dreadedmonkeygod . net

Gallery

Damn You, United Airlines!

Tags: travel vacation
Sat, 08/04/07 • comments (7)

Damn You, United Airlines!

I've ranted before about this issue, and here it is again biting me in the ass, breaking a laptop I can't afford to replace.

What happened: This morning, flying from Maine to Chicago on a small regional jet, the baggage comartments were teeny. Small enough that I couldn't get my backpack in, and had to gate check it. If I'd been thinking, I'd have pulled my laptop before checking it, but it was early, and I was sleepy, and I just didn't think about it until it was too late.

I didn't see the damage until I got on the next flight (a Boeing 737 with adequate carry-on storage), and pulled the laptop out of my pack.

I'm actually typing on my laptop now, and I haven't lost all the vacation photos I have stored on this machine (and for which I have no backups yet), but WiFi is busted. Since I use this machine almost exclusively to access net-based services (like this blog), the lack of WiFi basically cripples this machine.

And, of course, airline reps have already reminded me that they're not responsible for damaged electronics. Bastards.

Anyway, I'm having to make a concious decision not to take out my anger on some poor soul who got shafted into working in Baggage Services. Today's threat level is "ORANGE", so I'm going to go eat cookies and, um, be vigilant or something.

permalink • RSS
Previous
Next

Readers' Comments

Man, I feel for you. Travel and gadgets can have some messy tanglings. It's too bad the bastards covered their ass, thus leaving yours hanging out in the breeze. Meg said you should check to see if your credit card covers your trips with traveler's insurance (if you paid for the tickets via plastic), or if you carry traveler's insurance on your own. The may help with the repairs/replacement. Take the train next time, the forced slow down is actually very nice and you get to keep all of your crap with you. The food is very good as well! p.s. add some way to make paragraphs, damnit!
Eller | 08/06/07 7:33PM
At least it is still working. Chris had a scare on the way to San Diego when his hard drive didn't work on the train - seems to have been a problem with the vibration. Travel and electronics.... tricky business. Just another reason to leave them at home, if you can. (Vacation, aaaahhhh!)
Meagan | 08/08/07 2:38PM
Thank you! I just talked to my renter's insurance agent, and they might cover damage beyond my $500 deductible. I've tried Visa twice, but can't seem to get through: they're "experiencing extremely high call volume." I'll keep trying, get an estimate from Apple, and see where I end up. Thanks for recommending that! I never would have thought to ask whether I was covered!
raser | 08/20/07 3:55PM
I just talked to Visa. I'm not covered at all through them. State Farm (who provide my renter's insurance) say it *might* be covered: if the damage is because of dropping or mishandling, then it's covered. If it's due to shifting while in flight, then it's not. I have no idea how anyone would know what happened. So I've filed the claim, and we'll see what happens. I can always deny payment, and basically say "never mind" for any reason, and actually filing the claim seems to be the only way to find out what the eventual outcome will be. The adjuster will call me later on, and we'll go from there. My expectation is that I'll either pick up $450: the purchase price of the computer minus my deductible. That's not a lot. So if this will cause a bump to my premium, then I'll just scrap the claim and get another used machine on my own dime. (Repairing the thing would cost $1300, which is more than it's worth.)
raser | 08/21/07 11:06AM
Okay, final answer from State Farm: I'm not covered in this case. Had it been stolen, damaged in a car crash, or lost, I'd be covered, but since it was simply damaged, I'm out of luck. Moral to the story: If you discover that an airline has damaged your laptop, keep checking it until they lose it, *then* talk to the insurance company. I did purchase travel insurance for this trip, so I'll check them next. (Haven't done it yet since I'm pretty sure they won't cover this. We'll see.)
raser | 08/21/07 1:33PM
FFS! What the hell is insurance FOR then? It got broke, let's get it fixed. Perhaps it's better to save the money next trip and forgo the travelers insurance. I'm sorry you're getting screwed by no less than THREE different outfits that offer insurance but won't pay up. Got to be the best racket in town.
Eller | 08/21/07 5:40PM
I haven't even talked to the traveler's insurance people yet. State Farm just says it's not covered under my renter's insurance, and I'll have the written letter to that effect in a few days. If their reasoning is solid, then so be it. I'll talk to the traveler's insurance folks today, and see what they have to say. However, that policy was (I think) simply to refund the money I paid to NOLS in the event that medical reasons (illness, injury) prevented me from going on the trip. We shall see. (But yes, I'm pissed at State Farm. Seems like an obvious case where I should be covered, but to tell you the truth, I'm not that broken up about it. Life goes on, and I'd rather head for Krav and BJJ than spend my evening doing battle with insurance companies. (Oh, And I'm *definitely* putting in some way to put in paragraphs in comments. This is ridiculous.)
raser | 08/22/07 9:19AM
The author has disabled comments for this post.