Don’t Waste Your Money: Airlines cut customer service, shift to online chats - ABC27

Have you heard astir — oregon adjacent experienced — the Southwest Airlines debacle that occurred implicit Christmas of 2022?

If you were fortunate capable to not acquisition it, you astir apt anticipation that it ne'er happens to you.

Hypothetically, if this did hap to you, it is important to cognize that immoderate airlines person eliminated each telephone help.

Many Southwest passengers were retired of luck erstwhile the hose canceled galore vacation flights.

“If you privation to speech to idiosyncratic you person to hold successful 5-hour lines,” said a lawsuit who was waiting for his flight.

The lone anticipation for these customers successful astir cases is to speech to a affable telephone representative.

This precocious happened to Patricia Magruder portion she was readying a trip.

Magruder was having occupation getting a voucher from Frontier Airlines to work, truthful she picked up the telephone and called Frontier.

After dialing the fig Magruder realized something. “They said the telephone lines were unopen off,” said Magruder.

That’s right, Frontier Airlines precocious unopen down their lawsuit work telephone lines, forcing travelers similar Magruder to speech to an online chat system. Magruder struggled to usage the online chat.

“They said spell to the chat and we’ll instrumentality attraction of you done the chat,” said Magruder.

Frontier confirmed that its lawsuit attraction services are present afloat integer with a chat container connected their website.

There are galore different airlines that usage online lawsuit chat systems alternatively of telephone calls. Startup discounter “Breeze Airways” besides requires an online chat oregon email.

Whether oregon not your hose takes telephone calls oregon requires an online chat, it is important that you are afloat prepared to look problems earlier you permission your house.

One mode to beryllium prepared is to marque definite you person the airline’s app connected your phone. Even if your hose offers telephone help, chatting online is often quicker, arsenic telephone hold times tin beryllium hours.

Although chat whitethorn beryllium much convenient for some, Magruder inactive isn’t happy.

“For you to not beryllium capable to telephone idiosyncratic and speech to them, it’s conscionable not fair,” said Magruder.

Discount airlines are a large mode to prevention wealth traveling… conscionable cognize the downsides truthful you don’t discarded your money.