Singapore Airlines Cancelled My Flight and Wants Me to Pay More and Doesn't Care if I'm Stranded

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Singapore Airlines

• 

  Xistn on 22/07/2022 - 08:09

  +13

  Crystal ball says "make maintenance excuse"

  Airlines you basically have little to null of rights.

• 

  Quantumcat on 22/07/2022 - 08:14

  +12

  Travel insurance?

  If I have learned anything from this forum, it's don't fly anywhere. I am glad I drove to Adelaide recently, everyone else flew and got hit with cancellations and much stress trying to get home. I could just jump in the car whenever I wanted!

  • 

    Donaldhump on 22/07/2022 - 09:18

    +33

    i think if you drove to the Philippines you'd likely face cancellations of your life.

    • 

      BuyoTheCat on 22/07/2022 - 11:30

      +3

      There was a time when google map would tell you to drive to Darwin, then canoe to Philippines

      • 

        Xistn on 22/07/2022 - 16:50

        +2

        Wasn't it a jetski?

        • 

          buckster on 24/07/2022 - 08:17

          @Xistn: Jetski would definitely be faster

• 

  boomramada on 22/07/2022 - 08:21

  +4

  What are my rights here? Surely they won't get away with this???

  You probably have rights to ask for refund and booked it with different airline? Or Fly next day? They might give you a free accommodation, if you lucky.

  • 

    Quantumcat on 22/07/2022 - 08:31

    +3

    Yeah flying the next day would be a good compromise, there is a lot of fun stuff to see in Singapore.

    • 

      Donaldhump on 22/07/2022 - 09:19

      -3

      geylang 10, four floors of whre

      • 

        Lunarboogie on 22/07/2022 - 10:25

        +6

        Username checks out

      • 

        holdenmg on 22/07/2022 - 10:27

        +4

        What would I do with four floors of warehouse… lol

        • 

          try2bhelpful on 22/07/2022 - 11:08

          +1

          @holdenmg: Now there is a musical to see “The Best little Warehouse in Texas”.

        • 

          TilacVIP on 23/07/2022 - 10:51

          @holdenmg: Lose a lot of money I guarantee

    • 

      try2bhelpful on 22/07/2022 - 11:06

      +3

      I did like Singapore but the humidity almost killed me. Yeah, I can walk from the hotel to Orchard Rd. I was one chafe, from head to foot, by the time I got there.

      The zoo, the Japanese gardens, go out to a decent restaurant; a day would be a good break.

      • 

        Quantumcat on 22/07/2022 - 11:57

        Yeah definitely about the humidity, I spent a day at the bird zoo and within fifteen minutes was like a waterfall of sweat. I reapplied sunscreen about 20 times

        • 

          try2bhelpful on 22/07/2022 - 12:06

          @Quantumcat: The rainfall is something else as well. Yeah I can just run across the street. The locals must think we are nuts.

    • 

      MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:19

      +2

      Yes but extra costs involved?
      Littlerally they fobbed me off.
      Unheard of and I'm done with Singapore Airlines… I chose them because it was a 5 star airline.

      If I were to book the same flight again it would costs nearly 3 times as much…

      I won't let them get away with this

• 

  iNeed2Pee on 22/07/2022 - 08:45

  +24

  During Covid-19 in years 2020/21:
  "Please, our industry is decimated, we need passengers back to thrive blah blah"

  2022: "Let's just cancel every second flight and screw over those same passengers".

  What a joke this industry is at the moment.

  • 

    boomramada on 22/07/2022 - 08:56

    I have flown with SG few times before COVID and flight changes happen to me few times before. Flight change +/- few days or hrs.
    Even SG > MEL > SYD, instead of SG > SYD.

    You can't do much than updating your travel plans. That is why I always book flexible accommodation towards flying.

    I don't think you can get much from the insurance for future flight changes, maybe refunds on hotel fees due to flight change.

