Missed Connection with Emirates

sipsachin

Missed Flight
Flight Details:
1) Brisbane to Kuala Lumpur via Singapore  all booked with Emirates
2) Brisbane to Singapore  was operated by Emirates
3) Singapore to Kuala Lumpur  was operated by Jet Star
Overview:
We checked-in online through the Emirates app. At Brisbane Airport we were provided with one boarding pass (Brisbane to Singapore). When we asked about the other boarding pass (Singapore to KL) we were not told anything, I am assuming as we check-in online.
When arriving at Singapore airport we were told to go to gate C18 by airport staff. The connection time was approx. 1 hour 20 mins and check-in for the flight (JetStar) closes 1 hour before departure. When arriving at the gate we were told you need a boarding pass and were denied in and told to go to transfer desk/customer service.
At the JetStar transfer desk, when we explained our predicament and they shunned us away telling us check-in has closed and it, not our problem because you booked your flights with Emirates. After explaining we have been at the airport the whole time, she said there is nothing she can do without attempting to try anything. When we asked for a manager, she refused and told us to go to the Emirates transfer desk as we booked our ticket through them. To collect all the right information from all parties, Emirates called a member of staff from the plane. This took a long time and by the time he came, the plane left.
As we were unfamiliar with Singapore airport layout, we had no idea of knowing that we had to go the transfer desk. Most airports you must go through connections and security to catch the next flight. However, as the gate for arrival and departure was located in the same terminal, we had no idea of going to the transfer desk. When we asked, we were told to go directly to the gate by airport staff. Due to this miss-communication, we didn’t check-in on time even though we were present at the airport and our bags were ready to go on the plane. If we knew we had to go to the transfer desk then we would have. Due to this, we missed a separate pre-planned flight from Kuala Lumpur to Phuket (with return) which was operated by AirAsia.
After this, as the flight was booked with Emirates and we did not show for the flight they suspended the rest of the onward flights, which for from KL to the UK. This meant we could not go home as the flight back to the UK was booked with Emirates as well. In addition, we could not book a third party replaced as Emirates told us we had to rebook through them. When we asked why they said they will still suspend the rest of the trip as they don’t know where we would be and if we would get the KL to UK flight. Therefore, we were forced to pay £400 ‘no show’ fee each and had to rebook the flight missed through them, Singapore to KL. This ‘no show’ fee was forced upon us as we didn’t fully understand why we were paying it.
Due to the restriction they gave us and being a student with no experience in this we paid for it so we can get the onward flights we had left. The Singapore to KL flight was rebooked for the next day for free after the long back and forth with customer service over the phone. Therefore, we had to book a hostel for 5 people at short notice and had to rebook the outgoing AirAsia ticket from KL to Phuket to the next day as well.
To us this £400 ‘no show’ fee was not fair as we were at the airport and showed us, we were denied entry due to miscommunication between airport staff, Emirates and JetStar. Why would we purposely miss a flight to pay £400, we don’t have this kind of money? We could have saved money by rebooking the tickets online. 1) By booking flight to KL where we still make the AirAsia flight. 2) Book a flight from Singapore to Phuket directly. However, at the end of the day, as the onward travel was suspended, we were forced to pay this £400 to continue our trip and return home.
I want to know if I have a case for compensation? As I don’t fall under EU legislation is there any other law that I could claim under. I have travel insurance but under the clause, it says due to flight delays or travel delays, etc. which I do not fall under. What are your opinions?

eDicky

Extremely confusing, I can't read it all, please clarify your starting point and route and whether it was all on a single booking, etc.

Jetstar flight was actually part of an Emirates ticket..?

sipsachin

Starting Point was Brisbane
Connecting Point was Singapore
Finish Point was Kuala Lumpur

Brisbane to Singapore was Emirates
Singapore to Kuala Lumpur was JetStar

Whole thing was booked with Emirates

eDicky

Thanks, that adds some clarity.

Checking that route on my Emirates app, I see that they have a codeshare flight with Jetstar for SIN-KUL. I'm surprised, as Jetstar is more of a low cost carrier,
with point-to-point fares.

Emirates should have either provided you with the onward SIN-KUL boarding pass (which is unlikely to be possible for Jetstar), or have given you clear instructions on how to obtain it in transit at Singapore Changi airport, and any info on change of terminal etc.

I would say that you need to make a formal and persistent complaint with Emirates, keeping to the relevant facts, in order to obtain some resolution. Look for the complaint procedure on Their website.

EveryWhere

It is too confusing to read. Plus parts of the story missing.
When checking in at BNE and being handed your boarding pass, you would have noted that there was no boarding pass to KUL, but only to SIN. That would have been a good time to ask about the boarding pass to SIN. But it appears that neither you nor any of your friends appeared to notice this.

If Emirates rectified the situation and you caught a later flight, they would not have cancelled the rest of the booking. If you decided to go on your own and buy separate flights outside of the Emirates booking, the rest of your booking would have been cancelled, as you would be marked as 'no shows' for the JetStar portion of your booking.

That is the way it works. So if you did everything via Emirates, they would owe you a duty of care. if you went outside those parameters, you were on your own.

Without reading your messy post again, I'm guessing that you organised flights outside of what was offered by Emirates.
If you did not, I have no idea as to why they would cancel the rest of your booking. If you were at the airport and re-booked on to the next available flight they offered, you would not be classified as a 'no show'.

