United breaks guitars

Let'sgoflying! said:
Here is the fine print if anyone is interested:
I think he probably will get paid.

http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,1037,00.html


Limits of liability
United is not liable for damage to fragile items, spoilage of perishables, loss/damage/delay of money, jewelry, cameras, electronic/video/photographic equipment, computer equipment, heirlooms, antiques, artwork, silverware, precious metals, negotiable papers/securities, commercial effects, valuable papers, or other irreplaceable items and/or any item where a liability release was signed by the passenger.


Domestic
For travel wholly between U.S. points, liability for delay, damage or loss to checked baggage, including carry-on baggage if tendered to the carrier's in-flight personnel for storage or otherwise delivered into the custody of the carrier, is limited to a maximum of $3,300 per passenger.
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Holy hell then what exactly ARE they liable for?
 
What really sux is that a guitar is not a Ming Vase. It takes some degree of violence to break one. The handlers' treatment of the thing was sufficiently bad to warrant notice by a passenger. No excuse, none. Damage from shifting in the cargo bay or some such is not the airline's problem. Hiring gorillas for baggage handlers is.
 
tdager said:
Holy hell then what exactly ARE they liable for?
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Only that which they are willing to, and agree to be liable for!
Try to see if from a business owner's perspective (there are always two or more viewpoints on these things)

On one hand, management is trying to please the masses of folks who want cheap efficient travel (and their belongings undamaged!). On the other hand, they have to hire untrainable idiots who are protected by their unions and a multitude of laws. It can be a real juggling act.

In the ideal world, workers would show respect to others and their belongings, take personal responsibility for harm they cause to patrons and to the business they work for.
Ha. As if.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
In the ideal world, workers would show respect to others and their belongings, take personal responsibility for harm they cause to patrons and to the business they work for.
Ha. As if.
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I agree in an ideal world that should be the case. It should also be the case in a less than ideal world too.

What is missing is that no one cares about anything anymore. People feel used and abused, not part of the system but over run by a system they have little to say about. Is it any wonder in the airline industry, where most pay has been cut, benefits removed, etc. all the while the elite few are still getting huge pay checks and bonus, that people get annoyed at the company and do the minimum?

It does not justify what they have done, but it may explain part of the problem. The company has no respect for the employees so why should the employees have any respect for the customers who in turn have no respect for the service they are purchasing. Plenty of blame to flow around.
 
If you connect tthrough DFW, watch the ramp. Every single time I've been through there, I've seen bags lying on the ground (that fell off a cart) in the cart lanes. The other carts don't stop to pick it up and reroute it - I've seen bags sit out there for a half-hour or more.

"That's someone else's job".
 
Why is this bothering anyone? Don't fly United anymore then (of course, other airlines are no different). Nobody's forcing you to fly United, and as a rational customer, you shouldn't in the future.

People get what they pay for. I can fly from ORD to SFO round trip for $200 on United. For that, I don't expect anything. If I did, I'd fly FC (which they don't really have anymore domestically) and pay more.

smigaldi said:
What is missing is that no one cares about anything anymore. People feel used and abused, not part of the system but over run by a system they have little to say about. Is it any wonder in the airline industry, where most pay has been cut, benefits removed, etc. all the while the elite few are still getting huge pay checks and bonus, that people get annoyed at the company and do the minimum?
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I don't have a problem with paying huge bonuses to executives. I do have a problem with bailing the company out if it fails subsequently. If you want to pay people bonuses - great - if you can afford it.

smigaldi said:
It does not justify what they have done, but it may explain part of the problem. The company has no respect for the employees so why should the employees have any respect for the customers who in turn have no respect for the service they are purchasing. Plenty of blame to flow around.
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Why would they respect the customers? Presumably because they don't want to get fired. Of course, United probably wouldn't fire them, so it goes back to the original point. You get what you pay for.

-Felix
 
sba55 said:
People get what they pay for.
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I will just point out that airlines are now charging separately for checked baggage.

If I have to pay 20/30/50 dollars, shouldn't I expect more? After all, I've paid for it.

I can see it now "It's $25 to check a bag if you want it beaten and broken, but you have to pay $75 to have it treated with respect".
 
sba55 said:
Don't fly United anymore then (of course, other airlines are no different). Nobody's forcing you to fly United, and as a rational customer, you shouldn't in the future.
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I am forced to fly UAL by my company. I am sure I am not alone in that either. Plenty of biz customers are having to fly whatever airline their company has a contract with.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Here is the fine print if anyone is interested:
I think he probably will get paid.
...
Domestic
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Note that United can claim that this was not a domestic flight. (Although he was on a leg within the US, he was transferring from a Halifax to Chicago flight, which is international.)

Chris
 
wsuffa said:
I can see it now "It's $25 to check a bag if you want it beaten and broken, but you have to pay $75 to have it treated with respect".
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You have that choice now.

I once checked a desktop computer while flying Boston->San Francisco. I put it carefully in its original box and packaging, with the computer surrounded on all sides by 3" foam blocks.