• 

  brokenglish on 22/07/2022 - 08:58

  +17

  Almost misled by your title + description. Thought you’re stuck in Singapore now.
  The flight’s in December and they offered you a full refund for the entire flight now.
  Would you rather they tell you they are cancelling the flight on that day?
  Because if they do, you wish they had tell you earlier so you can organise something else - which is what they have done.

  You’re just grumpy SQ “ruined” your Christmas holiday and you missed out on early bird discount.
  Take the refund and organise a new holiday. You have exactly 5 months.

  • 

    MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:21

    +5

    Yes at 3* the costs…

    Sorry that is not good enough.

    You ordered that computer at $100

    Sorry the prices of chips has gone up and it is now $300

    Really?

  • 

    Autonomic on 24/07/2022 - 16:16

    This is absurd. They sold him a flight and then cancelled it, on a route that they're obviously still operating. Flights go up as you get closer to the date - it's not it's acceptable to cancel flights and then gouge customers.

• 

  kipps on 22/07/2022 - 09:06

  +3

  What does your contract of carriage say? Usually they have to complete the trip you booked but may change dates around.

• 

  bitesized on 22/07/2022 - 09:09

  +1

  You can try escalating your complaint on their social media profiles (FB page latest post under the comments, same with Insta), it has worked for me for other issues before. But as mentioned above, you still have 5 months to sort other arrangements out.

  Maybe ask for a refund of the Singapore - Philippines leg and you can get a separate budget flight for that? Might end up saving money overall.

  • MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:22 Comment score below threshold.
    • 

      thrillhouse on 23/07/2022 - 08:16

      +10

      Stop threatening customer service representatives. It is no fault of theirs and they can’t magically fix things.

      They also don’t get paid enough to deal with people like you.

• 

  iamherenow on 22/07/2022 - 09:27

  Doesn't Care if I'm Stranded

  You are not stranded.

  expect me to pay for the class difference

  I'd push for a private jet personally.

  Surely they won't get away with this???

  I think at least five question marks should be used in this sentence.

• 

  mr_alligator on 22/07/2022 - 09:28

  +1

  Although Singapore airlines is considered one of the world's best airline, it was an absolute nightmare to deal with them when I booked flights with them in December last year that they cancelled from their end. It took 16 phone calls over a six month period and more than 15 hours on hold for them to issue a refund for a flight they cancelled and that was only after I initiated the dispute through paypal.

  It was more than $5k and they didn't care. Their customer service centre in Phillipines is pathetic - often false promises that a refund will be issued in 24 hours and that they will send an email confirming this were lies.

  On the other hand I initiated cancellation of my international flights with Jetstar and Indigo (indian airline) and the refunds/credit voucher came through instantly.

  • 

    singlemalt72 on 22/07/2022 - 10:24

    Just about every airline was a nightmare during this time.

• 

  JimB on 22/07/2022 - 09:31

  +8

  Unfortunate but they haven't left you stranded. You have 5 months to make new travel arrangement and they will refund you.

  Thai Airways left us stranded at the start of Covid. Mid way through the journey- overseas. I didn't even get the partial refund they offered (they went bankrupt).

  Can't get blood from a stone, so moved on. And will avoid Thai Air in future.

• 

  capslock on 22/07/2022 - 09:43

  +3

  Is there something unusual about your booking? What normally happens is they just move you to the next available flight. I am guessing there is something else going on here.

  • 

    Thrawn on 22/07/2022 - 10:29

    Yeah.. there's no way every available flight is completely booked out 5 months ahead

    Yes airlines rejig their schedules and sometimes it's caused by planned maintenance schedule changes. But if the flights are booked out this far ahead, they would put on additional flights. If they don't they're missing out on a lot of potential revenues for people who want to book the route in the next 5 months.

    • 

      MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:25

      Exactly..that's what I told them too and yes there is another flight a couple of hours and they asked me to pay more *2 for that.

