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Allegiant Air review: poor handling of passengers and lack of provisions 17

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12:00 am EDT
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I am complaining Allegiant Air is poor handling of passengers and lack of provisions or preparedness for those with hearing impairments. I was sitting by the gate for my return flight on June 25, 2017 (flight 474 from Las Vegas to Sioux Falls). The electronic LED sign above the counter was showing lights but no characters. Finally when I saw people line up to go onboard, I joined the line. When I got to the Allegiant ticket taker, she saw the ticket and informed me that my flight had changed gates! On this reservation, I had indicated that I was hearing impaired. I had already checked it at the front counter when I dropped off by luggage. There is no question I am at the airport ready and capable of taking the flight. Despite being identified in your system as having checked in and hearing-impaired, announcement(s) of gate changes were not made visually. After going to the new gate and getting on board, waited and waited only to be informed the plane needed minor repair and as soon as the engineer gets here, it should take 5 minutes to fix it . Finally after half hour, we were informed that plane could not be repaired and to go to another gate. After going to the 3rd gate and waiting, we were told that a mistake was made and that we needed to go to a 4th gate. After waiting at the 4th gate, we finally got on the plane and left Las Vegas three hours late. No proper apologies or accommodations were provided. Being my first time trying Allegiant, I was treated like second class citizen in that you did not have proper procedures, did not make sure that announcements were given visually as well as aurally, and did not make amends for inconveniencing your customers. I am taking the time to inform you of how it looks from the customers perspective. Your website states complaints can be made ONLY through mail even though tickets can be purchased electronically. Any written apology is not going to be sufficient; obviously with multiple Allegiant obstacles, it would be woefully inadequate. I request a refund on the return flight ticket. Not a credit or voucher but a refund under the circumstances. Hopefully your systems provide you adequate information to verify this legitimate complaint.

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17 comments
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David Br
, US
Apr 30, 2023 11:01 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Payment is not being processed. There's an error on your page. How do you provide a service and can't take payment? Chat doesn't go to live person. Phone call hold time is forever.

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Mike Feilmeier
, US
Mar 11, 2023 10:09 am EST

I purchased a bundle that includes seat selection, yet was billed separately for seat selection. I spoke to a gate agent who could not explain it, told me to call customer service, 25 minutes on hold, no one answers. It doesn't appear that AA cares about this.

Customer service called back couple of hours later, issuing voucher of $16.00.

Kimberly Spears
Kimberly Spears
, US
Mar 12, 2023 1:26 am EST

I am charged $12 for 'seat selection' 3 months after I chose a seat 'for free'. I am charged AFTER my flights. Why? THEN I find out that as a vet, I'm entitled to a couple of free carryons. I wasn't asked if I was a vet. An Allegiant clerk tells me she annotated my account & to contact Allegiant to get that $ back. I get $48.54 back for what?

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Chepe
West Chester, US
Jan 25, 2023 10:20 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I couldn't fly back in 2022 because COVID would you give me another voucher.

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sandra noel
Edgewater Florida 32132, US
Oct 15, 2022 7:26 pm EDT

Hurricane Ian caused a cancelation of my flight to Maine to BGR airport from Sanford Florida Looking fora refund of $435.oo

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oklapeach
Tulsa, US
Oct 10, 2022 1:02 pm EDT

I emailed earlier that I was overcharged on our future flight plans but realized later that the first plan presented did not include the exras, so no overcharge. Thank you.

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Esgl
, MX
Nov 12, 2018 12:28 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

On flight 416 from las vegas to mcallen in my checked luggage they stole my belongings, allegiant blames ats and ats on allegiant, I wonder? How can it be possible to steal things from a documented suitcase? What security is there in the luggage area?

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sccan
, US
Aug 31, 2011 3:26 pm EDT

I scheduled a trip to Blaine Washington from Palm Springs for my wife to spend her birthday with our grand children. I booked the flight 3 weeks ahead of time, and surprised her with the planned trip the morning of her departure.

