Lost baggage
I have a very serious complaint about Emirates airlines that I wish for the public to be aware of. On June 4, 2014, my family and I travelled from Dubai to Madina via Emirates airlines flight EK0807.
We had five booked bags with us, and being newlywed and an inexperienced traveller, I packed all of my jewellery and bridal dresses in one of the bags. When I reached Madina, only four of the bags arrived and to my utter dismay, the one with the jewellery was missing. This was worth about USD13,300 (Dh48,850). We contacted Emirates airlines right away and after finally receiving a response after several days, we were told very positively that they would look into and respond within 30 days. During this time, we repeatedly tried to follow up the case with them and keep in contact, but we received no reply. There were no assurances, apologies, or consideration from the Emirates customer services staff.
Finally, after almost two months (on July 24) we received a generically worded email from the Customer Affairs department stating that they were not able to locate the bag, that they are not responsible, and cannot accommodate or compensate our claim. Since my family is a frequent traveller on Emirates airlines, we were all shocked and extremely disappointed by their response. First, their delayed response, their apparent lack of concern for their customers and the massive mental and financial loss we were facing, and the fact that only the bag with the jewellery was missing. This is too suspicious to only be coincidence and because of the high worth of the jewellery in the bag, the airline cannot and should not distance themselves from this case.
Are there black sheep in the Emirates baggage and scanning area who were able to view the contents of my bag and tamper with it? Is this something that happens often with Emirates airlines and are people dealt with in the same cold way that we were? I have asked for the contact details of the Emirates airlines management so I may present my case and demand compensation but I have received no further response from them. This is not what one would expect from one of the top airlines in the world. We as customers are not able to keep our baggage with us when we fly. We entrusted them to Emirates airlines to be transferred to our destination city. So who is responsible for one bag going missing? I am writing this letter to the editor to bring the incident to public knowledge, and hoping that my plea will come to the attention of the higher Emirates airlines hierarchy, who will hopefully show some seriousness and responsibility.
I would really appreciate it if Gulf News could help my claim with Emirates airlines by publishing about this issue.
From Mr Mohammad Habib Chaudhry, Al Ain
Editor’s note: The complaint was forwarded to Emirates airlines for comments. However, despite repeated reminders, its management did not respond.
Unauthorised transaction
Last May 29, I received a text message that my card was used to book an Emirates airlines ticket amounting to Dh14,070. On the same day, I called Emirates NBD to report and dispute the transaction. I also called Emirates to cancel the ticket. The following week, Emirates replied that Emirates NBD has authorised the transaction while Emirates NBD replied that the merchant (Emirates) already claimed the money - this is despite several calls and emails to stop the transaction.
Emirates were able to trace the transaction and know who the passenger was but the Customer Service refused to give me the details as advised by his manager and informed me to raise the issue with my bank. Since then I have been chasing Emirates NBD but no resolution has been made to date. I was informed that they will conclude the investigation on August 18 but when I called recently I was told that the date has been moved to October 8. I would like to request your help in resolving this issue.
From Ms Myra Lee Miguel, Dubai
The management of Emirates NBD responds: We are pleased to inform you that our Group Customer Experience team has been in touch with Ms Myra Lee Miguel and has provided her with the necessary clarifications relating to the process of investigating disputed transactions.
Furthermore, we wish to confirm that our team looked into Ms Miguel’s concerns and granted her on exceptional basis, a refund of the disputed amount to her credit card in order to avoid any interest accumulation on the card. She has been contacted and informed accordingly.
We would like to thank you for your continuous support in offering us the opportunity to further assist our valued customers.
Ms Miguel responds: They have credited the Dh14,070 from my credit card. They also informed me the reversal was permanent. Thank you for your assistance, your involvement in my case was a big help in resolving the issue. More power to Gulf News!
Finance charges
I am writing to complain about the late payment policy of Standard Chartered credit card. I got a Standard Chartered Titanium MasterCard for more than one year, the outstanding amount in May 2014 was Dh11,073.35 and was due on June 8. I made the payment of Dh11,000 on June 7. Now I received the statement of June and they charged me Dh409.07 for finance charges. I found out from their phone banking staff that finance charges is calculated from the full amount of the next month expenses rather than the outstanding amount of the previous month (Dh73.35). I am shocked to learn that and feel this is totally unacceptable and demand a reasonable explanation from the bank.
From Mr Wai Shun Ho, Dubai
The management of Standard Chartered responds: Upon receiving the complaint, Standard Chartered customer care unit has been trying to contact the customer without being able to reach him. We would like to inform you that the charges applied to the card are valid as per the card’s terms and conditions relating to outstanding balance fees and charges on the customer’s credit card.
Disconnected
I would like to seek Gulf News’ valuable help to sort out a billing issue with etisalat for my eLife connection (Double Play without TV)
My eLife connection was cancelled on December 23, 2012, as I was relocating to Ajman. As per the new rules of etisalat, which I was informed about, I paid a 30-day penalty. I received the acknowledgment from etisalat.
After almost nine months, when we went to buy an iPhone 5s at an etisalat mall kiosk, they informed me that there was outstanding due. Subsequently, they disconnected all my other numbers.
I approached etisalat’s office in Abu Dhabi and they rectified the situation, so I was reconnected. However, I have not received a satisfactory answer. Please help.
From Mr S. C. Murthy Upadyayula, Abu Dhabi
The management of etisalat responds:
Kindly note that the customer’s issue was solved.
Mr Upadyayula responds:
I have received a message in Arabic from etisalat and have to translate it to know exactly what it says. However, as per the person who spoke to me about it, the matter has been cleared and resolved. We extend our sincere thanks to Gulf News.
Editor’s note: Do you have similar issues that you would like to raise with us? You can write to us at readers@gulfnews.com.