      This does not compute and I won't do it!
      I'm an OG ozbargainer

      • 

        Thrawn on 22/07/2022 - 19:35

        Are you able to book the same seat type online on the airline website ? Eg if you have a Prem Economy booking and the new flight doesn’t have any Prem Economy seats, they aren’t going to give you business class.

        Also, if it’s a codeshare flight. That might not be possible either

• 

  pegaxs on 22/07/2022 - 09:46

  +4

  Surely they won't get away with this???

  LOL… Wanna bet?

• 

  burningrage on 22/07/2022 - 11:05

  +3

  Username seems to suggest you can afford another ticket :-)

  • 

    MrBillions on 23/07/2022 - 03:58

    All.on paper and not liquid

    • 

      thestig on 23/07/2022 - 08:37

      Takes 2mins to liquidate

      • 

        MrBillions on 23/07/2022 - 08:49

        Why would I?
        Cathy wood still calls it at $4000 per share and just jumped above $800 again

        It would be a silly trade for a flight that should not cost any additional money

• 

  try2bhelpful on 22/07/2022 - 11:12

  +3

  Unfortunately they have you by the cahones. If you don’t want the seat someone else will take it; probably at a higher price. As we are seeing with Qantas they, really, don’t give a toss about customer service anymore.

  However, to put some context here, in the 80s we got round the world, economy, tickets for $2500 each.it will cost you similar now. Look at how wages, house prices, etc have taken off since then. Now we are flying in a “glorified” bus service.

  • 

    chrisie on 22/07/2022 - 11:42

    "Now we are flying in a “glorified” bus service."

    I like the way you put that and have to totally agree.

• 

  p1 ama on 22/07/2022 - 11:42

  How can they expect me to pay for the class difference when it's the cancellation is their fault?

  If you bought TSLA at 200, you can afford it.

  • 

    illusion99 on 22/07/2022 - 13:02

    +1

    Depends how many shares he bought and at what exchange rate

• 

  morse on 22/07/2022 - 12:14

  +2

  Sure this isn’t some kind of scam? Was the email definitely form Singapore airlines? Did you get the phone number from the email or a seperate web search.

  If this is legit, it might actually fall under the category of price gouging and it may be worth making a complaint to ACCC after putting your complaint in writing to the airline. I would not accept a refund at this stage and aim to be rebooked on a different date for no extra cost. Also double check if it’s still possible to book this flight (ie if it has indeed been cancelled).

  • 

    MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:26

    Yes leggit.
    I spoke to customer service in the phils

• 

  SimAus007 on 22/07/2022 - 15:00

  -1

  They aren't doing anything wrong, as annoying as it is. They are offering you a full refund, giving you plenty of notice in advance and that's all they have to do.
  Flying locally or internationally without travel insurance at this point is highly risky.
  I'd take the refund and keep looking at your options over the next few weeks.
  PS: you are not "stranded" you have 5 months to book another airfare ;)

  • 

    morse on 22/07/2022 - 15:13

    +4

    They have done something wrong. They entered into a deal that they would transport OP at that time and date for a set cost. They are now still offering that service but a slightly different time but for more money. Looks exactly like price gouging to me. They’ve held OPs money whilst they are working out what demand will be for that period. That’s what a booking is. Airlines need to be held to account for delivering the service they have advertised at the price they’ve agree to. If they are still running that route OP should be booked or the nearest suitable time at no extra cost.

    I’m still not entirely sure that this isn’t some kind of email phishing scam but if it’s not SA is definitely in the wrong here. Just because many airlines do similar doesn’t make it okay.

    • 

      Thrawn on 22/07/2022 - 15:58

      +4

      Even LCCs like Jetstar would let you shift to the next available flight at no additional cost. I've done this many, many times. They usually give you a list of recommended flights, but you can ask for something else.. even changing the routing and they will always grant it as long as there's same class seats available.