On April 1st, 2017 arriving at the check in counter of Allegiant Air in Palm Springs at 10:37am for a flight scheduled for departure at 11:20am (43 minutes before departure) we were informed by the agent assisting a family of 4 (the father was wrapping his Coleman cooler with duct tape) just ahead of us that the counter was now closed, that we were considered a "NO SHOW" and we would not be allowed to check in and that we had forfeited our air fare. At first, I thought this was just a bad April fool’s joke. To my AMAZEMENT, it was not.
As we argued our importance of boarding this flight, another passenger scheduled for this flight, a young mother, with an infant daughter, whose husband was based out of the local 29 Palms Marine Base and was serving duty in Iraq, joined us in line to check in. This young girl was traveling to Blaine Washington to be with her mother who was in the hospital and was scheduled for stage 4 cancer surgery the following day. She explained her situation to the agent, asked for reconsideration to her boarding this flight, as she could not afford to forfeit her fare, and could not afford the additional $258.00 fare for the flight departing the following evening.
Keep in mind, Palm Springs Airport, even though it is considered an International Airport, is neither a very busy airport, it is also designed as a rather small, easy to maneuver airport. I have flown out of the facility numerous times because of its convenience, and ability to move thru quickly. I am certain we could have been at the boarding gate with time to spare to board this plane.
On witnessing this poor display of customer service, 2 couples, waiting to check in at the competitor airline (WestJet) next to the Allegiant Air counter came over and purchased the ticket necessary for this young girl to travel to see her mother the following evening. A TRUE ACT OF HUMAN KINDNESS! Much unlike the way the agent from Allegiant Air had treated us. I truly feel this agent got pleasure out of denying my wife and this young mother boarding, as she had a bit of a smirk on her face during the entire episode. Her only rebuttal was that we obviously had not read the Terms and Conditions of Allegiant when we purchased our tickets.
I will admit I did not know the airline REQUIRED a 2 hour check in time prior to departure…which seems rather extreme considering this particular airport. I think it necessary they find a way, besides the fine print in their T’s & C’s to inform their customers of such an unusual requirement. I also feel, if a passenger does not arrive with the RERQUIRED check in time, they at LEAST be given the opportunity to move through the security screening and attempt to get to the gate prior to departure. If at that point, we fail to catch the plane, shame on us for missing the flight.

Don’t take my word for it…check out the reviews of this airline on www.rateitall.com. You will see ALL airlines rated, and Allegiant has the most reviews to date (153) with the worst rating (2.35 of 5 stars) of all the airlines.
Needles to say, this is by far the worst display of customer service on the part of ANY company I have ever experienced!

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Maitine
, US
Sep 06, 2011 7:59 pm EDT

Beware consumer with this deceptive website. They advertise tickets at cheap prices but by the time they hit you with add on's your total ticket cost will at least double. If you don't watch out for all their add on's, you're screwed and by the time you see all the add on's it is only after you've paid for the ticket and by then you can do nothing about it. They additionally rip y0u off with the additional services they offer i.e. car rentals, show tickets etc. I paid $378.45 for 3 tickets to see Terry Fator at the Mirage/Las Vegas. When I picked these up at will call at the Mirage they advised me that had I bought the tickets directly through the Mirage my cost would have been around $320 including all fees.

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Semker
, US
Jun 25, 2010 12:34 pm EDT

Allegiant Airlines lost a loyal 3 year customer this morning. I arrived 45 minutes prior to departure only to be told I would not be able to make my flight due to their requirement to arrive 2 hours prior to departure. I have flown Allegiant many times before and have NEVER arrived 2 hours prior to departure. After accepting my fate I asked the Allegiant representative if we could apply my fare toward a different ticket or fly stand-by. His response was "No, you have forfeited your fare." Even though convenient, I will always choose another airline in the future.

