British expat says error on Thai Airways website resulted in 80,000THB of extra charges, then airline refused to refund

[Oziex1]

The default answer to many issues here is "cannot" easier to say that than think of a solution. 

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, billd766 said:

Go back to the CC company and explain it to them. They should be able to sort it out.

Go back to the OP and read it!  That should sort it out for you, billd766.

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, phuketrichard said:

The credit card company will refund it and fine thai airlines

We know that, the OP gave that information!

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, worgeordie said:

In complete contrast to Cathay Pacific, the other day

when they sold first class tickets way too cheap, but

honored their mistake,surely this amounts to stealing 

if Thai do not return the overcharged monies.

regards worgeordie

He's had his refund in full.  It's all there in the OP.

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, sammieuk1 said:

As I always come here with two bags and leave with one last year I emailed Thai Airways about bringing an extra bag got a abrasive reply something like £35 per kg when I then questioned £60 with BA free with Kuwait airways(not recommended) for a whole bag they emailed me to say I have been black listed and will receive no further correspondence ???? 

Yeah, right.  

 

If that were true there must have been a lot more to it than what you're reporting!

[Cadbury]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

error on Thai Airways website resulted in 80,000THB of extra charges, then airline refused to refund

This airline is surely run by incompetents, what else would explain why they are losing millions of dollars a month and having to be propped up by an equally incompetent government. 

The charging of this extortionate amount and the refusal to refund is tantamount to theft which is sometimes seen an acceptable practice within some Thai commercial and government agencies. 

[mfd101]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

It amazes me how airways cannot see plane, "excuse the pun", common sense.

 

I remember over a decade ago there was a glitch with trying to book a flight with Jetstar, who is owned by Qantas, so there I was trying to book my flight to Phuket who I had always flown with to Phuket as they were a direct 9 hour flight. I couldn't get on, like I said there was a glitch on their website so I rang them and they said no problem we can do the booking here, so away we went, then I noticed on my statement that they charged me $60 to book my ticket.

 

I rang them and said, I told you guys that the system was down and you said no problem can book through us, and I did, at no time was I advised I would be charged $60 and the guy asked did you tell the operator, der, that's the 1st thing I did, oh, he or she must have forgot to waiver the booking fee, der, ok so can you fix it, oh no sir you will have to write to Jetstar who will investigate and if the system was down will refund you, suffice to say I wrote to them, I tried calling, but you could never get through, so I wrote the another letter a month later and I got a reply a month later advising that they have a backlog of mail to get through and would reply to me in about 2 months. I never received a reply and had not used the airline for over a decade, sometimes flying to Thailand twice a year, minimum was once a year.

 

The maths of the $60 they took from me, compared to the losses they made with me not flying with them for a decade was sufficient enough for me to be satisfy that they lost more than the $60 that they took from me.

 

I flew with them last year as their special fare for me, the wife and the kids was dirt cheap, and I have rebooked to fly with them again this year as the fares again were dirt cheap, so you could say I have forgiven them, i.e. until they fark up again...lol 

Anyone who's ever flown Jetstar (or any other CHEAP airline for that matter) knows that they're fine as long as there's no problem, but when there is they aren't. Fly Qantas, costs more, no problems.

[Just Weird]

40 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

I don't think I've ever flown Thai. I don't think I ever will. Much prefer SG airlines, even with a hop (let's me shop at Changi).

"Much prefer SG airlines..."

What? How would you know?  To quote your own comment, "I don't think I've ever flown Thai"!

[Mavideol]

1 hour ago, Orton Rd said:

Stopped using Thai years ago due to poor customer service, or rather non existing service.

same here.... misconception about Thailand and Thai Airways (non existing) customer oriented services, only flew 1 time with them and that was years and years ago

[Just Weird]

1 minute ago, Mavideol said:

same here.... misconception about Thailand and Thai Airways (non existing) customer oriented services, only flew 1 time with them and that was years and years ago

"...only flew 1 time with them and that was years and years ago..."

You only used them once?  Gave them a real good chance, then, didn't you?

[scorecard]

1 hour ago, HAKAPALITA said:

Staff trained by Ryanair .


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

A couple of years back I got a call at home in Cm run to the airport and take next flight to Bkk to attend a meeting.

