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#1
17-05-2005, 23:59
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Grrrr...Thai Airways
Today I went to take out money from my ATM and found that I could not as my account balance was -$5 or something along those lines. So I came back here to my computer to verify that this was correct, since just yesterday I had over $1000 in the account. Sure enough I had a negative balance, and the cause of it was a $1120 charge by thai airways yesterday.
I had already paid for the ticket last month and have it sitting in my nightstand at home just waiting for departure. I tried calling thai airways in new york but was unable to get through, so I called their LA office. The woman on the phone took down all my information but was not able to help me since "the computers are down". She spoke this in a sweet thai accent so how could I complain. They have my number and will be returning my call when "the computers are working again". So for now I'm broke  I just wanted to whine about this. Especially since I had to jump through all the hoops to book the flight in the first place, since they could not issue an electronic ticket for the new JFK-BKK flight. I hope the flight goes more smoothly than purchasing the ticket. 
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#2
18-05-2005, 00:11
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IT COULD BE WORHT A GO.....IJ
__________________
ROLL ON OCTOBER........
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#3
18-05-2005, 00:17
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Email your complaint
I would deffinately be doing more abouth the issue. You will be touched up by the bank for an overdrwan fee and they really had no right to access your account without authority.
I would be asking for BIG compensation for the TROUBLE they have caused you. 
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#4
18-05-2005, 00:29
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Thanks for the feedback. Yes I will be requesting some further assistance from thai airways beyond simply giving me my money back that they stole from me. I'm sure my bank will hit me up with some fees for this one.
Good that you make the point about unauthorized access. That is definitely the case here as I had to sign and fax in papers to get them to take out the money last month. Don't get my hopes up too much....free ticket!!! Come on big money, big money, big money.....no whammy no whammy....stop! (does anybody remember Press Your Luck?)
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#5
18-05-2005, 01:40
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Basically you could just dispute the charge to your bank. If you state and sign an affidavit (think it's spelled like that lol) then your bank should transfer the money right back to you. However, you are probably better off trying to squeeze Thai for some extra benefits.. Maybe an upgrade to Business class for that long fligth
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#6
18-05-2005, 08:16
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IJ makes a good point about hitting them up for a free flight but I prefer Heps idea about an upgrade it has more chance of working for you. Either way give em hell!
__________________
If I have to explain it.Then you will never understand.
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#7
18-05-2005, 17:43
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You have given them authority to withdraw the funds from your account, so there is no case for unauthorised access. Only problem is they did it twice, which will result in bank fees impossed on you. You could try to hit Thai for these, but I dont like your chances.
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#8
18-05-2005, 20:12
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Thai airways has agreed to pay for any fees I would have incurred by the bank, although they want to see a bank statement first. So that is good. They have also asked me to send them a formal written complaint regarding the situation.
Regarding to the legality of the error. They were authorized to withdraw funds, but it specified an amount in the authorization, but did not specify how many times they could take that amount...I guess. I will be happy when they resolve the situation, so far nothing has happened though, just very pleasant voices on the telephone. I do hope they do something for me after they correct the error. This does leave a bit of a sour taste.
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#9
18-05-2005, 20:23
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You could always threaten to take your story to the media, this might give you a bit more leverage. I don't know what it's like in the states but here in Oz if it was a slow day you would have a very good chance of getting some airtime. Best of luck, upgrade sounds like a good option.
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#10
18-05-2005, 21:21
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I don't think you'll manage to get a free ticket out of this, but as long as they have a open seat, I'm sure they will be more than happy to upgrade your ticket. Passengers have had a free upgrade for a lot less. Try for First Class, that's what I'm saying! 
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#11
18-05-2005, 23:36
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Ok thanks for the advice, I'll be calling them after I finish eating my lunch here and see what they can do for me. I mean they still haven't even given me my money back.
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Thai Air
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#14
19-05-2005, 17:26
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Hi Magnus. So what happened?? Have Thai Air come to the party or are you on the local TV news?
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#15
19-05-2005, 20:57
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Their accounting department called me back last night around 7:30 saying they would have it taken care of in 1 or 2 days. I expressed more of my displeasure but so far nothing has actually happened. I'm waiting to hear back from their customer service rep. I would imagine she would be the one to give me something back as a way to appologize.
I'm not travelling until July so its not going to affect my trip. Although that was my checking account they drained, so I'm unable to pay bills for the moment. I have credit cards to get by in the meantime. Should only be 1 more day. Oh and yeah my bank did charge $50 for the overdraft; they are like clockwork with those kind of things.
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#16
20-05-2005, 01:57
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Hey Magnus,
I'm on the same flight NYY-BKK Non-stop but leaving June 1st. I paid by credit card and so far Thai only charged me once....but I will keep a close check my credit card billings. This route only started May 1st and they are using their new A340-500 Aircraft so comfort wise they should be ok but I don't know if I can hack a 17+hour non-stop flight. My fare was only $937 including taxes/fees so I guess they had a special going when I booked. Good Luck! with your dealings with Thai Airways.
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#17
20-05-2005, 05:13
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My wife and I were flying with Tiger airways and although the seats were tiny and I was the only white guy on the whole plan it all seemed ok if you consider the cheap tickets.
When I got my credit card statement in the mail i noticed that Tiger airways charged me for 6 seats on the same flight instead of two. They tried to tell me if was my problem when I called and said i must have pressed enter 3 times. Ha, instructed bank to stop payment to them and only paid the two seats
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#18
20-05-2005, 13:08
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Believe it or not this is a big problem on the net, with online transactions. When a not so savvy net user, hits the confirm button and there appears to be a delay in fetching the next screen, they do in fact hit the confirm again. This only triggers the script attached to the button again, and in this case it is a credit card billing procedure.
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#20
20-05-2005, 19:30
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Yes, actually this is the first thing that Thai Airways tried to tell me. But that was quickly shot down when I informed them that I was purchasing paper tickets over the telephone and merely created the initial request from the internet. I'm not sure what the error was, they would not say, but they did admit fault in this.
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#21
20-05-2005, 21:36
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Yes thats the trouble, when the companies involved try to hide behind this well known problem.
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#22
21-05-2005, 00:15
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Speaking about the nonstop flight, you guys keep us posted...to me the time saved is a big deal! I can't wait...I can do without my stops in japan and most certainly the time saved is well worth it. That plane is a lot more comfortable than the 747's so it should be a great trip....besides I personally prefer flying thai air...Looking forward to getting a report.
What you really need to do in order to get any big attention is to document it, write a letter explaining what took place and send it to the highest person you can..just make sure you get a name and send it directly...company officers only. You would be suprised what you can get from sending letters of complaint. Phone calls to get imediate resolve, but for any compensation..it will usually only come after sending a well written letter. Using wording that points out you have never had issues with competing airlines would be on my list, droping the hint that I make at least two -three trips each year... well just my thoughts..do as you wish.
__________________
J.K. Livin  Heywood
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#23
21-05-2005, 01:04
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keeps copies of the letter that you sent and if you get no response after a while see if you can find someone else at the company to send it to. Try to get any kinds of records that you can for the 2 transactions also. See if you can find a consumer advocate group that also might be able to give you some info as to what to do if you do not get any satisfaction.
Good info from other BM's. Upgrades are usually the way they try to compensate people.
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#24
21-05-2005, 04:11
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Heywood,
I'm flying from JFK on June 1st so I'll post report after the flight. I also like flying Thai for international flights, the service and food is usually great and I can practice my limited Thai language skills, but the planes were a bit old and shabby and I prefer the individual video screens. Also LAX was a pain in the **** to transit through since 9-11. 11 days to go!
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