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Morsi
, US
Jan 28, 2010 2:09 pm EST

I was traveling from Bellingham to San Diego from December 30th to January 4th. I asked the agent before I boarded if the flight would be on time. It was supposed to land in San Diego by 7:25 pm. The flight attendant told me that everything would be fine. I board the plane, put my luggage away, fasten by seatbelt and an announcement comes over the speaker stating that there is too much fog in San Diego and that we “MIGHT” be rerouted to Las Vegas. I asked the attendant if we could find out for sure if we were being rerouted, as I had someone driving from LA to San Diego to come pick me up. She had no idea and told me that we wouldn’t know until we got in the air. Ok that’s great! I made my girlfriend aware of the situation and told her to keep checking online, since it should be updated by the second. She kept checking online, and even called customer service. Customer service informed her that all was well and the plane would be landing in San Diego and the online system is the best way to keep track. At 7:50 pm we arrived in Las Vegas. At 7:55 the online system finally reflected this change, after she was already in San Diego. In Las Vegas, they told us that we would have no room accommodation and that Allegiant had no idea when the next flight would be. So basically we need to sit at the airport. I called customer service (45 minute hold) and they informed me to call back in another hour. So I waited at the airport, and called back. The rude representative told me I needed to call back in ANOTHER hour, so at this point, I told her how frustrated I was sitting on hold for 45 minutes at a time. I asked her if Allegiant had a central messaging system that passengers could use to call into to receive updates. We argued for awhile and she finally stated that Allegiants “policy” is to contact passengers once they figure out what the hell is going on. I said “ok, I’ll wait for the call.”

Next day rolls around and still no call. I finally called them at 12 noon and asked what the heck was going on. The rep informed me that the flight left at 11:00 am and now I have missed it. I informed the agent that I was supposed to get a call back and he informed me that he had nothing in the “notes.” Notes huh? Did the notes indicate that the representative had told my girlfirend to drive to San Diego? Did the notes indicate that I was supposed to get a call back? No! All the notes indicated was that I was supposed to call back in an hour, WHICH I DID.

Now the flight is gone, I pleaded for another flight, Erin (Allegiant Representative) said no, and I asked how am I supposed to get to San Diego for my flight on Sunday? The reps had no answers for me, and told me I could purchase a new ticket. I asked for at least ½ my money back and I can purchase my own ticket. That wasn’t allowed either. Asked to speak with a supervisor, he indicated that he would put in a “call back form.” Erin said that’s all he could do and hung up on me or common terminology that they use is “terminating the call.” Still waiting on this “supervisor” to call me back. I finally paid my own ticket through US Airways ($150) and flew myself to LAX.

I called on Friday 01/02/09 and Saturday 01/03/09 trying to find out the status. A representative by the name of Holly informed me that supervisors don’t even call back for these types of situations, but if I “wanted” she could fill out the form again. I asked what the point of a new form would be if supervisors didn’t even want to call back. She said that’s all she could help me, submitted the form and hung on me! Today is 01/08/09, still waiting on the call from the supervisor.

This is the worst airlines on the planet. I don’t care what anyone says, they are a nightmare. They claim to be low fare, but after all the fees and everything, they end up being just the same as any airline, however other airlines will at least give you a blanket, pillow, and a soda. The incompetent employees that work here are the worst. What kind of call center doesn’t let you speak with the supervisor or team lead? And why do they charge you a “convenience fee” when you book online, but if you book over the phone you are charged a “convenience fee” as well. WHAT CONVIENANCE! Get with the times. I’m embarrassed to tell people I flew this airline. NEVER EVER AGAIN.

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Itimco
, US
Mar 02, 2010 2:09 pm EST

My mom and I had a flight from San Diego to Monterey with Allegiant Airlines leaving at 11:20am. We arrived at the airport 1 hour before departure and no one was available at the ticket counter to check-in. Some agents for another airline paged Allegiant and notified them that some passengers were waiting to be checked-in and no one came out. We used the airport intercom to page them and NOTHING. We stood there, unable to do anything about it and unable to get any answers. Finally, after the flight departed, one very inept agent came out to the counter. We explained that he was at the counter an hour before departure and no one had come out to check us in. He insisted that he was there until 20 minutes prior to departure, which is a BIG LIE. I called customer services to complain, waited for over 30 minutes on the phone and no one ever picked up the phone. The cheap fares are too good to be true! DO NOT use Allegiant Airlines, it is not worth it!

