Final Correspondence from AA

This is their final correspondence letter emailed to us in response to our initial complaint for our Las Vegas trip.  I’m sure this is another form letter sent to myriads of plaintiffs in response to problems with check-in. Again it is an outbound email address only, so the feedback loop is officially closed on their end.

We get the same response every time – as a consequence of heightened security measures, checked baggage acceptance times have been shortened to compensate. 
Understood and agreed.

But what about passengers WITHOUT BAGS TO CHECK IN?  Why are passengers without bags subject to the same policies and time constraints as passengers with bags?  Isn’t the whole point of traveling light to avoid the delays of the check-in process?

Our problems remains unresolved, which are twofold:

  1. Check-in policies are not stated clearly, and are subject to the jurisdiction of the check-in counter staff.
  2. American Airlines’ Customer Service staff are inadequately trained to handle such policies.

Below is their correspondence, with specific items in bold:

July 7, 2008

Dear XXXXXX:
I can understand how disappointed you must have been when you approached the ticket
counter to check in for flight 257 on April 17, only to be told we couldn’t
accommodate you due to the “cut-off” for acceptance. I am sorry for any resulting
inconvenience. Please allow me to explain.
As a consequence of heightened security measures, it became necessary to establish
specific airport procedures to allow ample time for the careful handling of checked
baggage or passengers. Accordingly, specific cut-off time periods were put into place
for the acceptance of passengers. While the cut-off times vary slightly based on
facility and staffing issues associated with domestic and international airports, we
strictly adhere to these cut-off times to give Transportation Security Administration
(TSA) personnel and airline employees the necessary time to complete TSA mandated
security procedures. In the interest of security, we cannot deviate from these
acceptance deadlines. Again, however, we sincerely regret that your travel plans were
disrupted as a result.
It may be helpful to know for the next time, as a courtesy in such situations, we will
place you on stand-by for the next available flight (fare permitting). However,
confirmed seating does require the payment of any applicable change fee and/or fare
difference.
You can find detailed information about acceptance requirements and cut-offs on
AA.com. From the AA.com home page, select Customer Service Plan, located at the very
bottom of the page. This will take you to the Customer Commitment page where you will
see a heading entitled Conditions of Carriage, click on the available link to be taken
to the Conditions of Carriage page. Then choose #7 under American Airlines Conditions
of Carriage and view Check-in Requirements and Baggage Acceptance Cutoff Times.

Again, I’m sorry things worked out like they did but we hope you understand the
important security issues associated with checked baggage acceptance. We’re working
hard to make your overall travel experience the best it can be and we hope to welcome
you aboard again soon.

Sincerely,

XXXX XXXXXX
Customer Relations
American Airlines

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Published:
July 7, 2008 / 4:36 pm
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AA correspondence
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