To Whom it May Concern at Delta Airlines
Regarding: Damaged Bag
On Wednesday December 30, 2009 I flew from Indiana to Houston via Atlanta with one checked bag and one carry on bag. In Indiana I had to planeside check my carry on bag as the plane was too small for wheeled luggage. Upon arrival in ATL I discovered that my bag had been sliced as if a knife were taken to it. I was told by ATL Delta personal to file a claim upon arrival in HOU.
Immediately after de-planning I filed my claim, however the Delta employee helping me was very irritated that I was trying to file the claim in HOU. She told me I was supposed to file the claim in ATL and mentioned this three times to me. This lady also did not even glance at my bag to see what the damage was nor did she take a picture of the damage to affix to my claim. In this day and age of technical advancements I was stunned that no one was interested in the actual damage of my bag. It’s as if she had already made up her mind about my bag. When she handed me the form with my file reference number she didn’t say a word to me. She was not forth coming with information and I had to ask her specific questions to understand the process. I asked her what happens next and she said I had to call the 1-800 number to find out the status of my claim.
The following day, December 31st, 2009 I called 1-800-325-8224 and again was disheartened by what I experienced and got extremely frustrated very quickly. The person assumed I was talking about a delayed bag when I specifically said it was a damaged bag and she couldn’t find my file given the file reference number I provided to her. I asked for information regarding my claim and the lady said that she is not allowed to do anything other than read what the status is to me. That made it even more frustrating that the person I am talking to has no authority whatsoever and can only read a statement to me. She told me that my claim had been denied due to normal wear and tear.
How was this determined? Did anyone look at my bag or take a picture of the damage? My bag was fine in SBN when I planeside checked it and was damaged when I received it in ATL. How is that normal wear and tear? The bag is 1.5 years old and I paid $150 for it. That should be the information that the HOU lady typed into the claim. Who knows what she really wrote because I was not privy to see the claim.
I’m not asking Delta to buy me a new bag. I am asking that Delta have my bag repaired. That is a common courtesy that should be provided for the damage of a bag that occurred obviously on one leg of the trip. I have flown your airline too many times to count over the years between HOU and SBN to visit family and from HOU/IAH to Moscow for business. I am deeply disappointed that you hastily made a decision without appropriate information that could have cost you almost nothing to fix immediately but instead is costing you more through the appeals process because of the number of employees who have now and will see this letter and my claim.
Five years ago I flew Quantas to Australia for business in which a checked bag was ripped in transport. There is a reason why Quantas is known for exceptional customer service and that’s because as soon as my bag was delivered (it was delayed due to customs) and noticed that it had a tear, they sent it out for immediate repair without me even having to ask.
In the economical situation of today, I would think that Delta would care more about customer satisfaction and loyalty to help increase revenue.
