COULD someone please explain to me why Thomson Holidays bothers dealing with travel agents? In December 1998 I confirmed my top corporate client’s family summer holiday to Barbados for August 1999 (two adults, two children). This came to £9,000.
In March of this year our client changed the booking and took two rooms instead of the one as originally booked. Thomson split the booking and created another booking reference.
Two weeks ago we received a phone call from Thomson stating that the premium seats on the new booking reference had been overbooked and they were downgraded to ‘extra’ seats, leaving one adult and one child on the first booking reference in premium seats and one adult and one child on the second booking reference in extra seats. Obviously this was not acceptable to my clients. I tried to explain to Thomson that all the premium seats were confirmed in December 1998 and the only change since then was the room type.
Thomson explained that it was a computer which decided who was overbooked and therefore there was nothing it could do. After speaking to numerous customer service agents and supervisors I was told to either downgrade everyone to extra seats although they would not be guaranteed seats together or cancel the whole holiday and get the deposit back.
I could not believe Thomson’s nonchalant attitude towards customer care.
Who, in this day and age, can afford to lose a booking of this quality? I explained this ridiculous situation to my clients. They phoned Thomson directly and with one quick call had the whole problem resolved and were able to confirm four premium seats together.
Thomson was totally useless as it point blank refused to help me. The company’s attitude also leaves a lot to be desired. When I asked for an apology for our clients (I think I deserve one myself) its reply was TOUGH.
Andrea Foreman, senior travel consultant, Globetrotter (Carryduff Travel Ltd) Belfast