Continental Airlines - Expedia.com no refund

Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:06 AM
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Continental Airlines - Expedia.com no refund

On Dec.5,2003 my wife had a flight booked from Charlotte to New York city (through Cleveland) on Continental Airlines through Expedia.com. After arriving in Cleveland, New York airports were closed due to heavy snow, which would continue for several days. The Continental agent told her to take a taxi and find a hotel (after dark, in a strange town - Cleveland), and come back in the morning and wait again. Since my wife is a very attractive lady, this is not a safe endeavor. Since her preposed stay in New York was only 2 days, she used her return ticket to get a flight back home in Charlotte. Continental and Expedia.com refuse to refund her $432 ticket price for a flight that was never delivered, so, we will never use Continental or Expedia.com again and we are warning others about them.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:21 AM
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Boy,this one is tricky. You actually DID use both inbound and outbound portions of the ticket,so I don't see why they would feel obligated to refund. And,Expedia sold you the ticket,not Continental,so I think they would be the ones to deal with. And I think it is always a risk one takes when they dont purchase directly from the airline.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:23 AM
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That's always the risk of a non-refundable ticket. The flight was canceled, and they were obligated, and certainly offered, to put her on a subsequent flight. Even if the ticket is not used, it is non-refundable.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:27 AM
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Gotta agree - This is a risk I know I take when I buy non-refundable tickets. Occasionally an airline may offer some discount certificates for future flights, but they are not responsible for the weather.

Also, I don't understand why it's not perfectly safe for a woman to take a cab to a hotel in Cleveland or virtually any other American city, attractive or not. All it takes is a quick call from the airport (using the yellow pages) to determine which hotels have availability and book a room. Were you concerned the cab driver would assault her????
 
Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:36 AM
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Continental might well have let her extend her return another day at no extra charge, so she would have still had the same time in New York.

Keith
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:46 AM
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This seems like a troll but in any case... Continental can't be held responsible for the fact that your "wife" only had a two-day stay in NY. And they can't be held responsible for the weather. If you had cehcked the weather, you would have realized a huge storm was moving into the area and would affect air travel. You could have probably rescheduled the trip for no charge (not get a refund). And since you used your return ticket, you used their services so they owe you nothing.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 06:56 AM
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I would think the risks would be about the same, attractive or not, and that overall, not a dangerous activity - taking a cab to a hotel.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 07:00 AM
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I don't believe this has anything to do with Continental or Expedia, could have been Delta and Travelocity and the situation would have been the same. You agree to a contract with the airline that exempts them from having to deliver your flight under certain circumstances, weather being one. You agreed to it, knowingly or not. They agree to get you there, eventually.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 07:08 AM
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Had a similar situation this weekend. Took USairways to Philadelphia but all flights were cancelled on Sunday return so we had to rent a car and drive. They will refund the portion of the ticket unused since the flight never went anywhere and we never boarded any return flight, which wasn't the situation with the OP.

We held a ticket purchased from the airline,which is what I always do for circumstances like this. I'm sure had we purchased thru Expedia,we may be out of luck also.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 07:10 AM
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Cleveland is no more dangerous than NYC. If you were so concerned about her taking a taxi by herself in Cleveland, why would it be okay for her to go to NYC alone? Just wondering. Cleveland is a big city. All she had to do was call Hilton, Hyatt or any other major chain, check availability, and take the free airport shuttle. Personally, I don't think the airline or Expedia are at fault, nor do they owe you a refund. Attractive women take taxis alone all the time.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 07:27 AM
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I'll join the chorus. Continental owes you nothing. I fly Continental often and find them better than most at "bending the rules" to help travelers. Just like with all airlines, they can't always make people happy because of weather, unexpected aircraft maintenance, etc. The low fares we pay these days are also a problem. The best service goes to "elite" freq flyer members or full fare folks.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 07:28 AM
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Go take a taxi and find a hotel? Doesn't the airport have hotels with shuttles, that you can, like, book over the phone? Not sure how being attractive would make this more dangerous.

There's nothing the airlines can do about the weather. As someone else said, they probably would have extended her ticket had she asked. But she did use 1/2 her ticket (on both portions of her trip), so I'm not sure where she gets the basis to ask for any sort of refund.

Andrew
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:03 AM
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Interesting situation. I think perhaps your wife decided to not go to New York because she wouldn't be there for the two days. Maybe I'm wrong and the airport was closed for days!!