 

Got to CM a.port quickly, didn't know what airline had the next flight, so went to nearest sales counter Thai and asked 'what is the  time of the next flight?

 

Response 'look at the website'.

 

Tried to say I was in a real hurry to get on the next flight.

 

Another staff member at the sales counter then said 'she already told you, check the website'.

 

I then rushed to Lion Air, very helpful and focused, ticket purchased, the sales lady called someone to say 1 more passenger, no baggage coming to departure gate now'. Good focused service. 

 

______________________________________________________

Also re Thai, I tried to add my legally adopted son on to the list of family members for gold card benefits, and supplied a handful of aligned documents including the letter of approval for adoption from the ministry.

 

No response for quite some time, then I called and got a curt comment 'we don't recognize adopted children', bye.

 

Edited January 21, 2019 by scorecard

[Mavideol]

1 minute ago, Just Weird said:

"...only flew 1 time with them and that was years and years ago..."

You only used them once?  Gave them a real good chance, then, didn't you?

don't have the habits of making same mistake twice

[NanLaew]

1 hour ago, allane said:

I have never used Thai Airways since.

Thanks. Now I have another empty seat to stretch out in.

 

1 hour ago, Orton Rd said:

Stopped using Thai years ago due to poor customer service, or rather non existing service.

Oh my! And another seat on my other side.

[wgdanson]

1 hour ago, phuketrichard said:

The credit card company will refund it and fine thai airlines

Read the OP, they did.

[rkidlad]

5 minutes ago, Just Weird said:

"...only flew 1 time with them and that was years and years ago..."

You only used them once?  Gave them a real good chance, then, didn't you?

The great thing about being a customer is you can pick and choose as you please. Customers aren't obliged to give any company 'a real good chance'. This is how life works in the real world. 

[rkidlad]

6 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

Thanks. Now I have another empty seat to stretch out in.

 

Oh my! And another seat on my other side.

I imagine you've become very accustomed to being surrounded by empty seats. 

[kkerry]

1 hour ago, Denim said:

I'm surprised there are still people daft enough to fly with Thai Airways in the first place. 

 

I'm surprised people still book on their website.

 

Unless things have changed recently, the prices for booking on the Thai Airways site were always more expensive than doing so through a good local travel agent in my experience. Same for Cathay Pacific.

[fruitman]

Yes this is Thai air, cannot cannot, solly!

 

One day we flew to Tokyo by Thai air (wife boooked it, i would have choosen another airline). The meal was not nice and very small....so i asked for another one or something else to eat so i wouldn't be hungry during the flight...solly cannot cannot....is management fault, we the staff also bring our own food because we no like...

 

Well never again....solly solly...

[blackcab]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

...so I purchased on my debit card...

 

I have read multiple comments about credit cards. The person in the original post used a debit card.

[dreaming]

10 minutes ago, fruitman said:

Yes this is Thai air, cannot cannot, solly!

 

One day we flew to Tokyo by Thai air (wife boooked it, i would have choosen another airline). The meal was not nice and very small....so i asked for another one or something else to eat so i wouldn't be hungry during the flight...solly cannot cannot....is management fault, we the staff also bring our own food because we no like...

 

Well never again....solly solly...

I find the food on thai to be quite tasty. Also if I am still hungry I walk to the galley at the back of the plane and they will always find me something. And the staff are always there stuffing their faces with left over meals. Maybe the flights from aus are different

[dundas]

Like the OP, I managed a charge back, but with the Thai Smile subsidiary. They offered the ability to reserve seats in advance, but hid the small print that that applied only on Thai domestic flights, not on the international flight I had booked on. I had to cancel anyway, but as I had been angered because of the phantom benefit, I went through the complaint process with the airline, and just got back a lot of 'sorry for the inconvenience but we're not doing anything.' Then I went to the credit card company. A few days later, the money came back and the airline has since changed its website, so it cannot be had up for false advertising any more. Airlines are very bureaucratic and not always able to deal with the unexpected quickly: ThaiSmile were still expecting me as a passenger, even though the charge back went through two weeks before the flight. 

[overherebc]

8 minutes ago, blackcab said:

 

I have read multiple comments about credit cards. The person in the original post used a debit card.