Correct anything that I have guessed wrongly.

sheramber

sipsachin wrote: »

Starting Point was Brisbane
Connecting Point was Singapore
Finish Point was Kuala Lumpur

Brisbane to Singapore was Emirates
Singapore to Kuala Lumpur was JetStar

Whole thing was booked with Emirates

Then what?

1 You stayed overnight in Singapore and Emirates gave you a free flight to Kuala Lumpur the next day .
2 You then bought a flight to Phuket for £400.

3 Emirates had cancelled your trip to UK .

Where did you go from Phuket and how did you get back to UK?

EveryWhere

sipsachin wrote: »

This summer my friends and I missed our connecting flight from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur.

We booked the trip through Emirates; however, the SIN-KUL was operated by JetStar. The change over time was 20 mins to check-in as Emirates did not provide us with boarding passes and check-in closed one hour before departure. At Singapore airport we were told to go to the gate C18 by the airport, however when boarded started we were told you need a boarding pass. However, as no boarding pass was provided, we were denied access and were instructed to go to the transfer desk/customer service.
When we tried to explain that we have been in the airport the whole time to the JetStar staff they shunned us away and told us it is not our problem its Emirates because we came from their plane. When we said we have been here this whole time she said there nothing she can do but she didn’t try at all, even after making a case she said no. When we asked for a manager, she refused to get one and our only solution as the time was to discuss the problem with Emirates. The Emirates staff helped us but due to the how long they took we missed the flight.
As we were unfamiliar with Singapore airport layout, we had no idea of knowing that we had to go the transfer desk, and when we asked, we were told to go directly to gate by airport staff. Due to this miss-communication, we didn’t check-in even though we were present at the airport and our bags were ready to go on the plane. Due to this, we missed a flight from Kuala to Phuket with AirAsia.
After this, as the flight was booked with Emirates and we ‘missed’ the flight they decided to suspend all the other flights. This meant we couldn’t go home as the flight back to the UK were booked in the altogether. This also meant we couldn’t book a third-party replacement as Emirates told us we had to rebook through them when we asked why they said they will still suspend the rest of the trip on the package which was one - back home to the UK. Which meant we were forced to pay £400 each for the ‘missed’ flight but haggled our way to get free tickets from £400 for the earliest plane ticket to KUL the next day. This meant we booked a hostel and rebooked the AirAsia ticket to Phuket from KUL.
We could have saved money by rebooking online for tickets to Kuala Lumpur or Phuket, however as Emirates suspended our flight home, which is from KUL-HRW. In addition, as we had a flight to go Phuket, they couldn’t accommodate for that either as we booked to Kuala Lumpur. As onward travel was not given we were forced to pay this £400 that to continue our trip.
I want to know if I have a case for compensation? As I don’t fall under EU legislation is there any other law that I could claim under. I have travel insurance but under the clause, it says sue to flight delay or travel delay, etc. which I do not fall under, but will still try?

After reading that confusing jumble again, the answer is no. You failed to check in for your flight. It's all your fault. No compensation.

fifeken

EveryWhere wrote: »

If Emirates rectified the situation and you caught a later flight, they would not have cancelled the rest of the booking.

Not quite. I've had a similar experience when Emirates rebooked me, but on my return they said my ticket had been cancelled due to a no show on my outbound leg.

Easily fixed when I showed my boarding passes at the ticket desk and explained what happened, but it left me less than impressed with Emirates overall handling of the situation.

OP. I'm not even going to try until you make your post intelligible.

sipsachin

Then what?

1 You stayed overnight in Singapore and Emirates gave you a free flight to Kuala Lumpur the next day .

Yes, we were allowed to stay overnight and we discussed with Emirates at the time to get a reduced fee for the earliest flight the next day, in this case they didnt charge us because we made a fuss.

2 You then bought a flight to Phuket for £400.

No, this £400 was a 'no show' fee. We started from Brisbane, connected at Singapore, to Kuala Lumpur. From Kuala Lumpur, we had a flight with AirAsia to Phuket (with return) which was not booked with Emirates. It was separate.

3 Emirates had canceled your trip to the UK .

Yes, they suspend it as if we didn't pay the £400 for 'no show' than we couldn't collect our tickets, as they said they would not where we were and if we could get to KL. They were very adamant that we had to pay if we wanted to get our tickets to UK. As the ticket was from KUL to Heathrow.

Where did you go from Phuket and how did you get back to UK?

- we paid the £400
- caught the next flight from Sinapore to Kuala Lumpur the next day
- Rebooked AirAsia flight to Phuket later that day (the day we arrived)
- returned to Kuala Lumpur after a couple of days and spent 2-3 days there
- as we paid the £400 we could collect the return ticket from Kuala Lumpur to Heathrow via Dubia

sipsachin

Not quite. I've had a similar experience when Emirates rebooked me, but on my return they said my ticket had been cancelled due to a no show on my outbound leg.

Easily fixed when I showed my boarding passes at the ticket desk and explained what happened, but it left me less than impressed with Emirates overall handling of the situation.

How did you sort out your problem? At the desk or via email.

OP. I'm not even going to try until you make your post intelligible.

Sorry, I should have double-checked it.

sipsachin

However, why would they cancel the rest of my trip? We could not go through a third-party as they suspended or onward flights, which is not right.