Kolek planning to go pro
There is a middle ground between nationalizing airline(s) and status quo...regulation, which is what we had for most of the 20th century.
We've talked on here about the airline bailouts, and I previously had brought up that I think that this pandemic will have to be a turning point in the airline industry. I was just reading an article on how sports/entertainment venues are going to have to drastically change (no more buffets, redesign of bathrooms, no more stainless steel at concession areas, no more open condiments). Once things return to whatever the new normal is, will anyone ever want to sit in a middle seat? Not that anyone ever wants to sit in a middle seat, but with social distancing becoming more the norm, people having to share armrests, I can't imagine a good scenario coming up here if airlines stay "business as usual". Travelling a lot for work, I could easily foresee scenarios on planes soon where if someone coughs/sneezes, the people sitting next to that person asking (loudly) to switch seats. It's going to be a tense experience to say the least.To be clear, I don't think the airlines will do anything like rip out rows of seats and drastically change their business models. I also think as a result of that line of thinking, in the next 24 months, you'll see at least one of Delta/American/United collapse. Companies are going to get used to Zoom/WebEx/Teams virtual meetings, discretionary income is going to fall dramatically for families, and if the airlines think people are going to want to be crammed like sardines going forward in a world where space and cleanliness are the new norm, it's going to be a rough go for the airlines.
Companies are going to get used to Zoom/WebEx/Teams virtual meetings, discretionary income is going to fall dramatically for families, and if the airlines think people are going to want to be crammed like sardines going forward in a world where space and cleanliness are the new norm, it's going to be a rough go for the airlines.
Maybe I'm old fashioned, but at some point a fax, text message, video conference etc., can never make-up for personal contact and personal meetings. I know we're most successful when we're face to face with our clients talking about what we do and about their problems.This says it all. Change fax and phone call to email and textmessage!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa6Id-7SdRQ
Fax huh?
And yet I have business dealings with large companies that still insist on using fax even after I practically beg them to use email. Optum is one.
We disconnected our fax machine.I heard people still use for security reasons because fax machines are not hackable.
United (following Delta’s lead) announces just now they will extend current status through Jan 2022.
Cancelled our Florida trip on March 16th, currently hold vouchers that are good for 90 days. That puts us in the middle of June to book a flight, chances that Frontier has to revisit this?
99.9%. My concern would be that Frontier will no longer exist and my money is gone.
Then call your credit card and say you never got the service.
Yep. Depending on the CC/bank, they can be pretty good with travel related reimbursement. Last summer, my GF and I went to Greece, specifically Crete. Huge island so naturally needed a rental car. Found a great rate through Kayak, got all the "documentation" needed. Arrived at the rental agency at 11PM after plenty of flight delays from Mykonos...cause Greece. Had to walk a KM cause we couldn't find their van. Get there, they inform me that they won't give me a car cause I don't have an International Drivers License. "Firm Greek law, no exceptions, you will go to jail, and so will we". I knew this wasn't true as I had rented on Corfu a few summers back without IDL and without issue. They wouldn't refund and said I needed to contact the 3rd party provider. Contacted Holiday Autos, or whatever it was, they informed me it was CLEARLY stated. I looked through their emails, their forms, the website. Nothing was listed other than passport, CC, travel itinerary, etc... I was told it was in the rental agreement...on the last page in tiny print on a final paragraph. As a result, it was my fault, they would not refund a dime. And better yet, they curtly told me "you received a lesson and some knowledge so you won't make this mistake again!"I logged into my Sapphire account on Chase, submitted a claim and that I never received services. It was removed and cleared less than 3 days later without even a followup email or phone call.Oh, and after we left the agency, a nice British couple who heard our plight in the office drove us back to airport. We walked over to Hertz...and rented a car without a single issue, got an upgrade, and when I asked about the IDL the woman assisting us looked right at me and bluntly said "no, why would you?". Lesson learned
A IDL at AAA is just $20.
Then call your credit card and say you never got the service.As a Floridian, would rather have you come in June, but I'll acknowledge what you get then may not be worthy of the effort you make.
I have never filed a claim with my credit card company, but thinking about it for our entire vacation now.What’s the downside?
You literally have nothing to lose by calling. The worst thing they can do is deny your request. Also, for next time, I recommend trip insurance. It's worth the money for peace of mind alone. We had it on the big trip that got cancelled. Fortunately, all of our vendors refunded our money (even Hotwire, which is supposed to be strictly non-refundable), and our trip insurance company even refunded our premium without even us having to ask.
It’s a usual pass for me on the insurance, we never cancel trips. But yeah...
Our rental through VRBO is a voucher, totally dependent on rebooking the same house. The house has been completely wiped from all the rental sites.