Pretoria - Finger trouble – it costs all of us in some way, sooner or later. When it comes to booking air tickets online, if you make a mistake with a name or date, you have some hope of rectifying that at no extra cost if you act within 24 hours, but after that, you’re forced to forfeit the booking, and make a new one, usually at greater cost.
Naturally, many travellers find this a bitter pill to swallow.
Earlier this year Paul Raciti booked a multi-city trip with online travel agency Travelstart, all three flights being with Kulula.
But when he saw his confirmation notice, he realised that he’d mixed up his surname and first name.
Within 24 hours he contacted Travelstart about altering his name details, but he was advised to cancel the flight, re-book and wait for a refund.
“I then phoned Kulula directly, asking if I could get on the plane with the ticket as is. They said I had no choice but to cancel the ticket and buy another.
“I pleaded that I didn’t have money to buy another, but the supervisor just apologised and said I had no other option.
“I had to make the trip, so I rebooked. In the end, typing my first name in place of my surname cost me R2 000.”
I was intrigued by his story, because when I wrote about this issue a couple of years ago, Kulula’s policy was this: “Our contact centre seniors and customer relations department supervisors use their discretion and review each case where customers have made an honest mistake with a route, name or date on their booking – if they contact us with in 24 hours.”
So why wasn’t Raciti simply allowed to swap his names around on his original booking and spare everyone the aggravation?
Well, firstly, it seems Kulula’s policy on name changes has tightened up somewhat since 2012.
Kulula spokesman Natashia Schoeman said complete name changes on booked tickets were not allowed, but changing certain name details was permitted: spelling errors, provided that only three letters need to be changed; changing the surname due to marriage or divorce (with proof), changing titles such as Miss to Mrs; and – Riciti’s situation – swapping first and surnames around.
“The 24-hour rule is not publicly advertised as there are many cases that cannot be corrected and a new ticket must be purchased,” Schoeman said.
“It only applies to wrongfully booked dates, routes and name corrections but the customer is liable for the cost implication if there is a fare difference.”
She said Kulula’s call centre wouldn’t have been able to help Raciti as he’d booked through a third party.
“We have no authority over that booking until the booking is in airport mode,” Schoeman said.
“While we can swop the name and surname around within 24 hours of the booking being made, we can’t on a third party booking, unless the third party gives us control over that booking.
“But many agents do not seem to know that this function can be done.”
So if you have finger trouble with any of the details of a Kulula booking done through a travel agent, and you discover this within 24 hours, tell them to contact Kulula to make what the airline calls “an involuntary change” whereby the bookings are “re-associated”.
If you need to make changes to an online booking you’ve made yourself, contact the airline concerned as soon as possible and ask about their policy on “finger trouble” changes, in order to spare yourself the schlep and expense of cancelling the booking and making another.
Pretoria News