Reply To: Amex 241 flight downgraded from Club World to WTP at check-in

[Raskolnikov]

As an update…!

Guest services in the lounge were of no help: they just palmed us off to speak to someone at the gate, and at the gate they just told us to wait with the growing crowd of other passengers who were on a standby/downgrade watchlist (in the end about 12 of us in total).

In the end they downgraded me (and most of the others at the gate, although one lady was bumped off the flight completely), but not my husband who ended up in business next to another man who’d been kept in business while his wife was downgraded (so they were actively splitting up couples for some reason: I’m assuming so they can muddy the waters about compensation a bit). And the cabin staff were apparently a bit annoyed that those 2 seats had been assigned to passengers as they were supposed to have been blocked as staff rest seats – so this whole process is (almost) as irritating for the cabin crew (who lose their rest seats) and the check-in and gate staff (who have to deal with angry/annoyed passengers but don’t seem to have the power to actually do anything) as it is for passengers.

Also, at no point were we provided with anything in writing about our general rights/entitlements following downgrade (so I guess BA are hoping that most people will just let it slide).