Air France Consumer Reviews - Page 6

I booked my sister a ticket with my sky team miles. She flew from Seattle to India with two bags via Air Farce (whoops France). On her return she joined me in Scotland. Since she was stopping on her way back to the USA she was charged for the 2nd bag that they let her fly to India for free with. The charge was over 970.00 US. And all I get is the runaround. Phone support is a joke, as is the concept of customer service. Right now even the sight of a French fry makes me sick!!! My sister is a good woman and does not deserve this. Is there any available recourse?

I purchased a ticket (New York, Warsaw, Hannover, New York). I paid $800 on Expedia. The first flight was an overnight flight to Europe and I mistakenly read the arrival date as the departure date. As a result I was one day late at the airport. When they told me this, I admitted my mistake and I was ready for some penalty. They told me that I have to pay $4000. I don't know how to describe the feeling that I experienced. They politely explained that the ticket was not refundable and that I lost it. I asked to give me a price for one way to ticket to Warsaw so I could continue my trip. They told me that I lost the right to continue my trip too.

How on earth can you lose something that you paid for? I have the right to have the empty seat. I paid for the seat in the airplane. Then I had to cut my trip just to Warsaw because the price for one way ticket was much higher that round trip. I had no choice but to pay the penalty of $2400 just for the trip to Warsaw. As I was pulling out my credit card, they were smiling and making comments in French.

I have to say that I admire the way that they made profit. This is very effective. They can be sure that I will never use their service so they made a profit which is equivalent to 10 years of the business that I would give them. Perhaps I should embrace the French way of doing business too. Congratulations - Vive La France!

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN -- My son and I took Air France to Europe for his graduation present. We had 4 flights on Air France. EACH flight was delayed or canceled resulting in missed connections and one night on the floor sleeping (they would not pay for a hotel in NYC even though if we would have stayed in Pairs they would have??!! NY didn't get the updates on what had happened at Paris -- they wouldn't call to get them either). Service at the counter was terrible and they did not try to help at all. Our bags were EIGHT days late.

I have the name of the counter person in NYC who was extremely unhelpful but I decided that they just don't care about your concerns or their passengers so I didn't send a note -- but I wanted others to know. We had planned a trip to France next year also but I have changed our plans. If that country is run like its airline, I want NOTHING to do it with. This was our first and LAST time flying Air France and doing ANY connections through Paris.

DELHI -- I wish I had reviews of Air France service before I booked my family's travel to the US. My daughter found her checked in bag tampered with and taped on arrival in Delhi in November. She thought the Customs must have taped the bag as extra security precautions and did not complain about it at the airport Air France office. After reaching home, she found her laptop computer missing along with some new items of clothing that she had bought before departure from the US.

When we filed a complaint, the Delhi Air France Customer service said that their terms of carriage do not permit passengers carrying electronic items, jewelry, etc., in the checked in baggage. However, the airline was willing to pay about $75 as compensation. They calculated the compensation on the basis of the weight and not the intrinsic value of lost items!

We asked the airline again to try to locate the computer if it was removed by the Customs and there was no reply. From the silence it appears that the computer and other items were stolen and the airline washes its hands off! I do not know about other airlines but if thieves are operating in airports around the world in the guise of customs officials, God alone can save the passengers!

FIJI ISLANDS -- I want to bring to the attention of general public and also the Air France management what trust abuse does AIR France for its customers. On the 7th June, 2008 I flew from Kiev to France on the flight No: AF 2653. ON ARRIVAL at the AIRPORT in PARIS, our luggage was being delayed in delivery for an hour or so. While getting my luggage after an hour, I found my luggage to be damage and my valuables missing. I straight went to the customer baggage service where the officer inspected my baggage to be damage and few of my valuables missing. The missing items include two mobile phone and a Sony cyber camera.

I have written several times to the Air France company to the following address : Air France, Service Client, TSA 60001, 60035 Beauvais Cedex, France. But despite that the Air France Company has not responded till today and it's a big shame for such a big company for not responding and even not compensating its customers. They have abused the trust that I had in me for the company and beside that I normally travel aboard for meeting. Since such has happen I want the Air France management to respond and let me know what is their step to help me out.

