My complaint:
Hello,
I am lodging an official complaint against Etihad Airways for excessive delay in Refund of a ticket cancelled 3 months ago.
I am Rajesh Balasubramanian, a frequent flyer with Etihad (Guest number EY500009095670) and I made two bookings on 3rd Feb for Delhi-Cairo-Delhi with the following details.
1. Ticket number 6072145121102, Reservation number KTFNJU. June 23 Cairo to Delhi; July 2 Delhi to Cairo EGP 28,238
2. Ticket number 6072145120692, Reservation number XMDKHQ. Nov 9 Cairo to Delhi; Nov 14 Delhi to Cairo EGP 12,010.
The tickets were cancelled on April 26 2023. I had to cancel the tickets as there were changes made in the flight schedule by Etihad and the revised schedule did not suit me and I could not revise the ticket online. Subsequently I called the Etihad Customer Service on April 26 2023 and they informed me that due to the change in the Etihad Booking System in March 2023, they were not able to see the fare basis and suggested that I cancel the ticket and make a fresh booking. I did as I was adviced by the customer service.
While Etihad’s policy is to process a refund within 45 days, I received the one refund (against ticket number 2) on July 13 2023, over 80 days later. I am yet to receive the refund on the first ticket which is over USD 900.
I have been in constant contact with Etihad customer service through phone (international calls), email, twitter and Linkedn and the response has been very poor.
I called the customer service on June 13, June 20, July 2, July 3, July 8, July 14 and July 21. Everytime I was promised that there will be response over phone or email but I only got one call back on July 21 from a supervisor who only took details of my complaint and promised a response in 12 hours. I have not hear from them.
I lodged an official complaint at on June 20 (No. 2306203724781) and sent follow-up emails on July 2, July 8 and July 14. I have not received any reply from Etihad other than an automated reply acknowledging the email. I even tried contacting Etihad at the Abu Dhabi airport on July 8th night/9th Morning while I was transiting Abu Dhabi but I was informed that the only way to contact is over phone to customer service.
I posted on twitter and sent messages to @etihadhelp on July 8, July 9 and July 14. Each time I was told that the team working on the refund has been notified that I will hear from them shortly. I did not receive any update on my refund.
I am reaching out to the Govt of Abu Dhabi to escalate my complaint and seek a quick resolution as Etihad has clearly failed to respond to the excessive Delay. I am entitled to a reply from Etihad on the reasons for the delay, when the amount would be refunded and a compensation for the excessive delay and the time and effort I have spent in chasing Etihad to receive my money which should have been refunded long back.
I look forward to an early action on my complaint.
Suggested solution:
Issue the refund for ticket number 6072145121102 at the earliest and also provide compensation for the delayed refund.
