Lufthansa

I had a terrible experience with LH in May 2015. I was offloaded without information and then insulted and humiliated by the staff, before being forced to pay exorbitant airfares to make alternative travel arrangements.

LUFTHANSA ARE CHEATS WAITING TO SELL YOUR TICKETS A SECOND TIME FOR PROFITS AND ARE RACIST AND DISCRIMINATORY TO INDIANS. And they have no customer service etiquette or ethics.

I will describe my experience first. I complained on 4th June, and still no response.

On 28th May, I departed from John F. Kennedy International Airport Terminal 1, New York City, USA, with my family (comprising my wife and two small children), en route to Bangalore, India. Our flight number was LH0754 and the Reference Number ZPCYLV (Ticket Number: [protected])

At JFK Airport, we were checked in all the way to Bangalore, and issued boarding passes for both sectors, i.e., JFK to Frankfurt and Frankfurt to Bangalore. (Boarding pass copied are attached).

After an uneventful flight, we arrived at Frankfurt airport at around 11:10 AM the next morning, and immediately proceeded to the departure gate C16, from where the Frankfurt to Bangalore flight was to take off. We arrived at the gate at around 11:35 AM, after clearing security.

At the gate, we were told that due to a global software outage, all boarding was indefinitely delayed. We went to the counter and showed our boarding passes, and the same information was again given, along with the assurance that when the problem was resolved, boarding will be announced. With this information, we settled down to wait, along with other passengers.

Frankfurt airport is large, and gate C16 is designed in a way that passengers approach the gate down a corridor on the left. While there is a waiting area in front of the gate, there are also seats on the corridor, which is separated from the waiting area by a wall, and from where one cannot see the gate. Since the waiting area was extremely crowded and there were no seats left, and since my children were very tired after the long flight from JFK, we settled down with our bags on the seats in the corridor.

Repeatedly we heard clear announcements about the software outage and that all boarding was indefinitely delayed.

At 12:35 PM, I went to the gate to check, and found that no progress had been made. The lady at the counter again confirmed to me that once the problem was resolved, boarding will be announced. I went back to my seat, which was right next to the gate, but from where we could not see the gate. But we were assured of announcements, and were not worried. How wrong we were!

At 1:05 PM, when my wife went to check, she got the shock – boarding was already complete and the gates were closed! She immediately called me and we ran to the gate with our bags.

At the gate, the same ladies told us very rudely that they could do nothing as the gates had been closed and our seats had been given to some other passengers. Our bags had been offloaded and they were unable to help. It seems Lufthansa was in a desperate hurry to sell our seats to someone else and make more money.

I was standing at the gate with my tired family, and the airline staff showed absolutely no sympathy or understanding. When I asked about the announcements of delay and that no announcements for boarding were made, they shrugged and said that they did not need to make any announcements and that others who were in front of the gate had already boarded.

This was while the flight delay announcements were being made continuously!

I showed them our boarding passes and demanded why we were not paged for, since we were clearly registered to travel to Bangalore. Again, no satisfactory response was given, and the staff spoke to each other in German and shrugged saying they could not do anything.

My wife requested them to reconsider, since we could see the aircraft still parked in front of us. At this stage one lady (tall, with dark complexion and dark hair) screamed at her, “what part of what I said don’t you understand? The gate is closed. Are you stupid?”

In spite of this insult, my wife requested again, to which this lady said “I can’t have this discussion any more” and turned her back to us and walked away!

In my 20 years of international flying, I have never experienced such rude, insensitive and insulting behaviour from any airline staff. I felt humiliated and deeply upset, and my children started to cry. The other staff members looked on impassively.

I wonder if the ladies at the counter would have behaved the same way if the colour of my skin was white. This behaviour, so shockingly unacceptable and incorrect, appeared racist to me.

At 1:12 PM, I received an SMS stating that the flight will now depart at 1:20 PM. If I had received this message earlier, I could have come to the gate on time. This is another clear indication on the callousness on part of the airline, which cost us dearly. A screenshot of the message is attached, clearly showing the time of receipt as AFTER the gates had closed.

After a lot of requesting, one lady informed us that we should check with the Lufthansa Service Centre, to see other options. She mentioned that Lufthansa will put us on the next available flight to India. Again, we were wrong to believe any assurance from Lufthansa staff.

As we ran to the Service Centre, the monitor screens were still showing our flight as “Boarding”. Please note that this is around 1:20 PM. And the screen does not show “Final Call” or “Gate Closed”. In our hurry we ran past without questioning the staff at the gate as to how they sold our valid tickets to others while Boarding was still officially going on.

At the Service Centre, the staff was aggressive and told me that this was our fault that we missed the flight. When I pointed out that no announcements were made in spite of assurances, and nobody had paged for us, the lady at the counter said she was not sure why.

She then checked our tickets and made the next shocking disclosure – that we could be accommodated only on other Lufthansa flights, and since all were booked, we had no alternatives available. When I asked why we were not given seats on other airline partners, she said it was not possible. Again, as a frequent traveller I found this odd, since as a part of Star Alliance, Lufthansa should have that ability to do so. As well as the concern for distraught passengers with small children to try and help.

However, no such options were offered to us. The lady, Ms.Brown was kind enough to find that the next available option for us was a late evening Air India connection to Delhi. She connected us to a travel desk, which informed us that we would have to buy the tickets at available rates. When we asked for an adjustment against the fare paid already, our request was refused.

