Airline reimburses a passenger $4,800: they forgot to load his wheelchair
More and more people prefer to travel by plane to reach their desired destination as quickly as possible. Every day, thousands of passengers flock to airports and among them, there are also many people with disabilities. For these travelers, flying can be challenging: these inconveniences can also become a nightmare if your airline loses your mobility equipment.
A disabled passenger flying with Delta Air Lines recently faced a problem with his wheelchair. Here is his story:
via Yahoo News
Pixabay - Not the Actual Photo
The unfortunate passenger, Tim Kelly, had booked a round trip from New York to Dublin. Tim is confined to a wheelchair, so he had to take his mobility equipment on board to get around. So, it was a disaster when Delta Airlines lost Tim's wheelchair, leaving him immobile upon his arrival in Dublin. Upon landing at Dublin airport, the company offered him two "courtesy" wheelchairs, but they were not useable by Tim. As a result, the company had to pay to rent a chair similar to his until he returned to New York.
Pixabay - Not the Actual Photo
The company apologized for the loss of Mr. Kelly's wheelchair, stating, "We consider a wheelchair an extension of a person and understand that any improper handling of this mobility device can have a direct impact on their lives". And this is why the company initially offered Tim and his family "free air miles" to use on their future trips.
Delta staff offered Tim, his wife and two children $1,000 dollars each in Delta Choice vouchers (being approximately 38,000 free air miles). However, Tim did not consider this offer to be "fair" and rejected it. The company "upped its offer", but again Tim refused it. Finally, ten days later, the airline called Tim and offered him $4,800 dollars worth of air miles. "Even though I lost nearly two days of vacation in Dublin, Delta is ultimately doing the right thing," stated Tim.
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