Continental Airlines Consumer Reviews - Page 6

I had to travel from Newark, New Jersey to Denver, Colorado on October 24, 2007 for a conference/trade show. The trip out was great; we actually left at the time we were scheduled to and the flight was comfortable. Because I was only going to be in Denver two nights, I packed light and in compliance with regulations, carried on a small bag which fit in the overhead compartment. I did this for the specific reason that I did not want to check a bag, since I had a very small window of time upon landing, to get to a function at the convention. This leg of the trip went very well.

The return trip, not so much. I was scheduled to leave Denver at 12:30 pm on Friday, Oct. 26th. When we got out to the airport, the time posted on the board was 1:30 which was soon changed to a 3:00 pm departure. We actually left at 4:00 pm, three and a half hours late. This, however, is not the subject of my complaint.

Remember I said I very carefully packed a small bag to carry on and stow in the overhead compartment? Well, guess what, no one else, including the flight crew, seemed much concerned with this particular regulation. I personally saw people carrying on two bags plus coats and brief cases. One couple had five bags between them! No one, repeat, no one, stopped them.

When I got on the plane, two of the attendants were so deep in personal conversation, they could not be bothered with the business at hand. By the time I got to my seat (again, in compliance with the "board by rows" rule) there was no room for my bag, and I was informed, very rudely, by the "attendant" that I would have to check my bag and collect it in Baggage Claims in Newark. The whole idea, may I repeat, was to carry on an appropriately-sized bag and not have to worry about the extra time needed to retrieve it and my destination.

Needless to say, I was upset and angry but certainly could not let the "attendants" know this for fear of being hauled off the plane and possibly arrested. I was able to collect my bag and arrived home at least an hour and a half later than I would have had I been able to stow my bag on board. I do have a choice of what airline to fly and do understand that I will not be flying Continental Airlines again, ever.

HOUSTON, TEXAS -- I flew Continental on 10/18/07 from Houston to Ontario. Because continental does not allow you to get seat assignments through Expedia, I had to wait until I got to the airport to get my seats. I was traveling with my wife who needs wheelchair assistance. We got to the airport 2 1/2 hours before our flight from New Orleans and 5 hours before our connecting flight in Houston. We were able to get seats together for the first flight, but the second flight was overbooked so there were no seats together.

I was told to talk with the counter staff in Houston and explain my wife is disabled and needs assistance and they might be able to help me. I waited 30 minutes for the counter staff. When they finally got to me 20 minutes before boarding, I explained my dilemma and also let them know I need a wheelchair for my wife. The woman at the counter replied, "The plane if full, there is nothing I can do... next".

I then waited for 20 minutes for a wheelchair. When 5:25 arrived I went back up and asked her about the wheel chair, she rudely replied, "I already called for one!" I apologized to her and told her I hadn't seen her call someone. She then got on the phone and spoke with someone in a hushed tone.

She then called for the seating of 1st class passengers, then she called for elite passengers, she then called to board those who needed special assistance. We still had no wheelchair. I shook my head and stood up to walk my wife down myself. The woman at the counter yelled at me, "Sit down, your wheelchair is on its way!"

She then called for general boarding. Three minutes later, the wheelchair arrived and we finally got seated. I asked the flight attendant inside if she could help us. She said all she could do was ask those seated around us if they'd be willing to move. I thanked her and asked her to do so. She never did.

All I can say is that this crew was not particularly helpful to those traveling with special needs and that I'll probably avoid Continental in the future. I wrote to both their customer care and directly to their CEO Larry Kellner. I haven't heard from them yet, but it hasn't been long. If I do, I will be sure and post their response on here.

HOUSTON, TEXAS -- On February 5 2005 my 3 year old Son and I flew with your airline from Tulsa, OK to Montgomery, AL. I was told to gate check my carry on bag in Houston since our seats were behind a galley and the overhead compartments were full. Once we arrived in Montgomery, AL the stroller (I had also gate checked) was sitting on the rack but my bag was not there. I told the lady that was bringing the bags and she said it was not there. I demanded she look again. I watched her go over to the baggage compartment under the plane and she stood there for 5 min then brought me my bag.