Since I had two anguished children and we were tired after a long trans-Atlantic flight, I relented and we paid for the tickets. And then separately booked for a Delhi – Bangalore flight in the evening. The total cost of this was huge and we were not prepared for this. This further added to our distress.

We finally boarded the Air India flight 9:15 PM, eight hours after our scheduled departure and finally reached Bangalore at 12:10 AM on 31st May. Almost 24 hours after our scheduled arrival with Lufthansa.

Due to this delay, my family and I faced tremendous problems, emotional distress as well as huge financial burdens:

1. Emotional trauma. Due to rude and insensitive behaviour of Lufthansa ground staff, my children are deeply impacted by the experience, seeing their parents’ humiliation and helplessness, and feeling insecure in a foreign airport. They are still disturbed and feel discriminated against, racially.

2. Financial impact. Due to the non-cooperation of the Lufthansa staff to put us on another flight, we had to bear all the expenses of flying back from Frankfurt to Bangalore. This includes not just the airfare, but also ground transport as we had to step out of the Delhi airport for refreshments as well as excess baggage charges for the Delhi – Bangalore domestic sector. The above costs are to the tune of Euro 4000.

3. Business cost. Due to the delay in arrival in Bangalore, I missed two very important business meetings scheduled for Saturday, 30th May. One meeting was to plan a large foreign contract, and my failure to attend this meeting has resulted in a loss of business for my company to the tune of Euro 45, 000.

And I have some very key questions for Lufthansa, for which I need answers:

1. Why was the boarding not announced, when the flight delay was being announced?

2. Why were we not paged for, since we had already checked in and were waiting close by? Why the haste to give our seats to someone else? What kind of unscrupulous and unethical behaviour is this?

3. Why was the message for 1:20 PM departure received by us only at 1:12 PM, after the gates had already closed?

4. Why did Lufthansa staff at gate C16 behave with us in such rude and demeaning manner, to humiliate and insult us? This was most shocking for an airline of such repute, and was clearly racially motivated and completely unacceptable.

5. Why did Lufthansa Service Centre not accommodate us on a different flight and make us pay for the Frankfurt – Delhi – Bangalore trip? Has Lufthansa lost the basic sense of fairness and customer service, when the flight was missed due to its own lapses?

Lufthansa's response was to brush it aside and offer nothing but lame excuses and processes.

I wrote back on 9th June with the following questions:

It is extremely disconcerting that you are trying to pass off the blame of this entire fiasco, orchestrated by your untrained and indecent ground staff on us, for being "late to the gate”. I find this preposterous and false. How were we late to the gate when we were there before the flight delay message arrived on my phone? How were we late to the gate when the screen on top of the gate was showing the flight as “boarding”?

And how can you attempt to sidestep the crucial matter - that we were already checked in from NYC to Bangalore, had valid boarding passes which we showed the staff at the gate, and were waiting less than 10 feet away, waiting for announcements of boarding which were not done? While the carrier can announce flight delays repeatedly, why did it not announce boarding commencement and final calls, like every other professional and competent airline anywhere in the world? And your staff knew we were waiting to board, and we must have been listed as already checked in in your records. Why were we not paged for?

How could Lufthansa be so callous about passengers flying with them? Please do not pass the blame to us.

As for the SMS reaching me AFTER the gate had closed apparently, you say that it "took slightly longer than usual to provide accurate up-to-date information”. So, whose fault is that? You, as the party responsible for our safety and travel, need to ensure that passengers are communicated on latest status in time. I blame your carrier for this miscommunication, for which we missed our flight. I have not received any other update since then, no email or any intimation of delay or status. The only message sent was incorrect and caused me this unwanted trouble and trauma to my family. Please do not pass the blame to technology.

Then you mention that "Lufthansa condemns any incidents of racist or bigoted behaviour”. I hope it does. I have been checking internet sites and sources, and there are numerous such complaints about your staff misbehaving with guests, often on racial basis. I would like to know what steps are being taken over this. My wife and I can identify the lady in question as we were most disgusted by her, as my small children stood shocked and hurt by her rude and uncouth behaviour towards their parents. So, I will not allow you to brush this off under the carpet but would want an update on the action taken by the airport. We will be happy to collaborate with the authorities, if needed.

You claim to be surprised that we were told that our seats were given to other passengers, while the flight had empty seats. Trust me, we were surprised as well. Shocked and angry that your ground staff was so callously dealing with us, announcing that they had offloaded our luggage as well, while the flight status was still showing boarding and the aircraft was waiting on the tarmac. Was is greed for money Mr.Tickle? To sell the same seats to another passenger, to make profits twice? It seems like that to me. And since you are surprised and admit that the flight had empty seats, empty seats that were denied to us, I am again concerned as to why you are claiming that this is not your responsibility and we should not be compensated for this. Please do not pass the blame to ignorance and confusion.

Your email is no solution or solace to passengers who have faced the brunt of your bad behaviour and unhelpful attitude. You mention that your "Customer Relations do not have access to the booking records of Star Alliance flights on the date in question”. This is a complete lie. It was your Customer Relations that informed us of the Air India flight available in the evening, it was your Customer Relations that connected us to the travel agency through whom we were forced to make the bookings. And Air India, for your information, is a part of Star Alliance.

Clearly, your Customer Relations knew of next flight, and of available seats, but chose not to provide us with them. They chose not to help us, and wash their hands off our case even as we stood in front them, pleading for help. What kind of pathetic customer service and uncivil attitude and behaviour can I attribute this to? So, again, please do not blame lack of information for your Customer Relations team’s actions.