      Many, many times I have booked the cheapest flight of the day at horrible times a long time in advance. Sometimes the airline don't find enough demand and cancels the flight. Then I can choose pretty much any flight I want, even though originally they were a lot more expensive to begin with.

      Before calling the agent, search on the booking website what flights is available from that airline. Then just tell the agent to change it to that. Don't rely on them to figure it out as they often give you stupid alternates.

• 

  MrBillions on 22/07/2022 - 18:29

  +2

  Latest update is I called the European call Center so I don't have to deal with pencil pushers who work by the book and the German lady that's not right and they are going to fix and she'll check with her supervisor and get back to me.

  That was three days ago….i doubt that I'll hear back…this should all be automatically and I shouldn't have to repeatedly call them.

  • 

    Hamish125 on 23/07/2022 - 09:45

    +1

    I had the same response from Singapore call staff several times. I was told "your issue has been escalated, please wait for an email and your problem will be fixed". Never received any email…there customer servicr/ call centre staff at the moment are very inexperienced and have no idea how to fix anything remotely unusual.

  • 

    kiitos on 23/07/2022 - 17:04

    Why did you choose to do that?

• 

  tabitha731 on 23/07/2022 - 08:25

  +2

  Just get a refund & move on with your life, there are bigger issues to stress over! If flying to the Philippines is that critical to u, fly another budget airline be to stay within the amount u want to spend

• 

  mskeggs on 23/07/2022 - 08:53

  What class did you originally book?
  The limited options make it sound like you got a great deal on business or something, and it is all sold out.
  Can you get a cost effective fare in economy?

• 

  Hamish125 on 23/07/2022 - 09:54

  +1

  Further to my comment above -

  I had a flight from Aus to Singapore cancelled by Singapore Airlines and my flight was changed which meant a very long layover in Singapore before my connecting flight.

  I called every few days over a two month period trying to find someone who could a) understand or communicate effectively in English and b) actually work out their booking system to make a change to my connecting flight.

  In my situation there were three earlier connecting flights I could have taken. Every time I asked them to change my connecting flight I was told "it's impossible as your fare status is fully booked". However, when I looked at that particular flight segment I saw it wasn't - my fare status was only fully booked when looking at the full flight from Aus to end destination.

  Basically called around 15 - 20 times before finally finding a call centre staff member who knew what they were doing. He made the changes to my connecting flight within about 5 minutes with no extra charges (which seemed the fair thing as they cancelled my first leg of the flight).

  Basically - i'd recommend to call every couple of days till you find someone who fixes the issue on the spot. I was told many times it's "inpossible" or it was "escalated" - luckily found someone who knew how to help and did so.

  Good luck!

• 

  iCandy on 23/07/2022 - 12:37

  +1

  My flights to NZ at the end of March NEXT YEAR were cancelled. My flights to Sydney last week were cancelled. Every airline is doing it atm.

• 

  itx on 23/07/2022 - 14:01

  +28

  Airline customer service is terrible across the board right now, partly because there are so many disruptions and schedule changes going on and partly because they've had to recruit so many new people so quickly - so the chances of getting someone competent to deal with anything more complex than "accept the change" or "give me a refund" is quite low. The unfortunate reality is you'll likely need to call dozens of times over different days (and ideally different times of day) to get your issue solved. If the agent you have doesn't sound like they know what they're doing, don't bother with escalations or arguing, just hang up and call again.

  When you talk to them, take the emotion out of it, stick to pure facts, and practice saying what you need to say in as few words as possible. My recommended approach is:
  1 Before you call, jump onto the Singapore Airlines website and search for flights that suit you and is available for sale in the class you were originally booked in. Ignore the cost that's quoted. Record down (1) the date of each flight, (2) the flight number "SQxxxx", (3) the departure and arrival city, and (4) the time of departure of each flight. Avoid flights that are not showing as available/not available in the class you want as it's highly unlikely you'll get those, avoid flights operated by other airlines as much as possible as that requires higher authorisation, and don't bother angling for a free upgrade to a higher class.

