im hoping someone here can help me with some info i.e. govt agency, airline self regulating assn, and the like to submit my claim against UAL.

i recently purchased, on united.com and completed an int'l trip to canada from the U.S. an Air Canada operated flight. since i just recently married, my passport is still under my maiden name which didnt match with my Mileage Plus account name, which is in my married name. when i did not receive ff miles credit for this flight, i called UAL and was told to submit a written claim with supporting documents to show that the 2 names are the same person and for me to indicate which name i would like to keep my Mileage Plus account under. i did exactly what i was told.

yesterday, i just received an email from UAL, informing me that the Air Canada operated UA flight was not eligible for any mileage credit, based on their agreement with Air Canada. the Air Canada flight was coded "T". when i purchased the ticket for this flight, i purchased it with a UA flight # and purchased it on united.com. also, my husband who was booked under the same booking confirmation, received credit in his Mileage Plus account with UAL. i sent them a copy of my e receipt showing the UAL flight with confirmation #, payment to UAL, etc.

i find UA's response to my mileage credit request very strange, if not unfair. i get the sense that whoever responded to my written request either did not read my letter thoroughly or did not understand it. (i think it was more of the latter. i occasionally get a cust svc agent who would respond to a question i have not asked or finished yet . something i find rather annoying ) i immediately responded to the email, with a name of a person, i received from UAL explaining again my claim for missing miles.

if i can't get this resolved, is there a govt agency or self regulating airline assn i can go to for resolution. i find it just so unfair for UAL to handle my claim this way. the # of miles in question is not a whole lot but i just find the resolution so blatantly unfair and unjustified.

thanks in advance for all your help.

I suggest you search and/or post this on www.flyertalk.com - it's a forum dedicated to frequent fliers.

According to UA's website, for AC-operated flghts, "Booking Classes K N G P E T do not earn miles on flights within North America." So, the real error is that your husband should not have received credit if his ticket was also T class.

To answer your question about a government agency, no, there isn't one you can turn to. The government doesn't get involved in FF programs.

It sounds like no miles were due.

Call mileage plus. They made a mistake, thinking you were on AC's "T" class rather than UA's "T" class. Since they already have your file on records about the name change, they should be able to resolve it during your phone call.

Calm down and keep to the point when calling.

thanks all for your input. rkkwan, im going to call UA again to point out the "T" class with UA vs T class with AC. i will post back the outcome of this search for missing miles.

thanks too for the flyertalk.com suggestion. i'll also definitely try that site.

Why are you chomping at the bit to get a gov't agency involved? Especially if as you say the CS rep likely didn't read the letter carefully and you have gotten no response from your most recent email. A simple phone call may likely be all it takes.

And a warning - if you go to FT with a question phrased like this you will be eaten alive...for good reason. You have come no where near exhausting the legitimate channels to resolve this. You're ALSO lucky you got to fly with the names being different. With all the new secure guidelines in place you COULD have been stopped.

update:

i received an email from UA Cust Svc appologizing for the confusion. they DID credit my account for the Air Canada operated flight. this was a reply to an email i sent UA yesterday, explaining the same thing i have explained previously in writing as well as a few other times over the phone.

i was so frustrated when i posted this topic early this morning because not only is it so hard to get to the "right" person when calling UA (or other airlines, for that matter)but whoever i talk to does not seem to get it. i have made at least 8 phone calls to UAL, faxed documents, mailed hard copies of documents, etc. and when someone finally responded to me by email, the responder clearly did not understand the issue.

rkkwan, you're one of the few who understood the issue. it was a UA flight and the issue is the different name on the ticket vs the Mileage Plus account. i also don't get it why despite my attempts to explain and document clearly why it is not undertood readily. it's not a complicated concept. i can only surmise that i probably need to hone my writing skills to be better understood.

thanks to all of you for your suggestions. im happy that the error was rectified, albeit with some drama.

drama that you added....

Glad it worked out, flyme.

A bit of advice for anyone reading this who will be legally changing his or her name:

Even though your marriage license or other legal documentation of a name change is enough to change your name on many things, it is better not to start that process until you get your name changed officially - SS card, drivers license, passport. THEN start changing over all the other stuff.

Also, if at all possible, hold off doing the name change until you have a couple months where you won't be travelling. That way you can get things set and avoid some potential hassles. This hassle over miles is small compared to what could have happened due to names not matching.

thanks Starrs. me, too.

november moon, good advice. if i may add, if one is a resident alien in the US, Dept of Homeland Security needs to be notified as well, alien registration card ( aka green card ) needs to be updated. my SIL had to hire an immigration lawyer to help her with filing the necessary docs to change her name in her green card because of marriage.

flyme, glad you got it resolved. One of the things I try to remind myself is... is it really worth it ? How many miles were you finally credited ?

you said,
<i> >> i have made at least 8 phone calls to UAL, faxed documents, mailed hard copies of documents, etc. << </i>

At the going rate of miles, you probably spent waaaay more than the benefit you received ($.02/mile?). I realize, "it is the point of it" (I get there too!), but sometimes we all need to learn to let go...

surfmom, i had an earlier post about being short 300 EQMs by end of the year to keep my P/E status. the upgrades and gold line at the airport are totally worth it to me sp next year when i expect to do more business travel. i was mentally preparing for a short flight to make up the shortfall.

as well, it is also the principle of UA getting it right. i agree that i was greatly inconvenienced and spent more time than i'd care to, calling UAL, but to me if i think i'm right, i'd fight for it.

to answer your question, i was credited 500 EQMs in my account and a gesture of customer appreciation of 5000 non EQM miles ( totally unexpected on my part ). someone from UAL realized that their initial position was grossly incorrect.

flyme, thanks for the update - I didn't realize you were that close, so in your case, it WAS a big deal. Glad that you were able to get resolution.

I know sometimes I lose it on customer service and Mr. Surf will remind me, 'how much time and effort are you wasting on this issue ? is it really worth it ? '. Sometimes I need to learn to let go and just accept that even though I'm right, I'd be better off expending my energy other places. In your case, it sounds justified!

... someone from UAL realized that their initial position was grossly incorrect.

and so ends the drama with another flare of drama. what a DQ. poor mr moon.