Finally, throughout the mail, you take a tone of helplessness. That you are unable to do more, due to restrictions. Mr.Tickle, even if I believe you, these are restrictions you have placed on yourself, and Lufthansa and you are hiding behind them in spite of my legitimate complaints and demands. You have the power to remedy and compensate to the point possible, and it is again disappointing that you are choosing not to do so. The excuse of restrictions are flimsy, and completely unacceptable.

You say that you can process a refund. What would that mount to? I have real costs and real concerns on this side, and I hope that this can match up to the same.

I repeat my concerns, and demand better answers than you have provided, since they have not satisfied me in any fashion and not helped address the pain and trauma caused to my family and me. These are:
1) While we were waiting less than 10 feet away from the gate for over an hour, why were no announcements made for flight boarding to inform us of the changed status? Why were we not paged for since our names must have been on the passenger manifest of checked-in guests?
2) Why were we offloaded while boarding was still going on, and why were our seats sold to others if the flight had empty seats?
3) Why did Lufthansa ground staff not put us on the next available flight at the cost to the carrier? Why did they find out the next available flight and then connect us to an external party instead of booking us on the same flight at no extra cost?
4) Why did Lufthansa ground staff behave so rudely with us, insulting my wife in front of her family, and why did the other staff members present at the gate not correct her?
5) Why is Lufthansa refusing to take responsibility for its failure to provide safe and timely carriage to a paying passenger and trying to pass of the blame to all others? Where is this great company’s sense of pride and responsibility? How is it that Lufthansa cares so little about passenger welfare and also its reputation?

Till date, no response to this, at all.

That's why, just avoid. THEY ARE CHEATS WAITING TO SELL YOUR TICKETS A SECOND TIME FOR PROFITS AND ARE RACIST AND DISCRIMINATORY TO INDIANS. And they have no customer service etiquette or ethics.

They lost my bag on a FRA-IAH flight on May 22. The bag was delivered on May 29. They told me you can buy clothing and we will reimburse you 50%. I have submitted a claim to them and nobody has ever contacted me. The problem is you cannot call their Customer Relations, everything is done by email. And of course, they ignore emails. Another problem - they allow ethnic food on international flights (I mean really smelly food) and when I asked them if it was ok to eat such nasty things, the flight attendant said yes. I was flying LH quite a lot but from now on, bye-bye. Good luck with the passengers who eat smelly sh..t. Hope they will help this joke of an airline to avoid bankruptcy. Ha-ha-ha.

To whom it may concern:

Booking Reference: ZRTDW5
Document Number: [protected]

INTRODUCTION
My husband and I have experience a very injurious treatment from Lufthansa after being loyal customers. My husband is being flying Lufthansa every 2 months since he moved to Equatorial Guiney, with the confidence that Lufthansa has the understanding and customer service that we look for. This is not our experience right now, and I expect for someone in management to correct this unfair actions ASAP.

ISSUE
My Husband (Julio A. Abril) bought a ticket last month, and tried to change the return day on April 8th, maintaining the Economic status to avoid any penalties. He did the change online and upon completion he received the $300 receipt for the change as expected. Lufthansa did not only charged the $300 fee but also charged a new ticket of $3, 840.50. Julio called immediately after noticing this charge in our account, but the representative was not allowed to make the change and provided him with a different phone number. We waited until the next day to make the call hoping that this was just a mistake that would be corrected by Lufthansa anytime. As the charge went through deducting $3840.50 from our account, we called again only to get a terrible service and the notification that Lufthansa was not going to give our money back. The explanation given to my husband was the following: since we changed the flight status from Economic G to Economic S, this charge had to be applied with no options of change or cancellation. My husband explained the situation and confusion that we experienced by doing this online with no luck. The Lufthansa representative did not help us correct the mistake even though we called immediately after seeing this charge.

CONCLUSION
Management needs to help us correct this mistake, and undo this charge. To continue flying with Lufthansa, we need to have the confidence that if there is a mistake or confusion on an online reservation, we can call and get the assistance needed. Lufthansa has been in the past an excellent option because of this confidence, please don’t change your reputation and previous performance for this incident.

unsecured operation on credit card .
refusal of boarding by an agent of the company at the airport.
delay of departure of one week longer in paris.
no answer nor anything after 15 days of the company. a a Lufthansa 'sagent in paris at the booking department did not do the operation while taking my credit card and 3 codes number, for a change in my return trip. the 25 of september. when I arrived to the airport I was refused to get in the plane by the worst agent I ever met, althought she could have porposed me to get in the plane. for 15 days up to now, although my claim file is [protected], no one did apologize or propose any compensation.

I flew from Saint Petersburg, Russia to Munich and then Munich to London. On arrival I found my bag had been lost.
I was given a reference number and told to contact the company by phone; they would be keeping track and trying to get my bag back. I called and got the most resentful sounding woman ever. After a few days I called again and she informed me I'd have to get in touch via email with Lufthansa and shouldn't phone her again.
I thought this was BAD customer service but okay. I got in touch. I've been in touch -4 times so far - and still haven't received any word about my bags - compensation. I did receive one automated reply - that was 3 weeks ago now.

I will never fly Lufthansa again.

Flew from USA to Kiev, Ukraine on 8/6/14 on Lufthansa. When I arrived Kiev my suitcase was not there. Went to Lost and Found and filed report. I had some questions and they directed me to the Lufthansa office, The Lufthansa employee said they did not know how to answer my questions and could not help. In 5 days my suitcase was delivered to me. Driver told me it would have been there sooner but Lufthansa gave them the wrong address. When I opened the suitcase I found some items were stolen and some broken items.

