sincerely apologizes” to the family. Stephanie said the company has agreed to reimburse them 200 Australian dollars (about 135 euros) for each additional night spent away from home.
The couple estimates their additional expenses related to accommodation, food, travel and entertainment that they had to pay at 15,000 Australian dollars (about 10,167 euros). Not to mention the income that they could not collect in Australia, due to their absence. The company “has not confirmed that it will compensate us for these financial losses,” Stephanie said.
Source: BFM TV