Debit card, credit card, visa, extension. All same same on here. ????????????

[scorecard]

19 minutes ago, fruitman said:

Yes this is Thai air, cannot cannot, solly!

 

One day we flew to Tokyo by Thai air (wife boooked it, i would have choosen another airline). The meal was not nice and very small....so i asked for another one or something else to eat so i wouldn't be hungry during the flight...solly cannot cannot....is management fault, we the staff also bring our own food because we no like...

 

Well never again....solly solly...

Another example, TG evening (dinner) flight takes off from swampy for Singapore.

 

I'm in business class, very few passengers, flying waitress comes along to serve drinks, I'm the first passenger she speaks to, I ask for a G&T, response: 'finished today' and she goes to the next passenger.

 

I went to the shared galley with Bus class boarding pass in hand and asked again for a G&T, and mentioned 'bus class waitress says G&T finished for today'. Galley staff look confused but quickly get me a G&T.

 

 

[HalfLight]

Sorry guys, this is Thailand. Can anyone put hand on heart, and so they are honestly surprised?

 

I can't and I'm not.

 

When dealing with a Thai business, you always need to be reminded a few things:

 

1. If there is a dispute which might hang on and incompetence, mistake, or lack of understanding on behalf of the business, the staff will try to protect the business from loss of face by denying responsibility on behalf of the business, and often being rude in the process (especially if it's a foreigner making the query).

 

2. If you try to escalate the problem to a manager, the staff will perceive a risk of loss of face by themselves and will either simply refuse to put you through, or will make a series of outlandish claims, the most popular of which is "Solly manager in meeting". If in doubt as to the real position, always assume that the Thai staff are lying.

 

3. Staff in many Thai businesses are told never to put the customer through to a manager, the manager is much too important to be bothered with mere customers.

 

4. Management in most Thai business is based on the rule of 80/20, in that systems are designed to cope with 80% of the customer throughput, and the 20% which does not adhere to the management model can go and get stuffed, the business is prepared to lose that 20%. This means that there is no 'management by exception', and staff will routinely get rid of you anyway they can, as quickly as they can. Do not expect a return call. Do not expect the manager to call you back. Do not expect the business to give a damn whether you do ever business with them again or not. Too many years living high on the hog has meant that business in Thailand seems very peculiar. especially if you have been part of management in a foreign business prior to arrival in Thailand., which explains why Thailand's acquisition of companies on foreign lands usually fail, though there have been exceptions.

 

Bleak but true. The expression 'caveat emptor' holds a special and powerful message in Thailand where the staff are incompetent, and any member of staff who is marginally less than completely incompetent will be promoted to management where their main job thereafter is to sit on their backside and salute when their boss comes past. Also bleak but true.

 

 

 

[generealty]

geriatrickid Your profile ID just about says it all so no need to comment on your post.

[digitalnobhead]

What I don't understand is how someone can think an extra 20kg is only 20 quid give or take? Extra baggage charges vary for sure but on an 10hr+ flight surely somethings say that's not quite right.

 

Equally if Thai Airways were on the ball (thankfully large incumbents rarely are) the chargeback notification would of been with Thai within 48hrs and would of propagated to the point of denying the cardholder at check-in. 

 

That's not to say there wasn't an error somewhere along the lines, 100,000baht give or that sounds equally excessive

 

Edited January 21, 2019 by digitalnobhead

[Fex Bluse]

59 minutes ago, HalfLight said:

Sorry guys, this is Thailand. Can anyone put hand on heart, and so they are honestly surprised?

 

I can't and I'm not.

 

When dealing with a Thai business, you always need to be reminded a few things:

 

1. If there is a dispute which might hang on and incompetence, mistake, or lack of understanding on behalf of the business, the staff will try to protect the business from loss of face by denying responsibility on behalf of the business, and often being rude in the process (especially if it's a foreigner making the query).

 

2. If you try to escalate the problem to a manager, the staff will perceive a risk of loss of face by themselves and will either simply refuse to put you through, or will make a series of outlandish claims, the most popular of which is "Solly manager in meeting". If in doubt as to the real position, always assume that the Thai staff are lying.