Travelling from CDG on LH1041 to FRA on 29th July 2014 on transit basis to continue via LH692 to Amman-Jordan which departs at 20:45 and was delayed until 22:00 and my luggage is already on board.. Upon presentation I was told that flight been cancelled and to go to Lufthansa counters at hall B for further details and eventual hotel accommodations and meal vouchers .I had queue up for three hours before my turn came, and then all counters closed down without any explanations and one Lufthansa personnel came accompanied by 16 police men to calm the crowd and said it is our problem to find hotels and restaurants. And as you are aware that no seating facilities for all the crowd and all café bars were all closed. it meant standing up or sleeping on the floor. at 5.30am I had to queue up at the ticketing counters for a solution to travel to Amman. and my turn came at 13.00hrs and eventually I found a seat on RJ126 leaving from terminal 2. Iam 67 years old with hart problems, my daily medications where in my luggage and consequently I developed inflammation in my back and thigh muscles of which to date iam under medications. with these events I received zero help from LH personnel who are not to a standard and are un-pleasant and not helpful. How a reputable airline allows such events or the personnel are trained to be prejudges against Arab speaking customers . leaving the matter to you to settle in a civil manner not with a simple apology.

On January 6th 2014, departing Budapest Hungary my husband and I pre-booked tickets for two puppies and one adult dog. Once we arrived at the airport in Budapest we were informed that because of a special Seeing Eye dog we could not bring one of the puppies on the plane. We reserved the tickets back in September so I was infuriated . The ticket agent then called the supervisor who came down and give me a bunch of excuses as to why I could not have both puppies on board. We also had an older dog going in cargo, but that too did not have enough room. The supervisor was less than accommodating and discourteous.He asked if I would mind traveling alone and my husband could come on a later flight, I refused to accept that as a solution. I told the supervisor that the Seeing Eye dog was being lead around by this so called blind person and was as blind as I am. He still refused to listen then said that our crate was too small and rolled his eyes at me, then just walked away. I called Lufthansa the day before my departure to check on the size of the crate and I was given the maximum size it could be, I was never told what was considered too small according to the Lufthansa supervisor in Budapest.We had to call my brother-in-law to come back to the airport and take the dog home. The man who took a 50 pound Seeing Eye dog on board was reading the newspaper while we were in flight, but they wanted to deny me boarding with my Puppies. This mess cost me $500.00 that I will now have to pay to ship the dog in cargo.
Once we arrived in Frankfurt we could not secure a boarding pass for my husband because the flight to DFW was over booked due to bad weather in New York.After more aggravation I was able to have my husband travel with me in the same seat we reserved back in September, so there was absolutely no reason for that additional altercation. I have been one of your customers for over 20 years, and when traveling overseas I always elect Lufthansa as my provider, but I must say after this, I can’t say I would travel with Lufthansa again in the future.I am so disappointed with the lack of concern and impoliteness of the Budapest staff, I really expected more from Lufthansa. I still have to ship my three dogs to Dallas from Budapest, but there is a major difference in price shipping 3 dogs instead of 2 dogs. I believe Lufthansa should ship the three dogs for the price of 2 since most of this incident could have been avoided with proper information and better customer service.
After months of sending e-mails, I received a email from Linda Stiene who could only offer me 20% off my next Lufthansa flight...Horrible

Boa tarde,
Somos uma familia de 2 adultos e 2 criança que viajamos em dia 12.09.2013 de cluj- napoca(romenia) para madrid (espanha) com escala em Munich quando chegamos em madrid as nossas malas chegaro partidas fizemos reclamaçao, mas quando abrimos uma mala vimos que havia uma garrafa de vinho e uma prenda que era um parfume partidas e 2 peças de roupa estragadas.Ligamos para o numero [protected] e mandaro-ne fazer uma queixa no customer.feedback.[protected]@lufthansa.com. Junto mando os fotos qual monstra os danos. Agredeço a sua resposta. Não consigo mandar os fotos manda-me um e-mail onde posso mandar os fotos.

Wow! Very rude customer service people, couldn't handle a simple request! I was given attitude, my questions were ignored with silence, no help whatsoever. A big waste of time to call Lufthansa customer service on Sunday! Seems like their Sunday office is located somewhere overseas where people simply don't care to help you out. I could barely communicate my concerns with their customer service as they didn't seem to understand English and instead gave me an attitude. Will be making a formal complaint and just letting others know to prepare themselves that you will waste some precious time of your life calling them with no resolution of any kind whatsoever.

On Monday, February 4, 2013 10:28AM, I bought a round-trip ticket from (IAH) Houston to (LOS) Lagos, departing on 08-February, 2013 with ticket #220-[protected]. I used the said ticket to travel on the said date but, on returning, I was told that my ticket was cancelled because of "fraudulent transaction".
I managed to find my way back in Houston after seven days. But when I visited the Lufthansa office at IAH Houston for clarification, i was told the return ticket was refunded into an unknown account.
Please, i need more explanations on this transaction. Thanks

Regarding my experience after Lufthansa lost my luggage:

16 March 2013

Thanks to Lufthansa to ruin my vacation and business trip to Miami. I arrived to Miami by FRA‐MIA
flight at 16 March 3 pm. My luggage didn't show up. I filled up a lost luggage form. They told me that
my luggage will come with the next flight which will be tomorrow at the same time. So they told me
it will took 5 hours to clear the customs and other things and I could get my luggage by 17 march 8
pm. Looks fine. But I shouldn't have believed what they told me.

