Continental's Policy on Large Pooh Sized Customers of Size

[ducklite]

Last night I boarded my flight and sat down in my aisle seat in the first few rows of coach.

The couple who were booked into the seats next to me showed up, and I immediately knew there was going to be a problem. They were very large. I got up to let them in, and the woman put up the arm rest between us, then spilled over into my seat by four-five inches. I asked her to put it down, and she declined, stating that she couldn't fit with it down. I immediately went to find a flight attendent. I was told "sorry, it's a full flight and there's nothing I can do." So I asked for a complaint respolution officer.

I had to walk up the jetway to talk to that person. He told me the flight was sold out and there was nothing he could do.

I suggested there were several seats in first class, and he could move them or me. He told me that wasn't an option, unless I wanted to pay the difference. I told him that wasn't an option, and that the situation was unacceptable, and that I wanted a supervisor. He told me that it could take a supervisor up to half an hour to arrive, and they were closing the plane's door in ten minutes.

I told him that he needed to figure something out other than punishing me for being able to fit into a seat. He then had the nerve to tell me he would take me off the plane because he felt that I would be rude to the people seated next to me. I hadn't said anything to her other than asking her to not raise the armrest. I never raised my voice, refered to them as "people of size" rather than many other hurtful names, never cursed. I was very calm, and the only thing I said was that it was unacceptable and the situation needed to be resolved--that I had paid for a full seat and expected the use of a full seat.

Ultimately a connecting flight didn't show up, and there were seats left open, so I was able to move across the aisle to an unoccupied seat.

I think Continental's handling of the situation was unprofessional, bad show, and VERY poor customer service.

If you fly CO, beware that they will allow other people to take over your seat, and not do anything about it.

I will be calling Houston today--the situation was unacceptable, and I want an apology and for clarification of their policy. If it actually is that they don't force large passengers to buy a second seat and allow them to hang into other passengers seat, I'll never fly them again. With the obesity rates in this country, it's pretty good chances that you'll end up sharing your seat in the future.

Anne

 

[dudspizza]

Totally unacceptable on Continental's part. Call and give them hell! I am 6"1", 275 and DO NOT even come close to taking up someone elses space... There is no way I would have been able to sit next to those folks......

Duds

 

[Esmerelda]

Unfortunately, I have been in your shoes more than once and its no way to fly. I think you handled it well and you probably kept much cooler than I could have been. Besides calling, I would write a letter with a return confirmation and explain to them exactly what happened. I'm hoping you have names of the Continental employees that were supposed to be helping you. It would have been TOTALLY unacceptable to me and obviously Continental needs to get on the stick, if you pay for a seat YOU should be able to comfortable sit in yours. Please post and let us know what happens. (or send me a pm if you wish) Best of luck to you

Esmerelda

 

[Lewisc]

Seems strange they couldn't find a passenger "worthy" of a first class upgrade. Even if it wasn't you or the COS there must have been a passenger that could/should have been upgraded.

I only fly a few times a year. Couldn't the flight attendant have just moved you up to first class without needing the complaint resolution officer?

 

[Disney Ella]

Please let us know how they respond. If you pay for a seat, you should get to occupy the entire seat. It's not your fault that someone can't fit in the sit next to you and you should not have to suffer because of it IMO.

 

[princess pooh]

I had a similar experience on an Air Canada flight a few years ago. The woman next to me put up the armrest and took up almost half my seat. I asked the flight attendent for another seat but coach was full. I wish I had complained at the time because it was so miserable being squished for 3 hours. Good for you for standing up for yourself!

 

[ducklite]

Seems strange they couldn't find a passenger "worthy" of a first class upgrade. Even if it wasn't you or the COS there must have been a passenger that could/should have been upgraded.

You would think.

I only fly a few times a year. Couldn't the flight attendant have just moved you up to first class without needing the complaint resolution officer?

The flight attendant told me there was nothing they could do. "I'm sorry, it's a full flight, there's really nothing I can do for you." was the exact statement.

Had it been any other carrier they would ahve deplaned those passengers if there weren't other seats, or moved me to first class as an option. It was beyond a matter of comfort, it was a matter of safety. I couldn't even get my seat belt out from under this woman's body. I would have had to sit sizeways hanging into the aisle for the entire flight--certainly a safety issue if we had hit turbulence.

I'm just incensed that they made ME out to be the bad guy, even threatening to deplane me because I "might" be rude to them, when I had given no indication at all that this would be the case. I did everything properly. I didn't confront the other passenger, I asked the FA to intervene, and when they said they couldn't, I requested a complaint resolution officer. They had available seats in first but were afraid I might drink 30 cents worth of free booze I guess...

I'll stick with US Airways from now on, even if it means connecting flights. It's not worth the attitude I got from CO, and their policies who punish people for being able to occupy their seat. I wonder how they would ahve handled it if I was 5'6 320 pounds? Because there's no way I would have been able to squeeze my hips into the seat at that point.

Anne

 

[MinnieGirl33]

If you don't feel that you get an adequate response from Houston I believe there is info in the FAA site about reporting or getting help w/issues from a "passenger advocacy" division.