Continental Airlines is not responsible for weather problems. They sold a ticket through Expedia to get her from point A to point B. Would you prefer they fly in bad weather? I think your wife didn't want to take the alternative flight and went home. I understand her disappointment at not getting two days in New York. But, these are the risks that we take when we plan a winter trip. Certainly she had to know there was a possibility that it would snow in the east in December.

As to your comment about taking a cab to a hotel in Cleveland. Personally, I find that offensive. I am a woman who is capable of traveling by myself around the world and can get from the airport to a hotel at any hour of the day. If your wife can't than perhaps New York is not the destination for her. And, by the way, attractive or not has nothing to do with safety. It sounds like you don't trust your wife. Hmmm.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:28 AM
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I think you would short change future travel experiences to never use continental again. They have the best (comfortable)service in my area to Hawaii.

I would say you ate it on this one. Surprising that your wife could not find lodging over the phone. I would think comfortable hotels would cluster around the airport. Also I feel that I must add this however misplaced it appears, not meant to be offensive, just being casual here. Rape is an act of violence, your wife could be a guerilla and she would run into the same risk. Well I am sure you know the statistics on this. You hear about the 90 years women that face this. Just thought it sounded kind of comical, you seem to suggest that if your wife were less attractive staying over would have been an option.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:31 AM
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Travel during bad weather is tough. Because part of the ticket was used,it is no longer refundable or reusable. Airline rules, not Expedia.

Just for the record, Expedia simply sells the airline tickets, but the airline is responsible for the rules and restrictions. Expedia can go around the rules the airlines set.

Idea.. write a letter to CO Customer service and include copies of her tickets. Explain what happened and ask for a travel voucher for part of the travel. They may be nice and give some value.

Lesson to be learned.. Expedia offers travel insurance that is really valuable during the winter months. Pay the extra few bucks and next time don't worry!
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:32 AM
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Actually, I would have done the trip anyway, if they would have been able to get her to NY the next day, even if it meant making the time in NYC a day short. If upon the scheduled return things were as backed up for those who had been trying to get OUT of NYC, I would have volunteered to be bumped on the return trip to see what "premiums" the airline might offer me (this would be after the weather was no longer a factor).

But I smell a rat. This is Dec 10, yet you state "on Dec 5" ... "which would continue for several days". It was 1.5 days, not several, that our northeast airports were under snow.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:43 AM
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We were scheduled to fly on Continental from Burlington via Newark to St Thomas on Sunday morning. Without any problems we rescheduled our flights for April. There was a note on continental.com that anyone traveling between Friday December 5th and Monday December 8th could reschedule any flight going to or through Newark, Boston, Cleveland and a few other places. Because of the weather any educated traveler would get on a phone or website of Continental and get updated information.

Further, before we even got on the phone, Continental rescheduled us to the USAir flight from Burlington through Philadelphia to STT. Unfortunately, all flights from Burlington, VT were canceled on Sunday morning. We decided to postpone our trip until April. We did the same with our accommodation on St John (Estate Concordia Studios), car rental (Courtesy Car Rental) and Marriott's in St Thomas. We spent some time on the phone but everyone everywhere was very understanding and accommodating.

I think before blaming Continental or Expedia one should take responsibility as well.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 09:44 AM
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The OP is full of shite. He bought a ticket on Dec. 5,2003, day the storm started? Everyone and their brother knew this storm would halt the east coast. bdpted23 is either lying,stupid, or an obvious troll since there are no responses to the crtitcism.
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 10:03 AM
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Nobody owes you anything.The ticket for the attractive wife at $432 was really high.But a fare that required a Saturday night stay I am assuming.So she gets to Cleveland and decides not to continue the journey.The fare rule of the ticket she purchased did not allow her to turn around and go back to Charlotte...it was for NYC.So Continental allowed her to use the ticket to get back home.They broke their own rules, and they didnt charge her the usual $100 fee to change a non refundable ticket! They had every right to charge the $550 or so one way fare to get back to Charlotte, but out of the concern for her well being, they let her go with what she had!!
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Old Dec 10th, 2003, 10:10 AM
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I can understand why she didn't want to go on to NY a day later, leaving her only a day in NY. The obvious question to me is why did she leave Charlotte at all on December 5? Didn't the storm originate down South? Did your wife think she could outrun it?
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