17 March 2013
I started waiting for but it didn't come by then. So my calls started to the call center 1‐877‐234‐3449.
They were my travel mates during my stay in Miami because I haven't talked to anyone more than I
talked to them.

After many calls that night finally they told me they can't deliver my bag before midnight. Ok I
started waiting midnight it didn't show up as you may guess.

18 March 2013

In the morning of 18 March I called them again to ask my luggage. They told me it has already been
delivered! But the reception did not verify that any luggage was delivered. So for next 3 hours
nobody knew where my luggage was! After 3 hours of investigation call center came up with new
info. They told me it wasn’t delivered last night because they couldn't find the address so they took it
back! This info was declared to be false later on. I asked them why they didn't give a call to the
reception even it was asked each time I talk to the call center which was clearly given in my contact
info! As you may guess no reply!

But the adventure continues.. About 3 pm they promised me my luggage will be with me between 5‐
6 pm. That's fine I could wait couple more hours. I already checked out the hotel to stay at another
place and waiting in front of the hotel to go somewhere else. So I did not want to leave there without
getting my luggage.

Sure they didn't bring it by 6 pm. Same story I had a call. They told me to wait a little bit more. I
waited one more hour. Called again. They told me due to heavy traffic it lasted longer than expected.
(By the way I am just 20 minutes far away from the airport) They called the delivery company and
told me that my luggage was on the way and will be with me in 10 to 15 minutes. It was about 7pm.
That's fine but guess what, it didn't show up again!

So I made another call about 8 pm. And this time they told me they could not give any certain time
but they will try to bring my luggage at midnight.

It was 10pm. I was terribly upset, stuck in a place where I shouldn't be at, my vacation ruined, lost a
lot of valuable hours and after waiting about 31 hours since my luggage arrived at airport and making
more than 20 calls to the call center I don't even have an estimate what time I could get my luggage.

This was so unacceptable.

The trouble continues...

It wasn’t delivered in midnight also. Then I had to transfer to another hotel without my luggage. So
another day of my precious trip to Miami was wasted by Lufthansa even if they promised to deliver it
during the day.

19 March 2013

I called the call center as regular. That has been becoming my hobby. After reading all the notes that
took about 20 minutes they told me that the delivery was probably made but not sure what time. So
I called the hotel which I was staying to verify whether they received the luggage but they didn't get
anything. So I was lost again.

During the day time I had to call them many times to get a clear and definite information regarding
where my luggage is. Finally they told me that I should better talk with the delivery company! So
here comes a new period in the pursuit of finding my luggage.

Then I started calling the delivery company. They were so sure that Lufthansa call center was giving
me wrong information. They told me that my luggage has never been given to the delivery company
by Lufthansa and it was staying in the airport for two days! You can’t imagine how much I was
frustrated due to the insufficient luggage tracking system and that I had to solve this problem by
myself even talking with a subcontractor of Lufthansa considering Lufthansa was very responsible to
deliver the luggage to me in a timely manner and efficient way.

The delivery company told me that they need to verify if my luggage is actually in the airport. After
about an hour at 6 pm I talked with a person from the delivery company whose name is Eric. He
informed me regarding the status of my luggage. According to him, my luggage was staying in the
airport for two days and had never been loaded on the truck. I was so astonished with this info.
Because this means that the call center was totally making up some stories about the status of my
bag last two days. I asked this directly to Eric. His comment was very surprising: “They are
###ting. They don’t know anything. They are located in Canada and making up stories”. In short,
Eric told me to go to the airport and take my luggage myself. And I did that.

But Eric was so wrong! My luggage was not there also! I was totally frustrated. All I could think of at
that moment was to find my bag and return back my home safe. And the responsible personnel don’t
have any clue where my bag is. Apparently they don’t have a reliable tracking system of a lost
luggage.

So they told me to go to my ex‐hotel and check if it is there or not! That was being so ridiculous
chasing after my bag. I told them “No! I will not go anywhere I will just call the police and tell them
that you are hiding my luggage”. It was like a set‐up joke scene. After then they told me that they will
call my ex‐hotel to check. That was so surprising because they were not sure whether they delivered
it to the hotel or not. Rationally they should be sure about where they delivered the luggage, who
received it, what time it was delivered and so on. It’s not a rocket science!

At last they called my ex‐hotel and found out that my luggage was delivered there! Thanks God.
Finally we succeed to find it.

They dropped it in my hotel but they had no clue about it! They learned it after calling the hotel and
let them check if there is a luggage with my name on it. I waited about 30 minutes in the office for
them to find the exact address of my bag. That was so unacceptable.

This could seem like a really long complain letter with many details. But believe me I am not giving
many details and summary of the many other calls.

This is not how a business should be done. And I was shocked to see how an airline company could
be this much disorganized and lack managing of a lost luggage.

Eric and Lufthansa employee was blaming the hotel not to deliver my luggage to me. That was so sad
to see that they do not even know that they are responsible with my luggage until I receive it.
The entire incident was not handled properly. There was no system at all. Call center was just making
the situation even worse by providing wrong information. There was no focus on passenger
satisfaction. My experience is that there was no customer service at Lufthansa at least in Miami
airport. The way how lost luggage management handled the problem was catastrophic.

