Awful BA experience advice please

headpin

Nickb12 wrote: »

BoB I'm a citizen my passport number and home office records state I'm a citizen, the typo states Subject. Anyhow thanks for the helpful posts

But how are BA and the gate security supposed to know that the number is correct rather than vice versa? If you are so clued up on all of this why did you not spot it when issued? You could then have had corrected immediately and not brought all of this grief upon yourself.

You may have a gripe, but it's not with BA or anyone else at Gatwick. You need to take responsibility I'm afraid.

[Deleted User]

I'm afraid my sympathy for the OP evaporated when I read that he had chosen to fly with BA.

It's a dreadful airline with rude, condescending staff who think nothing of striking at a time designed to cause maximum disruption to the people who pay their wages, which are already amongst the highest in the business.

Their cabin crew are a disaster and not a patch on Virgin and most other major carriers.

I stopped flying BA years ago - there are so many better options available.

However, in this instance,BA were entirely within their rights to refuse this passenger travel.

miduck

Deleted_User wrote: »

I'm afraid my sympathy for the OP evaporated when I read that he had chosen to fly with BA.

It's a dreadful airline with rude, condescending staff who think nothing of striking at a time designed to cause maximum disruption to the people who pay their wages, which are already amongst the highest in the business.

Their cabin crew are a disaster and not a patch on Virgin and most other major carriers.

I stopped flying BA years ago - there are so many better options available.

However, in this instance,BA were entirely within their rights to refuse this passenger travel.

I was going to respond properly but then I saw "not a patch on Virgin". Clearly a style over substance kind of guy!

OP, the first thing you should have done when the issue had been pointed out to you was contact the Passport Service. They could have faxed through authorisation to BA, who could then have verified with the US authorities that this was acceptable for travel. Emphasis here on you, because it is your responsibility to ensure your documents are valid for travel.

plum2002

We were described as British subjects in our passports until we adopted the EU style of passport, which describes us as citizens, to fall in line with other EU states. By virtue of the monarch being the embodiment of the state, would not all UK "citizens" still technically be "subjects" too?

Doshwaster

Deleted_User wrote: »

I stopped flying BA years ago - there are so many better options available.

It's amazing how many people who criticise BA haven't flown with them in years so I have no idea how they can speak from recent experience.

SaveTheEuro

Deleted_User wrote: »

It's a dreadful airline......BA were entirely within their rights to refuse this passenger travel.

So that's all clear then.

budgetflyer

Doshwaster wrote: »

It's amazing how many people who criticise BA haven't flown with them in years so I have no idea how they can speak from recent experience.

Any time I've flown with them the service has been excellent. That's in Economy too.

[Deleted User]

In terms of service BA were overtaken a long time ago by most Asian and Middle-East airlines, especially in Business Class upwards.

They just about hold their own on the Atlantic route mainly because American airlines are even worse than BA.

I simply stopped using them because of a number of experiences of shoddy service and lax standards by cabin crew.
The whole corporate culture at BA is geared towards maintaining the airline's supposed reputation for Britishness rather than customer care.

Voyager2002

To return to the original topic, BA acted correctly in this situation. Like all airlines, they require passengers to travel with the correct documents and present these at check-in. A passport describing someone as a "British Subject" is not valid for travel to the USA unless it bears a US visa.

The OP has every right to be angry with the passport agency, who apparently issued him with the wrong sort of passport. This is not a question of a "typo": it is a fundamental mistake on the same level as a court recording someone as being "guilty" rather than "not guilty". I find it hard to believe that the passport agency could have made such a fundamental error: is it possible that the OP applied for a passport for a "British Subject" rather than for a "British Citizen"?

Anyway, if this really was a mistake by the Passport Agency then the OP could reasonably expect a full refund of the total cost of the missed holiday, as well as some money for the inconvenience. Getting this would not be easy: I would suggest contacting your MP and perhaps asking her/him to refer the matter to the Parliamentary Ombudsman ( the official who investigates cases where people have been poorly served by government departments and agencies).

redpete

Nickb12 wrote: »

BoB I'm a citizen my passport number and home office records state I'm a citizen, the typo states Subject. Anyhow thanks for the helpful posts

The guard only had access to what was on your passport - which was not consistent with the ESTA. Seems he was right to question your status and refuse boarding.