  2 Call the SQ customer service number and in parallel, load up the Singapore Airlines website. Once connected, ask if you can provide your "PNR" (this is the alphanumeric booking code for your booking). Preferably quote the PNR using the phonetic alphabet.

  3 Once they verify you, advise then that your itinerary has "suffered from a significant involuntary schedule change", that you have been auto rebooked to an itinerary that is not suitable, and that you have preferred alternative flights that are available. Emphasise the involuntary schedule change bit.

  4 If they say OK and ask you to provide alternative flight details, move on to the next step. If they say that they are not trained/not from the right department/etc, and that they will take down a message and provide you a response within 24/48/72 hours, move onto step 5 anyway BUT note that it's highly unlikely you'll be called back, so call again the following day (ideally at a different time) and retry.

  5 Provide the flight details you found prior to the call, flight by flight. Say "for segment 1, the flight number is SQ123 from BNE to SIN on YY December, departing 12:00 pm", and repeat for each flight segment.

  6 If it sounds like they're working on something in the background (i.e. actually searching up the flights), things are looking up so stay with them and give them time. If they say anything like they need to seek authorisation, mention that you're happy to wait for them to do that on this call - don't take up any call back option.

  7 Once they start making changes, check your booking on the Singapore Airlines website to see if you can see the changes. You may need to exit a booking and re-enter it multiple times to refresh the booking and see any changes.

  8 If you can see new flights for your booking on the website, then everything is good and you can finish up on the call. If you can't see it but the agent says it's been done, ask when "ticketing will be completed", and whether it can be done now as you'd like to ensure the reservation is secured. Politely push this point as much as possible.

  9 Finally, if the agent starts quoting and fees you have to pay now, mentions "repriced", or "balance outstanding", just remind them that this is an "involuntary rebooking due to airline cancellation", so the involuntary rebooking rules should be invoked.

  10 Hopefully that's it and you finally get what you want

  Always be friendly to the agent (even the incompetent ones) as (1) it isn't their personal fault that your flights have changed, so blaming them won't make them want to help you more, (2) they probably just haven't been trained properly, and (3) they can sometimes leave notes that will be detrimental to your chances of getting it fixed by the next agent. Threatening the agent with legal action, ACCC, etc is just not helpful.

  Yes, yes, a customer shouldn't have to worry about things like terminology, doing research, etc just to fix what the airline broke, but that's just the reality of it right now. They hold the power, so you just have to play the game to get what you want. You have plenty of time still so good luck!

  • 

    MrBillions on 23/07/2022 - 15:09

    +1

    That has to be ozbargains reply of the year!
    @scotty

    Thank you so much

    I'll call them again and keep this thread updated

    Fantastic and thorough answer.

    I really appreciate it and every step makes s sense

  • 

    MrBillions on 23/07/2022 - 18:16

    +2

    Wow @itx +itx you are an absolute legend.

    Update:

    Called again and selected booking change option. Got nowhere.
    Called again and this time I chose general inquiry hold the line option. Decided to hang up as it took too long. Within 1 minute someone from Singapore Airlines called me back. That's a first. Said sorry you got disconnected.
    I was super nice. Used the keywords of "involuntary flight change" and questioned why it has not auto reallocated. Mentioned very nicely that I'm protected by consumer laws and I need his help to see my family for Christmas. He then without hesitation asked for some time to check with another team but didn't transfer me.

    He then got me on the next available flight. Amazing.

    The only caveat is that there is another stop over in the phils to get to my final destination. My previous flight was 1.30hr layover and now 6hr layover and arrive 6hrs later. Bit of a risk with more stops just before Xmas that something goes wrong but you know as long as I get there… This route change is consistent with my family's intineray that automatically got changed (3 pax). They didn't have to do anything. The aircraft maintenance was BS. They just changed routes to probably be more efficient and collect more people. I looked up the airfare today vs what I paid and littlerally about 2* more expensive now.