 

3. Staff in many Thai businesses are told never to put the customer through to a manager, the manager is much too important to be bothered with mere customers.

 

4. Management in most Thai business is based on the rule of 80/20, in that systems are designed to cope with 80% of the customer throughput, and the 20% which does not adhere to the management model can go and get stuffed, the business is prepared to lose that 20%. This means that there is no 'management by exception', and staff will routinely get rid of you anyway they can, as quickly as they can. Do not expect a return call. Do not expect the manager to call you back. Do not expect the business to give a damn whether you do ever business with them again or not. Too many years living high on the hog has meant that business in Thailand seems very peculiar. especially if you have been part of management in a foreign business prior to arrival in Thailand., which explains why Thailand's acquisition of companies on foreign lands usually fail, though there have been exceptions.

 

Bleak but true. The expression 'caveat emptor' holds a special and powerful message in Thailand where the staff are incompetent, and any member of staff who is marginally less than completely incompetent will be promoted to management where their main job thereafter is to sit on their backside and salute when their boss comes past. Also bleak but true.

Someone who knows very well how Thai companies work. It's a shame that more farang don't have this knowledge. 

 

Thailand is a effectively a caste-like, fuedal country plated in a very slick veneer of modernity. The people look modern in their modern clothes, walking around in modern malls and driving modern vehicles, but most is a front. When we dig deeper, we realize they think nothing like modern people and Thai society functions nothing like a modern society. 

 

Face is the currency and rule is by man. Policies, procedures, laws are all simply part of the veneer of modernity.

 

If anyone is surprised by a Thai company (full of Thai people) reacting this way - assuming it is accurate, I suggest he spend more time observing how Thais handle conflict. 

[brucefarang]

I just had a £300 run-in with Travel Genio  on the Jetcost website. I noticed my wifes name was spelt incorrectly-one letter- on the email confirming booking. I rang -crazy system -cut me off before I could get through after 6 mins. Tried the complaints letters -got my letter back -Travel Genio at the top  but no communication (Twice) eventually I got through and was told to phone the Airway (Jetair) Did so -told me I was booked through Etihad and I would have to talk to them -and in any case they (Jetair would not allow anyone on board without the totally correct spelling.Tried to get back to Travel Genio -eventually received an email saying airway would not let my wife fly. So I then tried to get in touch (another three days of on/off trying) finally got a webchat -who confirmed my wife couldn't fly .I asked how much to cancel-170euros -I then  asked why they did not tell me this in the first place -no reply-So I cancelled both tickets and booked with KLM.

They were totally disinterested and didn't even feel the need to inform me of any options I might have! Advise all to give Travel Genio a miss!

Sorry to go on but...….

[PETERTHEEATER]

4 hours ago, billd766 said:

Go back to the CC company and explain it to them. They should be able to sort it out.

He said he used a Debit Card......

[bluesofa]

1 minute ago, Fex Bluse said:

Someone who knows very well how Thai companies work. It's a shame that more farang don't have this knowledge. 

 

Thailand is a effectively a caste-like, fuedal country plated in a very slick veneer of modernity. The people look modern in their modern clothes, walking around in modern malls and driving modern vehicles, but most is a front. When we dig deeper, we realize they think nothing like modern people and Thai society functions nothing like a modern society. 

 

Face is the currency and rule is by man. Policies, procedures, laws are all simply part of the veneer of modernity.

 

If anyone is surprised by a Thai company (full of Thai people) reacting this way - assuming it is accurate, I suggest he spend more time observing how Thais handle conflict. 

I worked for a Thai company for a short while. The MD spoke good English, most of the staff could speak enough English to be understood.

All inter-office emails had to be in English.

 

There were two staff members who spoke no English at all, so I talked to them in Thai. One day the boss overheard me and told me that in the office we were all only to speak English.

I didn't argue, as I knew you couldn't use logic like that and effectively tell the boss he was wrong.

When we had staff meetings the boss prattled on forever - he loved the sound of his own voice. The two non-English speakers just sat there understanding not a word.

 

Then two weeks later at yet another staff meeting, the boss held it in entirely in Thai.

Needless to say I only stayed there a few months, as he constantly changed his mind about my role, contradicting what he'd said earlier.