BMI Online Check In And Not Sitting Children With Parents

nearlyrich

I was going to say the best thing is to be really polite to the check in person, saying I know you will be able to sort this out the call centre didn't understand my concerns etc..if they are just as useless ask for a supervisor and stand at the check in position till one appears, it's amazing how quickly they can sort it if you are in the way of them getting a flight off in time.

Inactive

I use BMI Baby on a regular basis, if I want to secure seats prior to boarding, I just pay to pre - book them, no problem, it looks like the OP thought that that they could avoid paying the pre-booking charge by checking in online and get seats of their choosing, sorry it doesn't work that way.

Yes you get a guaranteed seat/s by online checking in, but only the one/s that is/are allocated by the system.

divadee

Inactive wrote: »

I use BMI Baby on a regular basis, if I want to secure seats prior to boarding, I just pay to pre - book them, no problem, it looks like the OP thought that that they could avoid paying the pre-booking charge by checking in online and get seats of their choosing, sorry it doesn't work that way.

Yes you get a guaranteed seat/s by online checking in, but only the one/s that is/are allocated by the system.

i am not using bmibaby i am using bmi.

there was no option to pay to pre book seats on BMI.

I wasnt trying to get out of paying extra, there was no option other than to upgrade to premium economy. which is not necessary for a 1 hour 15min flight!!

Sorry but i think you got the wrong end of the stick.

Voyager2002

Inactive wrote: »

I use BMI Baby on a regular basis, if I want to secure seats prior to boarding, I just pay to pre - book them, no problem, it looks like the OP thought that that they could avoid paying the pre-booking charge by checking in online and get seats of their choosing, sorry it doesn't work that way.

Yes you get a guaranteed seat/s by online checking in, but only the one/s that is/are allocated by the system.

However, the OP does not want to choose a particular seat but just want to ensure that her child is seated next to a parent, as mandated by CAA guidelines. That is not something for which she should pay.

Voyager2002

BMI has never been a particularly good airline. They managed to land on a main road by mistake, back in 1988. And they provided a free 'plane for John Major to help with his election campaign. Two good reasons for using a different airline.

This issue really does not merit the amount of anxiety that has been generated. It is the kind of thing that cabin crew can and will resolve with minimal fuss.

And there is nothing at all wrong with Indian call centres: in my experience their staff are more polite and more willing to be helpful than their counterparts in British call-centres. The problem lies with systems that give them very limited discretion: they can take your money but cannot do anything about seat allocations, and face severe penalties if they fail to stick to the script. But these issues are management questions, and are the responsibility of BMI rather than of the Indian staff.

M4RKM

divadee wrote: »

am i wrong in wanting one of us to sit with little miss divadee????

of course you are wrong.. any irresponsible parent will let their child sit next to anyone, and take sweets from strangers!!! :rotfl:

honestly, you're well within your rights here... BMI are being stupid, and i'm sure either someone at check-in or FA's will help...

moonrakerz

Voyager2002 wrote: »

BMI has never been a particularly good airline. They managed to land on a main road by mistake, back in 1988. And they provided a free 'plane for John Major to help with his election campaign. Two good reasons for using a different airline.

1st reason: Your facts are wrong.

2nd reason: So What ?

British Midland is the 4th safest airline in Europe, behind BA, Lufthansa & SAS - ahead of KLM, Air France, Alitalia. TAP etc, etc, etc (1959-2001: figures from Boeing.)

"This issue really does not merit the amount of anxiety that has been generated"

neither does ill-informed comment about safety !

Voyager2002

moonrakerz wrote: »

1st reason: Your facts are wrong.

2nd reason: So What ?

1st reaons: would you care to tell us all what REALLY happened? (I remember the news report, because of where I was at the time.)

2nd reason: I am sure that most intelligent people would not choose to do business with an organisation that supports terrorist organisations like the conservative party. And in any case John Major was a total failure as a politician. A business that fails to identify the winning side and refrain from backing losers is an incompetent business, not one that I would trust to fly me safely across the Channel.

essexgal

divadee wrote: »

iI have calmed down abit now. I will be nice and polite to teh check in lady. I am sure now it will be ok.

If all else fails just ask the person sitting next to your daughter whether they'd be happy to swap as your daughter gets terribly terribly travel sick even on short journeys.:eek: Prime littlemissdivadee to act sick and moan a bit and I bet they'll be only too happy to change places with you;)

essexgal

MarkyMarkD

I think that Voyager is referring to the 1989 (not 1988) Kegworth disaster, at which a BMI plane landed on the side of the M1.

It wasn't "by mistake" - the plane was unable to reach the runway. Voyager's words imply that they didn't know the difference between the M1 and the airport runway, which isn't true.

And it wasn't actually on the motorway, and nobody driving on the motorway was injured or even any vehicles on the motorway hit.

More here: http://www.digital-daydreams.com/kegworth/history/air_disaster.php