    He also, without me asking, sent me a new itinerary to check. Also reserved a seat for me which is a payable option on my fare.

    I'm totally amazed how this worked.

    Shows me that you just need to:

    Persist, try and try again.

    Continuously need to be super nice (I wasn't a d* at first in my first calls).

    Try multiple times and options to get through the right agent.

    The airline industry has some serious issues at the moment.

    Thanks you… that is an fantastic outcome.

    • 

      itx on 23/07/2022 - 20:06

      +3

      Thanks for the update - great to hear it all worked out :)

• 

  H E B on 24/07/2022 - 00:40

  Funnily enough we were in almost the exact situation! But for the MEL-SIN-MNL we paid extra to stopover in SInagpore for an extra day (yay?) and it would've been cheaper if we didn't do that. However, when the SIN-MNL flight got changed they automatically rebooked us on the day before (and thus avoiding any layover and basically the extra charges we forked out). We spoke about this and agreed we'd rather spend a day and a half extra then, just a few hours at the airport :)

  1) The Mister called up and from the sounds of it their conversation went exactly the same way your first one did.

  2) I called up again the next day and kindly re-iterated that actually, we paid for an extra layover ticket rather than a straight connecting flight and because they effectively cancelled our connecting flight that it wasn't our fault. The operator I spoke to referred up for approval and got it sorted. I'm not sure if I explicitly used the word 'involuntary' though.

  Glad that trying again ended up a different result, but I agree it shouldn't have to be like that :(

  • 

    MrBillions on 24/07/2022 - 02:25

    Great news for all of us but it shouldn't really be pot luck and shopping for answers. They should have consistent training. The problem with those call centres is that they go by the book and are not empowered to make any decisions. As soon as anything is off script they are lost and check with a supervisor. However my very first call he basically told me don't bother there is no supervisor avail (and we don't really care).

• 

  kaleidoscope on 24/07/2022 - 08:03

  +1

  Had similar experience with them for a different route except they have pushed the 2nd leg from singapore to final destination a day later stating the 2nd leg flight is not operating on that day of the week anymore…
  When I first talked to them stating more than a day layover is not going to work they said i’ll have to pay extra to have flight rebooked and how much extra was even f*ked up. The change in amount for the return flight was more the cost for a new ticket issued for entire trip 2 way…
  After keep calling them a few times managed to talk to a real nice lady that explained as the cancellation was by the airline they can either;
  1) offer a similar flight within -7/+7 days from original flight at no extra cost or
  2) offer a refund for the return flight that was affected (first side flight had taken place at this time) and I can book a one way for the return.

  We took the first option. Needless to say really was pissed off with singapore airlines help desk staff on how they handled the case as it took a-lot of my time calling them and follow ups. Except for that last person I managed to talk everyone else before acted like I have to pay a ridiculous amount. What a load of bs. Since covid they no longer seem to be good at what they used to be good…

  Good that you managed to solve your issue OP after trying few times as well.

• 

  MrBillions on 25/07/2022 - 18:37

  Hi all.

  I have another question re travel insurance. At what point of time should you take travel insurance out?

  In this example the flight is not until end of December. Should I take travel insurance out now or closer to the trip?

  Is the scenario as follows if something happens today that prevents me to travel prior to taking travel insurance out then I'm not covered ? Even if travel insurance would be beginning on the day of travel?

  If I would take travel insurance out now for December travel period and god forbid I have a car crash tomorrow and can't travel them I'm covered?

  The reason why I'm asking is because I see that my flights are non refundable.

  Thank you

  • 

    Thrawn on 25/07/2022 - 23:53

    +1

    If you buy travel insurance now, it will cover you immediately.

    But keep in mind it’s also not refundable. Say airline cancels the flight and you opt for a refund and cancel the whole trip so there’s nothing to claim, you can’t get insurance refund.