Luggage lost is a common issue for airlines which shouldn’t be classified as a big deal. But the way
they handle makes all the difference. I unfortunately already had a lost baggage problem with
another major airline contrary to Lufthansa handled it in a very quick and efficient manner. They
delivered my luggage to the exact location at the exact time what I had been advised beforehand. I
am astonished by the poor quality of Lufthansa’s customer services. Main concern here is not about
losing a luggage but the whole way lost luggage issue is handled and managed (or not managed).

I would like to publish my dissatisfaction to demonstrate as an example how extent a very well
recognized company could manage a situation this much disorganized.

Lufthansa has possibly the worse customer service department which I have had the unfortunate circumstance to deal with. I recently booked a flight from Graz in Austria to Singapore in July via their website. However, after supplying my card details and awaiting confirmation and e-tickets to arrive, nothing happened. I called up their customer services in Germany and spoke to 5 different representatives but no one could find my booking even though the price of the ticket has been deducted from my bank account. I was told to detail the complaint in an email which I did, but only got a reply via email to contact their customer services department again as they need more information. After speaking to 5 people and detailing all the information in 3 seperate emails, what more can I do? No one has had the courtesy to call me back and no one can be bothered to take responsibilty for my complaint. Needless to say, my money has yet to be returned...

I WILL NEVER FLY WITH LUFTHANSA AGAIN and advice other people to think carefully before buying tickets of this airlines
It was my second flight with Lufthansa (as I liked the first I decided to fly again with this airlines so stupid I was), connecting flight to Moscow through Munich. I handed my suitcase convinced that it will be delivered to Moscow 'safe and sound'. BUT : here it starts
1) the lock of my luggage was broken and they even DID NOT PUT IT INSIDE, they threw it away (actually it was already half broken(visible) so you didn't need any key to open it)
2) the cookies that I bought as a gift for my friend (she begged to bring them very much) were SQUEEZED
3) all the stuff inside the luggage was messed up, they read all copies of my documents - passport, insurance, tickets etc- so I even can not be sure that someone didn't make copy of them and will not go and get loan from the bank tomorrow(very possible in many countries - there are a lot of fraudsters working everywhere). It was my vacation and I never thought that it will end up like that. I am happy I wanted to buy cheese(around 2 kg) but forgot to do it otherwise they would squeeze that cheese also.
I saw other suitcases and feel pity for passengers because LUFTHANSA DOESN"T CARE ABOUT THE LUGGAGE IT IS SUPPOSED TO DELIVER IN THE CONDITION IT WAS RECIEVED . And I am happy that I haven't put anything precious into my suitcase as they could easily do something to it(steal, break etc... - things they do very often as I see now how many complaints there are)
I wonder - why is it not written with large red letters on their site(on homepage) that they don't care about luggage, delivery and it's condition after the flight? why don't tell the truth - that it will be damaged, messed up, lost, stolen etc?

The group of six member travelling from Delhi to Sam Francisco (Dr Sharika Roy, Jayant Roy, Royan Roy, Ritesh Roy, Amitesh Roy and Mr.Satyapati ). When they reached Merrick they found their baggage missing, immediately informed the Lufthansa staff all about this but till 4 days no status on this updated till date.
Tag Number : LH353976
Lufthansa -Del Merrick LH763
Del - Francisco - SSOLH 58179
We have already put the complain earlier and this ou second reminder on it.
Please suggest what do now.

The Lufthansa help system states: As a rule the fare for children up to 12 years of age is reduced and complies with the applicable fare conditions.

Every time I booked a flight this year no child discount was available. I contacted the customer service to get information in which cases a child discount is available. From the frequent traveller office I didn't receive any answer. At the second attempt, I received a message that only technical problems on the web page could be answered. The service agent on the phone stated that 'nobody knows' the criteria for the discount. She gave me the contact details of a different department. But that department only answers questions form HON circle members. I was advised to start over at the frequent flyer office...

I am very dissatisfied with the customer (service) experience.

I had faced the worst air light when i & my wife were coming from california to cairo last wednesday 08 feb 2012 ” Tickets no. [protected]/01 & [protected]/03 ” because of the below : 1- The flight was so un-comfortable as the plane was small and the seats were so tight . 2- When we arrived i waited for 3 hours to get my bags and by asking I was finally told that the bags are missing and that due to a problem occured in california the bags was loaded on our plan.

So i manged my temper and asked when will they arrive, then i was told that they are comming soon “as usual ” and expected to be delivered today night or maximum tomorrow morning . 3- Actually tje bags finally arrived but 2 days late than waht i promised with and what it made it worst that my bags were all damaged as they opened all my bags and not obly by breaking the locks but they cutted the Zip totally so that i now can’t use them anymore beside there was 2 perfume boxex i was taking as presents to my friends were missing and also a Guess Watch wasn’t there .

4- I suffered a lot as i am diabetic and all my decine were on bags so i was 2 days delayed on my medicine and got tired, so i had to refer to a hospitle in egypt and i suffered a lot with un-experienced Doctors and bad Medicine Quality just to servive, My wife also had to buy another medicines for her stomach .
5- Finally i was for 2 days with no clothes as all my clothesere in the bags so i had to buy new clothes .

It was really a nightmare and i won’t tell you how can you compensate this but for now I lost Trust Totally in Lufthansa Airlines and hoping you can convince me to regain this Trust .