All of the zipper compartments were opened. I asked her why they were opened and she walked away. I then went to the Continental counter in the airport and waited 45 minutes before someone finally showed up. I informed the young man what happened and he said he could not do anything and I would have to call his supervisor, which is Robin **. He did write down on a piece of paper that my camera was stolen. I called her and left a message and she never returned my call. Also, our luggage was lost when we arrived and could NOT get any help with that.

I did call the following morning and was told the next flight from Houston was arriving at 5 p.m. and they would deliver it that day. I called to see when it would be delivered every day and was told it was still in Houston! It was 4 days later that we received our luggage! Once I got my luggage, one of the bags was damage (the roller was broken off and the handle was broke on one side). Again, I called Continental and was told “Continental Airlines is not responsible for damaged luggage!"

Now, I have incurred NUMEROUS expenses due to me not getting my luggage for 4 days which is totally absurd, I had to buy my son and I clothes,& toiletries and eventually I can replace my camera, camera accessories, (If and when you ever process my claim) and now another $100 for new luggage! I was told I could file a claim for my camera and accessories so I did on February 7, 2006. I had to fax over the claim form twice since they claim they never received the first one.

I paid $2,181.53 for our airline tickets and now I am out a whole lot more since I had to purchase new clothes, etc.! I called the claims number to check the status of my claim and was told it would be around 60 days from today before they make a decision! Do you, The Corporate office know this is going on? Other than the additional expenses the sad part is I never received friendly customer service or an apology for this HUGE inconvenience and nightmare!

The following is the amazing story of how Continental Airlines is trying to turn their e ticket screw up into getting paid twice for a single flight. I purchased round trip tickets from Dubai to Denver through Expedia in January of 2005. On January 12, 2005 I received written confirmation from Expedia that I was booked on the flights and that e tickets would be provided, Expedia itinerary number **.

When I went to do early check in for the Dubai to London flight, EK 11, on the afternoon of February 11 I was told by Emirates Air that I could not check in because Continental had failed to provide a ticket for me. I spent the next several hours with representative of Emirates trying to locate the ticket. I was booked on the flight, but there was no ticket. I requested that Emirates contact Continental and was told that they could not do that because it was a Muslim holiday and the Continental office was closed.

Finally, the Emirates Air supervisor told me that there was nothing they could do, and that the only way I could get on the flight to London and make my connection there was to purchase a new ticket. I purchased the ticket as I was instructed to do by Emirates Air. I assumed that when I informed Continental of the problem, they would refund the cost of the duplicate ticket. I have sent several letters and emails to Continental Refund Services explaining the situation and they have refused the refund. My refund request number is **.

Continental failed to provide the e ticket at the Dubai airport that I had paid for. Their partner, Emirates Air, told me that since Continental had not provided the e ticket, I had to purchase a second ticket in order to make the flight and my connection in London. Continental is now claiming that it is entitled to keep the money I paid for both tickets. That is madness. I can only warn anyone who is considering flying with Continental Airlines to be aware of the fact that the company will steal from them if given a chance.

ALABAMA -- I was flying from Mobile to Alberta, Canada to meet with friends. A friend from Ont., Canada paid for the ticket. After a delay boarding, we had a weather delay and then the flight I was supposed to be on was already gone. I was then left to fend for myself with NO hotel, no food, no nothing. I had no money with me, this trip was a gift. I was meeting a friend for the last time, since she is terminally ill. I spent the night in Houston, then was sent to MN, then was put on a flight that had trouble and couldn't take off, then another flight that had engine trouble and couldn't take off, then another flight that was 55 min out and had to come back.

In the middle of all this there were 3 elderly that the airline didn't help at all from place to place, and a lady that didn't speak English. She was so wonderful through it all, but so scared. We finally got to Alberta THREE DAYS late. In the middle of the night. When I got there I found that because of the flight changes they had charged my friend over three thousand dollars!!! for a flight that originally was less than 700.00... And what do they say when we asked why... "Well she must have requested different flights."

Still this airline takes no responsibility for stealing from an old women, not taking care of the people on their flights and their customer service people being so rude and hateful that I had to back up before I came down to their level. My friend will be dead in a few months. She doesn't have time to live to fight with them. Needless to say they aren't worried about taking care of this problem.

