Hotel and airline reviews have become quite commonplace on the internet these days. I mean, who doesn’t plug in the hotel or airlines name for a review if they have never been a customer of them before? Some hotels have fought back against negative reviews that they feel harms their image, given how easy it is to leave a review these days. But, what happens when you leave a review with the company – that they asked you to take – and the rep responds poorly? Here is what happened.
One Reps’ Terrible Response to a Negative Review
It began with a woman names Cara Viramontes when she found out she was charged for travel insurance for her lap child. When she called to complain about it, the Expedia representative responded in, what she felt, was an unhelpful manner. When Cara had tried to escalate the issue to a supervisor, the Expedia rep would not accommodate her request.
So, Cara filled out the survey that Expedia sent her and gave her review of the performance of the call – namely, that she did not find the rep helpful. She was surprised a couple of days later when she saw a message from Expedia telling her that her trip was cancelled along with an expletive directed at her.
Expedia’s Resolution
When she tried to get the issue resolved, Expedia initially claimed it was her fault and she would be out the money and have to pay to rebook. After sending in a copy of the message, Expedia responded generously by rebooking her at no charge, refunded her money from the flights, and gave her a $500 Expedia voucher. So, in all, she received $600 (her original ticket cost) back, her original flights for New Year’s, and the $500 voucher!
I applaud Expedia for taking such steps. No matter what kind of review, negative or otherwise, was left, there is no reason in the world for a customer service representative to act that way toward a customer. Maybe the rep was having a bad day but it is still no excuse. Fortunately, Cara and her family had the situation resolved quickly and in a very positive way.
HT: CBS Los Angeles
Way to go Expedia! Well handled.