I travelled back from Philadelphia to Bangalore via Frankfurt on 28th aug 2011. Part of my baggage checked in at Philadelphia and excess baggage fee paid for, was not delivered at Bangalore. a complaint was given at Bangalore airport (BLRLH13443) and the airline staff was made to weigh the baggage and proved to them that baggage weiging 14 kgs was not delivered.The airline staff took more than two hours even to respond and take down the complaint.

Even after almost 3 months and many remiders, no concrete action has been taken by the airline to trace and return the baggage. Nor has the airline compensated for the loss. I had even lodged a complaint online and had not even got any acknowledgement, leave alone any respone. The customer service seems pretty pathetic. What should i do to get back my baggage / get compensation. Whom should i escalate this in Lufthansa. Are there any agency to whom i should take up the issue against Lufthansa.

TICKETS BOUGHT FROM LUFTHANSA FOR JOURNEY FROM BANGALORE INDIA TO POTRLAND OREGON FREE BAGGAGE ALLOWANCE FOR CHECKIN CHANGED THAN ADVERTISED ON THEIR WEB PAGE

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Ved Sachar
To: "esales.[protected]@dlh.de"
Cc: ved sachar ; Rit S
Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2012 10:25 PM
Subject: Re: SOME CLARIFICATIONS PLEASE 2WH5O6

Dear Sir,
It is very confusing and cause of anxiety, your reply down below being at variance with the highlighted portion in red, cut and pasted from the Lufthansa website.
When the Flight booked from Bangalore to Portland is through Lufthansa airways, and their current position on free Baggage Allowance in Economy Class is highlighted below in red as 2 pieces of 23 Kgs. Each, as Check IN Baggage, and the Tickets are purchased as per their prevalent rates at the time of purchase, changing the Free Check in Baggage Allowance may not be in consonance with the high standards of Lufthansa Airways.
Kindly give confirmation, based on the highlighted portion in red, so that we both can carry two pieces of 23 Kgs. Each, lest we are harassed at some Port of Discharge unnecessarily.
Thanking you .
Wing Commander ( Retd ) V P Sachar
Bangalore
Mob. [protected]

Free baggage allowance for tickets issued from 1 June 2011
The free baggage allowance on flights with Lufthansa will be defined according to the so-called ‘piece concept’ for tickets purchased on or after 1 June 2011. This means that consistent rules for the carriage of free baggage will apply on these flights. The free baggage allowances will be differentiated according to the service class flown, with variations in the number of free bags allowed and the permitted weight of each bag.

Miles & More status customers and Star Alliance Gold Members enjoy an additional free baggage allowance over and above this.

Please note the free baggage allowance shown on your ticket or Passenger Receipt.
Free baggage allowances at a glance:
General Frequent Travellers Senators/ HON
Circle Members/ Star Alliance Gold Members
Economy Class 1 bag up to 23 kg 2 bags up to 23 kg each 2 bags up to 23 kg each
Business Class 2 bags up to 32 kg each 2 bags up to 32 kg each 3 bags up to 32 kg each
First Class 3 bags up to 32 kg each 3 bags up to 32 kg each 4 bags up to 32 kg each
Additional
sports bag All routes except for North Atlantic:
+ 1 ski bag All routes except for North Atlantic: + 1 ski bag All routes except for North Atlantic:
+ 1 ski bag
+ 1 golf bag
Please note the maximum dimensions per bag of 158 cm (width + height + depth).

Additionally, all passengers will in future have the option of taking one sports bag (categorised as ‘small’) with them as part of their valid free baggage allowance.

What is more, they may also take one ski bag (this does not apply on North Atlantic routes).

One ski equipment = One pair of skis or water skis or one snowboard + 1 pair of ski sticks + 1 pair of ski boots + 1 ski helmet

The free baggage allowance for children under two years of age is one piece of baggage weighing up to 23 kg and one folding pushchair.
Special exemption rules apply to West, East and Central Africa and Japan Here the free baggage allowance in Economy Class is two bags each weighing up to 23 kg. For journeys which start inBrazil, the free baggage allowance in Economy Class is two bags each weighing up to 32 kg.

Special exemption rule applies from South Africa to the USA and Canada. Here the free baggage allowance in Economy Class is two bags each weighing up to 23 kg.

The following exception also applies to tickets issued up to 31 October 2012 for routes from the USA and Canada to India, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates and vice versa: the free baggage allowance in Economy Class amounts to 2 pieces of baggage weighing up to 23 kg each.
Click here for information on free baggage allowance for children, the transportation of pushchairs, wheelchairs and foods of animal origin.
MSC (Most Significant Carrier) rule effective since 1 April 2011
Effective since 1 April 2011: if the geographically longest or most significant stretch of your journey is not operated by Lufthansa, but by another airline, this airline’s rules may also apply to Lufthansa flights or Lufthansa flight numbers.

If Lufthansa operates the geographically longest or most significant stretch of the journey, then the rules and charges effective from 1 June 2011 will apply.

Please note the free baggage allowance shown on your ticket.
Local restrictions on baggage weight
Please note that the maximum weight limit per single piece of baggage is 45kg kg for all flights (outbound and return, as well as transfers).

To the destinations listed below, irrespective of class, the maximum weight per single piece of baggage is 32kg:
Abu Dhabi, Almaty, Amsterdam, Astana, Australia, Basel, Billund, Bari, Bruessels, Cape Town, Cyprus, Donetsk, Doha, Dubai, Dublin, Florence, France, Genoa, Johannesburg, Khartum, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Luanda, Malta, Muscat, New Zealand, Rostov, Saudi Arabia, Sofia, Spain, Turin, United Kingdom, Valencia, Verona

Bags which exceed these weights will not be accepted as checked baggage. You can have them sent by cargo and at cargo rates.

