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Lied to and disrespected

jperez0305
Explorer C

Flew into LAX to attend my mom's wedding with my 22-month-old child and wife. We had a returning flight on Delta but my infant got sick with an ear infection. Delta gave us a small credit but flights were very expensive to book two days in advance. My wife ended up booking with Southwest to save a little money and right away we had issues. My wife called to give infants info and they forced my wife to pay for another $330 ticket and would refund us the money if we emailed them the birth certificate. Never mind that the flight was delayed but these people lied to passengers on the connecting flight from Denver to Atlanta to give them time for us to land in Denver. A passenger on the plane told me they were making up all kinds of reasons for delay when in reality they dropped the ball on the lax flight. In addition, there wasn't even a seat for my infant and the lady at the gate was cocking all kinds of attitudes about my child's age. I showed her time-stamped pics and videos of the baby's day of birth on my phone and social media. She still acted like we were lying, not realizing I purchased a ticket anyway. Not one attendant on flight 1421 tried to accommodate us by making an announcement to see if any passengers were willing to move so we could sit together as a family. Their open seating is the lamest idea I have seen in a while. That's what they do on public buses, not planes smh. The flight was hell for everyone due to our child fussing since she couldn't sit next to her parents. Above all, when we got back we sent them the official copy of her birth certificate, and instead of keeping their word and refunding money for her ticket, they gave us a $150 credit that we will never use due to their horrible service 😞

5 REPLIES 5

Re: Lied to and disrespected

dfwskier
Aviator A

Please see my response to your other post on the topic.

Re: Lied to and disrespected

jksobonya
Aviator A

@jperez0305 wrote:

Their open seating is the lamest idea I have seen in a while. That's what they do on public buses, not planes smh.

Tell me you know nothing about Southwest, without telling me you know nothing about Southwest. 

 

Lamest idea you've seen "in awhile"? Southwest has had an open seating policy for 50 years - probably longer than you have been alive. 

 

This whole story doesn't make one lick of sense - i.e. "there wasn't even a seat for my infant" - what? Since when do infants have their own seats? Aren't children under 2 years old considered "lap children" and don't need their own seat (meaning they don't require a ticket which means they are free, by the way).

 

There must have been a seat, because your child apparently was in one, but why was your child not even sitting next to you!? Was he/she fussing next to complete strangers during the duration of the flight?! And if he/she was - is this a joke? What is wrong with you, Parent?! I simply don't believe that *no one* on the flight would have accommodated at least one of the parents to sit next to a *not even 2 year old child*. 

 

Ridiculous. I don't believe a word of it. 

 

--Jessica

Re: Lied to and disrespected

parpitt1
Frequent Flyer A

I sorry to hear about your experience, but depending on what other passengers "heard about the cause of delays" is like believing gossip, just not very productive or practical.

Best of luck to you, (I for one won't be disappointed not to hear your 22 month old child wailing about being separated from his/her parents and forced to sit alone.)

Re: Lied to and disrespected

gsking
Aviator C

In my experience , in most situations where someone uses "disrespected" as a verb, they were the ones acting in a manner without manners and respect.   

 

It's not a one way street,  and I've never seen an employee be the instigator. 

Re: Lied to and disrespected

FlyWithLUV
Frequent Flyer C

Thank you for sharing about your experience on Southwest Airlines. It is appalling to me to hear about the way you were treated on the plane and within the airport. I highly urge you to contact Customer Service to seek a formal remedy for your concerns, as this is not in any way consistent with the Southwest promise.

 

Open-seating does have its benefits - however, there are drawbacks. If you choose to travel with Southwest again, an earlier boarding position can help reduce the possibility of finding seats in an already boarded plane. The first solution would be to check-in earlier, perhaps 24-hours on the dot before your flight. If this is an inconvenience, you can always purchase Early Bird Check-in, which will automatically secure a boarding position for you 36 hours prior to your flight. With an earlier boarding position, you increase the chances of having more seats available for you and your family to sit in so that you can be closer to one another. Flight crew are not required to reseat passengers to accommodate families; however, it has been generally extended as a courtesy in part with Southwest employee's kindness and character.

 

"One child over 14 days old and under two (2) years of age, not occupying a seat, may be carried free of charge when traveling with an adult (12 years of age or older)."

 

Please note that Southwest employees may ask for documentation to ensure that your child is of appropriate age to be carried as a lap infant. This has been a practice of Southwest (although I am not sure if they ask this frequently), so it is recommended that you bring along a birth certificate or documentation to prove your child's age.

 

All in all, I encourage you to contact Southwest's Customer Service team. This experience is unacceptable, and the action taken (with the $150 travel credit), I believe, should be refunded to your original method of payment instead. Should you wish to pursue this, you can write to the refunds department at Southwest.

 

Southwest Airlines
Refunds Department
P.O. Box 36649
Dallas, Texas 75235-1649

 

Thank you for sharing your Southwest story, and I truly do hope you will give the airline another chance so that you can experience what the Southwest experience truly is like.