When it arrived, the box was obviously opened, and had been resealed with duct tape. I opened the box, and found the computer sitting in the bottom corner of the box, and the foam blocks had been broken up into smaller pieces and sprinkled on top of the computer. On top of all this mess was a friendly card explaining that my computer had been inspected by the TSA. Looks like they had pulled the computer out to inspect it, and had not been able to figure out the arrangement of the two foam blocks (hint: the one labelled "top" goes on top, the one labelled "bottom" goes on the bottom) to replace it, and so had just fit everything back in the box however they could get it in there.

Fortunately, the computer was undamaged.

Since then, I have shipped all my belongings, including multiple computers, TVs, and musical instruments across the country multiple times with FedEx Ground. Those folks are _awesome_. I have never had them damage or lose a single thing, you can always figure out where your stuff is via the tracking number, and they will do delivery by appointment for a small fee. (Well, small if you are shipping a bunch of stuff.)

Chris
 
colohan said:
On top of all this mess was a friendly card explaining that my computer had been inspected by the TSA.
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'nuff said.

They make baggage handlers look like choirboys.

You are absoulutely right about shipping via Fed-Ex and UPS - far better.
 
wsuffa said:
'nuff said.

They make baggage handlers look like choirboys.

You are absoulutely right about shipping via Fed-Ex and UPS - far better.
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I bought a Dyson Vacuum cleaner a few years ago from Bed Bath and Beyond. They didn't have the model I wanted in stock so they said they would ship it to me from their warehouse in New Jersey. Since I had a Bed Bath and Beyond coupon for 20% off I decided to let them ship it rather than pay $100.00 more somewhere else.

The vacuum came about a week later delivered by UPS. I took one look at the box and I asked the driver if they had dragged it behind the truck during the trip. It was so beaten up I couldn't believe it. Of course when I opened it I found the contents pretty well broken so I had to take it back to the store and let them ship me another one. The driver didn't seem to care one bit about the condition of the package. He just shrugged and left.

That's the only bad experience I've had with UPS. Never had a bad experience with Fedex, at least not yet.

Jean
 
Maverick said:
The vacuum came about a week later delivered by UPS. I took one look at the box and I asked the driver if they had dragged it behind the truck during the trip. It was so beaten up I couldn't believe it. Of course when I opened it I found the contents pretty well broken so I had to take it back to the store and let them ship me another one. The driver didn't seem to care one bit about the condition of the package. He just shrugged and left.

That's the only bad experience I've had with UPS. Never had a bad experience with Fedex, at least not yet.

Jean
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I had to divert to Portsmouth, OH a few weeks ago due to a line of T-storms I couldn't get around. The guy working at the FBO also worked for UPS and told me HORROR stories of how guys handle packages there. I don't think Fedex or any of the other carriers are any different. If you are shipping anything this way, pack it VERY well.
 
Maverick said:
I bought a Dyson Vacuum cleaner
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Jean,

Dysons clean very well but are known to destroy carpets. The beater brushes are far too stiff...be careful.

Ours killed three rooms of carpet before Chris figured out what was going on.
 
timwinters said:
Jean,

Dysons clean very well but are known to destroy carpets. The beater brushes are far too stiff...be careful.

Ours killed three rooms of carpet before Chris figured out what was going on.
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Never had a lick of trouble with any of the carpets that I use my Dyson on. I am sooooo happy with the Dyson vacuum and how well it picks up cat fur and litter.
 
smigaldi said:
Never had a lick of trouble with any of the carpets that I use my Dyson on. I am sooooo happy with the Dyson vacuum and how well it picks up cat fur and litter.
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Like wise! My dog sheds a lot and my Dyson really dose a great job picking up all the dog hair including the fine under coat that she is always leaving around the house. I haven't experienced any problems with damage to the carpet. My carpet is a Mohawk Friezes and the Dyson works just fine on it.

Jean
 
timwinters said:
Jean,

Dysons clean very well but are known to destroy carpets. The beater brushes are far too stiff...be careful.

Ours killed three rooms of carpet before Chris figured out what was going on.
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Been using a Dyson for about 3 years. No carpet damage that I can tell. It really cleans well and is much quieter than the Hoover it replaced. My big gripe is that the belt for the brush roll isn't user-replaceable. That's pretty stupid for a product that they tout as having such advanced engineering. Kind of flimsy for the price, too.


Trapper John
 
timwinters said:
Dysons clean very well but are known to destroy carpets. The beater brushes are far too stiff...be careful.
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I think all beater vacuums are hard on carpets. That's my excuse for not vacuuming too often.... yeah, that's it. :D
 
UAL Guitar update.

I boarded a UAL flight to SFO this morning. The Capt. comes on the PA to make his pre-departure announcements. He states the basic stuff, 'welcome aboard, blah, blah, blah, we expect a 4:09 flight, blah, blah blah, we expect an on time departure as soon as the bagagge people finish loading a few more guitars' LOL!!!
 
smigaldi said:
UAL Guitar update.

I boarded a UAL flight to SFO this morning. The Capt. comes on the PA to make his pre-departure announcements. He states the basic stuff, 'welcome aboard, blah, blah, blah, we expect a 4:09 flight, blah, blah blah, we expect an on time departure as soon as the bagagge people finish loading a few more guitars' LOL!!!
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There's what good labor relations will do for ya.
 
He has gotten more gigs from this incident and his videos about it, than tens of thousands of advertising would have bought him... One guitar well spent...
And, he is a great musician...

denny-o
 
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