Maximum weights and conditions for free baggage allowance are not affected by this regulation.
Excess baggage rules effective from 1 June 2011
If you find that your luggage exceeds the free baggage allowance, you can still take it with you, as before, on payment of an excess baggage charge.

Excess and special baggage for tickets issued from 1 June 2011
Free baggage allowance rules for tickets issued before 1 June 2011
Please note that for tickets issued before 1 June 2011, the old rules and charges for Lufthansa-operated flights still apply.

Free baggage allowance for tickets issued before 1 June 2011
back to Information & Service
Print page

From: "esales.[protected]@dlh.de"
To: [protected]@ymail.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 10, 2012 1:50 PM
Subject: RE: SOME CLARIFICATIONS PLEASE 2WH5O6

Dear Mr. Sachar,

Greetings from Lufthansa!

Each passenger would be entitled to carry 1 piece of check-in baggage weighing not more than 23kgs and not exceeding 62 inches in dimension (L+B+H) and 1 cabin baggage not larger than 55 X 40 X 20cm weighing up to maximum 8kgs.

The promotional free baggage allowance of 2 pieces is for travel entirely on LH Marketed and operated flights to only online points in USA / Canada. It is not applicable on the tickets that you hold.

Thank you and best regards

Swati Vashist
Lufthansa service team
Working hours : [protected] Monday -Saturday

Sitz der Gesellschaft / Corporate Headquarters: Deutsche Lufthansa Aktiengesellschaft, Koeln, Registereintragung / Registration: Amtsgericht Koeln HR B 2168
Vorsitzender des Aufsichtsrats / Chairman of the Supervisory Board: Dipl.-Ing. Dr.-Ing. E.h. Juergen Weber
Vorstand / Executive Board: Dr. Christoph Franz (Vorsitzender / Chairman), Stephan Gemkow, Stefan H. Lauer, Carsten Spohr

-----Original Message-----
From: Ved Sachar [mailto:[protected]@ymail.com]
Sent: Monday, April 09, 2012 6:30 PM
To: GP, DEL ESALES
Cc: ved sachar
Subject: SOME CLARIFICATIONS PLEASE

Your Booked Travel
Booked itinerary (Booking code 2WH5O6)

Main Contact Information
Name - Ms. Meeta Sachar Form of Identification - Credit Card ************2766
Email - [protected]@hotmail.com
Passenger 1 - Ms. Meeta Sachar
Passenger 2 - Mr. Ved Sachar
Bengaluru (BLR) to Portland (PDX) : Departing: Sat 26 May - Returning: Tue 24 Jul
Date Departure Arrival Flight Fare

Sat 26 May 02:30 Bengaluru 08:25 Frankfurt LH755 Economy Basic Plus
Sat 26 May 10:40 Frankfurt 12:40 Chicago LH430 Economy Basic Plus
Sat 26 May 18:10 Chicago 20:30 Portland LH9338
Operated by United Airlines
Economy Basic Plus
Tue 24 Jul 11:05 Portland 12:57 San Francisco LH9035
Operated by United Airlines
Economy Basic Plus
Tue 24 Jul 13:58 San Francisco 09:45+1 Frankfurt LH9053
Operated by United Airlines
Economy Basic Plus
Wed 25 Jul 12:15 Frankfurt 00:30+1 Bengaluru LH754 Economy Basic Plus

This flight will be operated by Lufthansa.

Star Alliance Flight. By clicking this link you will see the operating carrier.
+1 Arrives the following day.
Passengers Preferences
Flights: LH755 LH430 LH9338 LH9035 LH9053 LH754
Adult 1 Ms.Meetasachar Seat: 45D 53D N/A N/A 37F 46D Diabetic meal
Adult 2 Mr.Vedsachar Seat: 45E 53E N/A N/A 37G 46E Asian Vegetarian meal

Imprint
Dear Sir,
With reference to the above itinerary, may I request you to clarify:-
Checked in Baggage Allowance
Cabin Baggage Allowance.
On THE iNTERNET, on Lufthansa site, while checking the above referred allowance, I have seen in the morning that all those travelling from USA, Canada and certain other countries to India and certain other countries, and vice versa, 2 pieces of 23 Kgs. each is allowed for Economy Class.
While talking to [protected], in the evening to-day, the individual on line told me that only One piece weighing 23 Kgs. per passenger is allowed
Kindlt clarify and oblige.
Also for FLIGHTS LH9338, 9035 AND 9053, Where shall I contact to request for the window seats.
Grateful for early reply.
Wing Commander ( Retd ) V P Sachar
Bangalore
Mob. [protected]

I bought my round trip ticket form Canada (Montreal) to Tehran online. I had my E-ticket with me in English. I needed a confirmation for my departure time in my language, Persian, (I needed this conformation for some business paper work). I went to a Travel agency representative for LUFTHANSA airline in Isfahan (Address: Shafagh Agency, Sheikhsadoogh St, Isfahan, Iran). They did not help me at all. Although my E-ticket and departure time was confirmed by the manger of the agency they kept saying that we do not give you the confirmation unless you buy the ticket directly from us (I am not sure maybe this is only for money or their commission). That is not professional. Next time I will not buy ticket from LUFTHANSA because I do not want to deal with these people and waste my time.