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Notahappycustomerwithallegeniant
Phoenix, US
Jun 22, 2011 12:21 am EDT

I booked five tickets through Allegiant Airlines six months in advance to attend a family reunion in Chicago with my family. At the time when I purchased the tickets, I told the ticket agent (I purchased these tickets with an actual person and not via web) the date of birth of all of the passengers. I even made him aware of the fact that my youngest son was two years old. He said that my son would be considered a lap child and I would not have to pay for his ticket. Now, fast forward to seven days prior to our trip, I called to get information about our flight and their airline since this is the first time my family is flying with their airline, and was told that they made a mistake six months ago and now I needed to pay for my two year old son's ticket or he could not fly. I explained to the ticket agent that we do not have the money right now to make such a large purchase and that it was their fault they made the mistake in the first place. I also explained that my two year old has a disability and will not be able to sit alone and that is when the ticket agent told me "we don't care about disabilities." My husband and I have called several times to speak with a manager and they will not allow us to do so and we also asked if they could reserve a seat for our two year old for two days until we get the money to pay for his ticket and they told us they can't do it. I asked how many seats are available so that I know whether or not I will even be able to purchase his ticket and they said they are not allowed to give out that information. They were rude, not accountable for their mistake and DO NOT CARE ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS AT ALL!

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Hula
,
Jan 03, 2008 12:00 am EST

My elderly mother traveled on this flunky airline for Christmas and New Years, 2017. She paid (and you will, too) $587 for her ticket and "baggage charge, seat assignment charge".
She was late leaving Cedar Rapids Iowa on December 20th by a half an hour. Trouble is, the company's web site said the flight was leaving on time. She has to travel over an hour to get to Cedar Rapids.
When leaving today from Phoenix/Mesa Gateway airport, we checked the company's web site and they said the flight was on time with a departure of 0815am. We have a long travel time from north Scottsdale to this small airport, but arrived in a little over a half an hour. She checked in with a male ticket agent eating a bagel and the ticket counter, and a woman who was very rude. NO mention of a delay! We go around the corner to sit down and my husband hears from another passenger that the flight is delayed until 10:30am. We check with airline's toll free number and it directs us to a local Nevada phone number for assistance. We wait and wait and get disconnected. The ticket agent says the flight is delayed until 10:30 but wont provide any other information. Several other passengers are trying to get information regarding what is going on, and we are only told there is a mechanical with the plane that is there, and they are sending another plane. We left and had breakfast off site, returning at 9am. Still no plane, still no information.
Several complaints later we insist they make an announcement and they comply. Still liars-they say the plane is on the way and now say departure is 11am.
You get the drift--it is a JOKE of an airline! They charge for an advance seat assignment, they charge to check a bag, they are rude, they lie when asked for information. This flunky airline makes USAirways look like a picture perfect postcard!
DON"T WASTE YOUR TIME WITH ALLEGIANT AIR!

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tommyflies
Allentown, US
Mar 21, 2012 2:26 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

The simple face and truth is this. Don't make Allegiant Air out to be the bad guy. I have flown Allegiant as well many times. And it has always been there standing policy to check in at least 2 hours before departure of the flight. I have always followed this practice. Even with pre assigned seating. And priority boarding. People have to realize it simply takes more time today to board a flight than in years past. Especially since 911/TSA has to be allowed that min window to prescreen and scan passagers for boarding. Large airport, Or small airport. In Allegiants case small airports. Because that's what they service. All airlines, Not just Allegiant, have a min 45 min minimum for checking passengers in before departure. Withe most airlines the computer system locks them out. So even if they wanted to check you in they can't. Its not that I am unsympathetic to your situation. No one wants to lose money or be denied a flight when they have to get somewhere. But following a standard guideline all airlines follow. In this case Allegiant, Isn't the bad guy simply because you where late getting to the airport. The moral of the story is arrive early. And avoid the heartache.

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Frank Cox
,
Nov 02, 2008 5:21 pm EST

I think if you are upset over 30 mins delay, then your life must be a living nightmare! And if you looked at the website closely, the fight tracker they use for delays is a 3rd party website. Man, 30 min delay...if that ruins your day, then I really feel sorry for you. Maybe I don't let life bother me, especially delays with a airline. I have flown many airlines and have flown Allegiant and never had a problem with them as far as they handle the customers. I am sorry but maybe you shouldn't be flying if you let one little delay bother you and really need to get a grip.

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Janet
,
Oct 17, 2008 1:01 pm EDT

I hope they keep up the good work. I will fly with them.