TAP Flight Cancellations

bilbobaggins1973

Vauban wrote: »

Probably, but not without a protracted argument and you'll need to do a lot of reading up - or engage the services of a NWNF company.

I am happy to wait and see how I get on with TAP Portugal (anyone know what their track record with claims is ?)


I have logged the complaint via their website 'Talk to us' option, got an automated email with my reference number confirming receipt of the complaint (even attaches a pdf of the complaint).


I then checked 48 hours later and it said 'under analysis' then 48 hours later the reference has disappeared.


I assume I just wait 28 days then contact them again ?

NatureLover

Can I ask which flight you were originally booked onto?
We were also affected by the TAP strike. We were originally due to fly from Madeira to Heathrow @1850 on Sat. 1st Nov. Our travel agent did not inform us the flight was cancelled until Friday lunchtime, by which time the earliest flight TAP could offer us was not until Wednesday night!

I also work in a school, so understand how desperate you must have been to get home. We were not staying in Funchal, so had to rebook our flights over the phone and we felt we had no choice but to accept the flights they offered us.
We have not yet put in a claim with TAP, but are planning on doing so, to try and get back some of the extra expenses we incurred. However we have complained to our travel agent as they did nothing to assist us and left to us to sort everything out ourselves - flights, additional accommodation, and extension of car hire. You say you knew your flight was cancelled 48 hours beforehand. If your original flight was the same as ours, that would give us something else to complain about!

We have looked into the compensation issue ourselves, in great detail. According to regulations, airlines either have to refund you the cost of the original flight, or re-route you to your final destination. Because you took the alternative flights, you will not get a refund of the original flight, but TAP should cover the cost of getting you back to Heathrow, so you should be refunded the costs of going from Gatwick to Heathrow. Unfortunately strike action is classed as an 'extraordinary circumstance', therefore we (you and us) are not entitled to compensation, although it doesn't hurt to ask! You should also make a claim on your travel insurance for curtailment. We have claimed for flight delay on ours.

I would be interested to know what sort of response you get from TAP, I'm doubtful we will get anything from them, but it would be good if we did!

bilbobaggins1973

Sadly we received no response from TAP and haven't even had the train tickets refunded yet. I am about to start round 2 of complaints.


I contacted a reputable legal firm about the situation and they said the case is far to flaky to claim as TAP will wriggle out of it under the 'extraordinary circumstances' rule which is poor if it is an internal strike by their staff.


Have you got any better result ?

lyster101

I was also affected by the TAP Portugal cabin staff strike on 1st November. I remember a second strike in December so there must be a sizeable number of people impacted by one of these. We were flying out for an immovable event on the Sunday so had to take the flight a day earlier, incurring hotel and food costs as well as more intangible costs such as having to take time off work that we didn't want to. We learned of the cancellation 8 days prior to the flight so, as I understand, we're eligible for compensation because of the late notice as well as due reimbursement for the additional hotel and food costs. As an alternative to the replacement flight, we could've had a refund of the TAP Portugal flight and rebooked with a different carrier for the 1st. If we'd have done this, we would still have been eligible for the compensation because of the short notice. (With hindsight, we'd have been better doing the latter as other flights had not increased in price but at the time I assumed they would've. It would've limited our exposure - financial and otherwise - to the flaky Portuguese airline rather than be left trying to reclaim money we'd not intended to spend at the time of the initial booking...)

It is now the end of February. Over the previous four months, I have sent emails using their poor on-line system, written to their Hammersmith office andthe CAA. I must have made at least ten calls to the TAP Portugal claims department and they have been vague and evasive each time. According to them, there was a problem with their finance department prohibiting the payment when it was meant to have been made at the end of December. Even if this is true, and it certainly sounds extraordinary, I don't know what might have happened in order for them to be unable to make another payment for two months. Apparently, authorisation has to be given and the person I spoke to was unable to tell me how long this would take to get, how long the issue would be sitting with the finance department, or the duration of the payment process. She also refused my suggestion to send a cheque instead of a bank transfer. It seems like I am being lied to.

It might help if others call to see if you can get a better response, the same story or perhaps even coerce them into taking steps to improve their customer service. Their number(from the UK) is 00351707205700. I spoke to someone calling herself Vania.

I would add to the above that the CAA have been utterly anonymous thus far. They have pretty much ignored my case after I raised it with them and the last I heard almost a month ago was that it was on some form of 'hold' and I should resumbit it if I'd still not had a satisfactory reply... Resumbit date is in a week or so but I don't really expect that to lead to any ultimate resolution. Has anyone actually had any assistance from the CAA? Unfortunately, in my experience - with this as well as with two other disrupted flights - they have not been helpful at all.

Alternatively, has anyone had any success with this sort of thing by using a lawyer?

bilbobaggins1973

Since posting last, I have written to both the TAP office in London and in Lisbon asking firstly for our train ticket monies back of over £70 plus to pay me compensation for the cancelled flight.


I have received 2 emails (about a month ago) with case references given but nothing else since that plus the case references do not work on their website portal.


I'm really not sure where to go with this, it appears the CAA are toothless so where do we go now ??


Somebody somewhere must have received some sort of response from TAP over the 2 strike periods ??

lyster101

Bilbo, have you read the below thread?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/68034254#Comment_68034254

mjan is writing about entering a claim via the small claims court. I'm looking into doing this as well but I don't want to be £65 further out of pocket and then to have to wait the same aeon for them to sent the original amount less this...

Is this something that you'd done or are considering?

Vinny1961

I travelled from Heathrow to Brazil via Lisbon with TAP in June 2014. The return flight was cancelled without notice. I only found out when I rang to check the status of the flight and got an automated message. I was put on a flight the next day, which meant an overnight stop in Lisbon and onto Heathrow the following day.TAP put me in a hotel overnight with food and drinks.

I emailed TAP 4 times during 2014 and each time I received an automated email confirming receipt of my contact. I also tried to call them several times but was always put on hold.

In March 2015 I received an email from TAP, with an apology for my delayed flight and also requesting a document with my bank details. IBAN and SWIFT number. These are used to transfer money into an account.

The email from TAP looked like it had been translated through Google as it did not quite read as perfect.

I received another email a few days later asking for the same details.

I contacted my bank and they confirmed that companies do request this type of information.

After 3 attempts to call TAP, I got through to customer services.

I gave them a ref number from a previous email and they confirmed all the information regarding my claim.

I decided to send them the info they requested by email. I had 2 further emails from TAP. One confirming receipt of my email and another shortly after informing me that £441.18 (600 euros) had been paid into my bank account.

And it was true. The money was there. It took almost 10 months, but they paid up.

TAP website - Under contact, email fale.connosco@tap.pt.
Fill in the details of your delay and as Martin says 'remember to quote EC Reg 261/2004'