Good Luck! Don't give up.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Unbelievable (Continental's response, NOT your complaint)! You were calm and polite, AND provided the airline with a solution - one they certainly should have been able to figure out on their own. What in the world is the point/purpose of a Complaint Resolution Officer if not to, well, resolve complaints? Sounds like Continental dropped the ball on this one for sure! This is part of an Adobe document accessible at Continental's website, in the section on passengers with special needs
"If a customer's physical size requires, or if a customer requests an additional seat for safety or comfort, the customer must purchase a first class seat or a second coach seat.
We reserve the right to deny boarding to a customer who cannot be safely accommodated due to seat/weight size restrictions (please forgive/ignore any typos)"
The entire document can be viewed/downloaded at http://www.continental.com/travel/policies/customerfirst/co_customer_first.2005091601.pdf

 

[kaytieeldr]

Duplicate deleted

 

[Lewisc]

Anne--I think your reply will say something like they were glad they were able to find you an alternate seat and will ignore all of the other issues.

Did the complaint resolution officer even board the plane? If not I'd include that in your letter. How can he ***** the situation without looking at the COS?

 

[ducklite]

Well, I just got off thw phone with Houston, and they agreed that the CRO dropped the ball. She said that he should have boarded the plane to look at options, and was surprised when I told her that not only did he not do that, but he refused to give me his name. I told her that when he refused to give me his name, I didn't argue with him, because I knew that the station manager would have it on record which CRO worked that flight, and she agreed.

She gave me the file number and said they have a 10-14 day backlog, and encouraged me to call back if I haven't heard anything in two weeks. She said that their contract of carriage is very specific in stating that passengers of size must purchase a second seat if they cant' safely fit into one seat--and that safety extends to passengers sitting next to them.

She said that I was 100% right, and that I handled the situation 100% appropriately.

She asked if I was looking for compensation, and I told her no, only a sincere apology from a senior manager and to be assured that the CRO I dealt with was properly retrained in the companies rules of carriage. She seemed surprised that I wasn't looking for a free first class ticket to Hong Kong or something.

Anne

 

[NotUrsula]

I have NEVER understood why airlines so stubbornly refuse to move passengers to first after the flight has technically departed. It is not like they are going to lose any revenue on it; it's sitting empty.

I almost never flew with DS as a lap-child, but once we did it when we were returning from Florida and an equipment change had left us with only that one choice in order to get back to work on time the next day. Naturally, we ended up with a horribly long delay on a hot runway, and he got sick, violently. Because we were waiting for clearance, they would not allow me out of my seat to clean him (or myself) up. When the FA asked if there was anything she could do, I told her that perhaps she could find the poor gentleman next to us another seat so that he would not have to deal with the mess. I knew there were several open seats in F, and I said it believing that naturally she would give him one. Imagine my horror when I realized later that the poor man ended up squashed in a middle seat between two rather large gentlemen who were very clearly unhappy to have him there. My husband apologized profusely when we saw him in the terminal after the flight--we felt so bad that our attempt to alleviate his discomfort might actually have made the flight MORE miserable for him.

By all means, write to Houston, and be sure to send the letter via certified mail.

 

[CarolA]

I had the same experience on AA a few years ago and at that point I was supposedly an "elite" level.

AA talked a good game on the phone, but thier total customer service experience is pretty much "we got your money sit down and shut up"

 

[seashoreCM]

The complaint resolution officer outright lied to you at first. The correct response would be tell you to wait while he "checked" where all he did was wait until the deadline for taking your seat passed and then give you one of the untaken seats. However he utimately saved himself by finding another seat for you. But it was he who took the gamble that there would be a seat available.

It would be safe for you to say in advance that if they did not get youyour own seat on that flight you would be seeking compensation.

Your final move would have been to get off the plane yourself, and ask for compensation if the plane departed without you. If the airline did not first ask for volunteers, you could ask for more than what the law provides, within reason but including added expenses such as a hotel room and meals and something left over for yourself.

To those eavesdropping: Don't be discouraged by what the OP said. The more people who at least go through the motions the OP did, the sooner the airlines will develop more satisfactory solutions.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[kaytieeldr]

To those eavesdropping: Don't be discouraged by what the OP said. The more people who at least go through the motions the OP did, the sooner the airlines will develop more satisfactory solutions.

Funny you should mention that... there was an item on the (radio) news this morning that studies show air travel is back up to pre-9/11 levels. Passengers complaints are at a record high Coincidence? Or are more of us being proactive, like Anne, and speaking up?

 

[Webbie]

To the original poster..you are a better person than I. No way would I have had that arm rest down. To me, it was her problem not yours. I have been in this situation before and it is no fun. Sorry you have not had a good response for the airline, they should have done something. I am also sorry some people do not fit into the seats but they have to understand they do not have the right to spill over into another's seat.

 

[dudspizza]

To those eavesdropping: Don't be discouraged by what the OP said. The more people who at least go through the motions the OP did, the sooner the airlines will develop more satisfactory solutions.

Amen, brother.

You know, I just realized that my return flights from Corpus Christi to MSP in May are on Continental (NWA FF miles). I don't expect any problems, but I will be prepared none the less.

Duds

 

[ducklite]

Continental never called me back like they said they would, so I called them. They basically told me I was out of luck, they don't discriminate against larger passengers, and that was just the way it was. They offered me $50 travel voucher "for my inconvenience" and I turned it down, I told them that unless they were willing to enforce their own written policies I wouldn't be flying them any more. And that's the end of it. This weekend I'm buying six r/t tickets between MCO and ALBN/PHL/EWR/BOS between now and mid-August, you can be sure that I'll be buying them on US even if it means a connection or higher fare.

I do have a choice on carriers, and I'll be executing that choice.

Anne

 

[Disney Ella]

But they do discriminate against thinner passengers? That's unbelievable. If they really want to accommodate larger passengers, then they need to have some larger seats just for them. Accommodation should not be at the expense of other passengers. If you pay for a seat, you should get to use all of the seat, not just a portion of it.