Advice regarding Virgin Atlantic

gbeynon

Would appreciate any advice on how to deal with this. I was due to fly to Las Vegas with VA tomorow morning but they have changed the plane and therefore are bumping people of the flight as it is a smaller plane. The options i hasd were:
1, Turn up, probably not get on the plane and fly the next day and therefore lose a day of our holiday.
2, Fly via New York tomorow and get there 7 hours later. As compensation we get a voucher for a free flight.

I have taken the second option but what should i be pushing for in way of compensation? Customer services had the attitude you get a free voucher and won't do any more. They are also not willing to compensate me for any additional expenses (Car parking, hotel costs etc...) and told me to write to them when i return.

Has anyone else had any experience of this and what i should expect in compensation.

Many thanks for any advice.

Slainte

I'd request a 1st class seat from NY to LV and fly via NY as well as the free flight voucher.

If they accepted to fly you 1st class from NY then I wouldn't have an issue. I flew from NY to LV on a regular basis 1st class with Delta amongst others and it's only $500-$700 dependant on when you book but of course you wouldn't be paying.

Worth a try sure.

Moonchild

How did you find out about this, did they call you up?

If they havn't said you are definitely bumped I would quite simply online check-in, and get to the airport early, and I doubt they would then bump you, just the late attendees?

If you did get there early and there was a problem, as opposed to transfer you to Heathrow, I expect they would put you on the Delta or BA flight to the States an hour later (both have plenty of available seats). And compensate you.

blindman

gbeynon wrote: »

Would appreciate any advice on how to deal with this. I was due to fly to Las Vegas with VA tomorow morning but they have changed the plane and therefore are bumping people of the flight as it is a smaller plane. The options i hasd were:
1, Turn up, probably not get on the plane and fly the next day and therefore lose a day of our holiday.
2, Fly via New York tomorow and get there 7 hours later. As compensation we get a voucher for a free flight.

I have taken the second option but what should i be pushing for in way of compensation? Customer services had the attitude you get a free voucher and won't do any more. They are also not willing to compensate me for any additional expenses (Car parking, hotel costs etc...) and told me to write to them when i return.

Has anyone else had any experience of this and what i should expect in compensation.

Many thanks for any advice.

Read Para 9.4.2. onwards.

IMHO the free flight voucher is compensation.

I would have thought that if you turn up and check in and then are denied boarding:

1) Virgin should offer to put you on another carrier to get you to LAS that same day.

2) If they put you on the next day flight then they should put you up in a hotel o'night and pay 600 euros.

I have been "bumped" twice (but only at check in).

AA put me + wife on the next flight to New York (an hour later) and gave us a $750 voucher each.

QANTAS put us up in a hotel in Singapore(for 3 nights) due to the previous flight to ours being cancelled and they had to offload 300 people.
BTW they also paid us £600 total

If it were me I'd take the voucher and then see what I could possibly get later (A bird in the hand etc....)but would not expect anything more really.

Beaker99

This one has me pretty stumped...

If you need an alternative, probably best to suggest to virgin the following..

Delta 11 - LGW>ATL(atlanta) 9:15 >2:05p
Delta 25 ATL>LAS 3:20p>4:57p
or delta 115 5:30p>7:08p

nothing else direct to LAS from either LGW or LHR.

Virgin are showing a 744 for tomorrow's flight, I guess this has been replaced with an A340-600 (but these usually run out of heathrow), or an A340-300, in which case it'll be down 200 seats.

I wish I could be of more help...

edit: alternatively there are 8 flights listed LHR>LAX and many flights LAX>LAS, so you should get there some way!

gbeynon

Thanks for all your suggestions. We are flying with Virgin to Ny then a flight to LV. It involves a four hour stopover in NY and we get in to Vegas about 6 hours than we should have going direct.
Have managed to cancel our hotel and parking with no fee so that worked out ok. Will wait to see what this voucher for a free flight entails (i assume its return) to decide if i take it any further with VA.

omelette451

Shouldn't you get statutory compensation in accordance with EU legislation? Afaik offering you a voucher does not replace the need to pay out...

sew109

Slainte wrote: »

I'd request a 1st class seat from NY to LV and fly via NY as well as the free flight voucher.

If they accepted to fly you 1st class from NY then I wouldn't have an issue. I flew from NY to LV on a regular basis 1st class with Delta amongst others and it's only $500-$700 dependant on when you book but of course you wouldn't be paying.

Worth a try sure.

What internal US carrier has a first class cabin ? All of the ones I hev ever flown on have been single or dual class never three tier. Sadly this is somthing that happens with airlines if they have to compensate large amounts of money everytime this happens then flight prices will have to go up. For em flying with any carrier other than Virgin is an upgarde and getting their 6 hours later is not that much of a deal. My friend last year was delayed 28 hours by virgin