SAVANNAH, GEORGIA -- Today I went to Savannah Airport to fly to Philadelphia, PA. I was at the airport a hour before the flight which is plenty of time at a small airport. I waited and waited at the Continental Airlines check in desk. No workers were in site so I went to the next desk. Finally some worker comes over to the Continental Airlines check in desk and tells me I cannot get on the flight. She said it was cut off a half hour before the flight. Now it was four minutes after the cut off time. I explained to the women that if she had been at the desk I would have made my flight. The women told me I was a LIAR and started a fight with me. Never in my life have I seen anything like this.

I asked to speak to the manager. He comes over. By this point the flight is leaving in 15 min. so I knew he couldn't get me on. I asked what their names were because I thought Continental Airlines had a right to know that their workers treat customers. The worker and manager said they don't have to and they will not give me their names. So needless to say the wonderful workers got me on a flight leaving seven hours later. Continental Airlines JUST LOST A GREAT CUSTOMER! I WILL NEVER FLY WITH THEM AGAIN. THEY ARE A DISGRACE!

On July 12, 2011 my husband and I arrived in Newark at 6:30 PM on flight Co1828 our checked bag did not. After a half hour waiting in line I was told the bag probably was on a later flight and would be delivered to our home before midnight.

The bag never came. I called the number provided and was told I had to wait 5 days before filing a claim because tags fall off. Our bag has our name and address in 3 different places so a lost tag isn't an excuse. After telling the representative my husband is a diabetic and needs to test his blood they said "he should have a back machine" I told her the bag contains most of our summer clothes. The reply was "that's a shame." The next phone call I was put on hold for 10 minutes and then cut off.

It has been a month since the bag was lost and still no help from Continental. The icing on the cake is we paid them to lose our bag. Needless to say we are not happy with Continental, not just because of losing the bag but the service and attitude of most of the reps.

I paid twenty five dollars to check my bag. When I got to my destination my laptop had been stolen from my bag. Continental has not helped in any way. They just give you more hoops to jump through hoping you will give up. Now I am a victim of identity thief. Wonder where they got my info? Thanks for turning my trip into a nightmare and destroying my life. Apparently one of the perks of working for this company is you get to keep what you steal from the customer.

You would think they would have cameras on your baggage but if they do they do not bother to check it. So they have folks that work for them who will steal your belongings. I will never fly with them or the company (United) who is about to join with them. Think twice about flying with them, as you may never see your belongings again, as it was with me. They will not help you in any way. Be forewarned.

I had booked a trip from Boston, MA to Shannon, Ireland for November for a family wedding. I booked my flights on different days due to work constrictions, so I would not be traveling with my family. Eventually I had decided I would take the extra time off and travel with my family, to my amazement, Continental waved the change fee and all I had to pay was the $200 difference in airfare! Recently I had been tracking the flights to get an idea of on time performance and noticed my flight from Boston to Newark was continuously arriving 50-60 minutes late, leaving us only about 10 minutes to connect if our flight happened to be that late.

I contacted Continental by e-mail to see if Continental holds flights for connecting international passengers. I received an e-mail from Denise ** explaining it was not their policy to hold flights for connecting passengers and she offered to switch us to a flight that left 1 hour and 20 minutes earlier from Boston-Newark. I immediately called Continental and the customer service representative I talked to was able to contact Denise and get us switched to the earlier flight at no charge! Thanks to the staff at Continental for working hard to make a stressful situation a little less stressful! Hopefully United keeps employees like Denise ** when the merger is complete!

Continental does something so unethical, it's almost remarkable in this day and age: You select a flight, confirm on the seating chart that they offer flatbed seats, purchase your ticket, and then at some point prior to the flight, Continental removes the flatbed seating chart and gives you their old, tired business class seats. This has happened to me twice now on trips to the Middle East. In one case, the seating chart remained as flatbed until less than 24 hours prior to the flight.

And guess what? If you complain via email to Continental, before, during or after your flights, they will not respond under any circumstances. One phone ticking agent told me, "You have contracted with us to fly you from point A to point B. We have the right to change our equipment at anytime without compensation." And this was just after I had had kidney problems and REALLY needed the flatbed seat. "Customer First" is Continental's motto. What hogwash. I'm curious to know if there are others out there who have had the same rug pulled out from them, in some cases, less than 24 hours prior to the flight? Does anyone know if we have a class action here for failure of services?