I flew Air France from Copenhagen to Seattle via CDG airport on flights 1251 and 040 May 24. Along the way the lock on my suit was removed to search my luggage which is fine except it was not replaced. I came up missing one item, a bill cap which of course is not that expense but it's the principal. I also purchased some rather expensive, $61.00, body rub, liquid, which someone decided it needed to be dumped out. No it did not leak out. I had it in the original package and it was dry as was the zip lock bag I put the whole thing in.

When I went online to hopefully bring this to the attention of the people in charge of missing items I couldn't find a site for this. Missing luggage yes but not missing items. And you can't just fill out the info online even for luggage. You need to print the 2 page form and send it in too what sit on someone desk for how long, months? I'm not happy about this. I believe since the technology is there that a simple form to fill out on line or a letter and send the whole thing via e-mail.

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON -- I had a flight from Seattle-Paris-Delhi. I had 2:30 hours for transit. The fact that Air France was willing to put me on connecting flights so close together, I am sure they have confidence in their arrival times. Bottom line, I missed the connection. They asked me to wait 24 hours in Paris. They made no effort to accommodate me. I had to escalate the issue to supervisor before anyone would even listen to me. After several hours, they finally put me on a flight to Munich and then to Delhi. Only 12 hours late.

My return flight was Delhi-Mumbai-Paris-Seatle. I missed my connection in Mumbai even though I had 5:30 hours between the two flights. Air France refused to accommodate me at all saying that Delhi-Mumbai is operated by Air India. Why is Air France selling me tickets for Air India if they are not willing to own up the responsibility? Air India was nice enough to put me on a later flight, provided Air France endorsed the ticket. The fact that Air France does not care about its customer and just wants to take the money without providing quality service, they refused to endorse the ticket.

Again, Air India stepped in and provided me with a hotel until I could be "accommodated" in the next flight on Air France. Next day they asked me to pay $200 for rebooking the flight which I missed for no fault of mine and Air France was the one which provided me with the connection. Also, I had special dietary requirement in the flight which they did not take care of.

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS -- Loss of a 500 dollar musical instrument and failure of Air France to direct me and lack of their response to phone calls and misinformation about the baggage services in Boston timings. I did not know that I had to make a claim immediately. I was not told by the Air France employee and I do not have past experience with it. When I called next day the customer service center also did not advice me of the same. They had wrong timings of the Boston airport baggage center as well in their database.

These factors resulted in me in visiting airport twice and not having the ability to get in touch with anybody. The tons of calls left with the Boston airport Air France baggage center was not returned. Eventually I filed a claim on Thursday which was four days after my arrival. Now the reply from Air France is "you made a late claim and we are not responsible for your loss."

I was traveling alone with my two children (2 and 4 months) when I checked in to travel from Bordeaux, France to Bangkok, Thailand. I had three suitcases, two car seats (one was a carry on) and a stroller. I also had one back pack as a carry on. After checking in all my bags and sending them down the chute, the check in girl told me I had one bag too many and that I would be charged for excess baggage.

She gave me a bill for EUR900 and told me I would not receive my boarding pass until I paid the fine. She would not let me remove any weight or send the bag by another route (such as cargo). I have written 4 letters and all have said basically "sorry but too bad for you". I am disgusted with Air France and will not fly with them again (and we are frequent fliers).

ILLINOIS -- The crew on our Air France flights were attractive, helpful, pleasant competent, and reliable. However, the extreme delay of five hours at O'Hare on September 22nd and the two hour delay in Paris from Charles de Gaul on October 7th were frustrating and exhausting. The delay out of O'Hare was probably not Air France's fault; we will never know for sure. The delay out of Charles de Gaul was ridiculous.

We booked our flight more than 30 days prior through Lyon Travel Agency who were had the travel contract for Elderhostel; when we arrived to get our boarding passes, we were told the plane was overbooked by fifty and we were placed on "stand-by" status. We stood around for hours before finally being confirmed. Our flight was late leaving Paris by about two hours.