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Update on Cancel Culture (June 17 entry)
Jul. 30th, 2024 03:43 pmIn my June 17 post, I poured out my dismay about two significant scheduled events that were abruptly cancelled at the last minute: a cataract operation and an Air Canada flight from Ottawa to Winnipeg. There has been some positive progress on both fronts.
As I mentioned in that post, the canceled cataract surgery (originally scheduled for May 31) was rescheduled to August 28, but I was put on a cancellation list. Then on July 8, I got a call asking if I was available the following day. I deliberated for maybe a quarter of a second before saying yes. It did mean bailing on a Music & Beyond concert I'd thought about attending, but the prospect of better vision won out.
Things went smoothly this time. Exactly one week from today, I'll be finished with all three varieties of eye drops I was prescribed. I've needed glasses since I was seven years old so it's truly a novel experience to be able to watch TV or go for a walk without them. I still need glasses for a few things but over-the-counter drugstore reading glasses are doing the job reasonably well until I can get my eyes tested again.
I also wrote about a cancelled Air Canada Ottawa-to-Winnipeg flight that was scheduled for June 10. After returning to Ottawa, I followed all the instructions on the Air Canada site for applying for compensation, giving all the requested details of the flight. A day or two later, I got their standard boilerplate brushoff, saying that the cancellation was determined to be within Air Canada's control but required for safety reasons so I was not entitled to compensation. But I persisted.
I replied that of course I understood that passenger and crew safety must not be compromised and that that particular plane couldn't be dispatched as originally scheduled. However, I went on, the substitute flight was certainly not equivalent to the one I had selected at time of booking in a number of respects, so I felt I should qualify for at least a partial refund. Would they be prepared to review my case?
That seemed do the trick and I was passed up the chain of command. Soon I got quite a reasonable e-mail back from someone else (maybe even a real live human!) saying that she had been assigned to look at my request and determine the amount of my refund. Then maybe a week or so later, I got an itemized account of how much I'd paid them and how much I'd be getting back.
So essentially they agreed to refund half of what I paid. They say it will be refunded to my credit card but that I should allow two billing cycles for it to appear on my credit card statement.
I haven't seen my money yet but I'll be keeping track and holding them to account!
In my June 17 entry, I also mentioned my latest trip on VIA rail, from Toronto to Ottawa. The train was late but before we even disembarked, we were informed that we could get 50% off the next ticket booked, as long as it was within 12 months.
I probably didn't really need to do anything in this case but I decided to e-mail them anyway, to ask whether I could expect some sort of coupon to appear in my online VIA Preference profile. I'm glad I did.
The thing is, I'm not sure at the moment when my next train trip is likely to be. What if I found I didn't want to take a train trip over the next 12 months and couldn't use my 50% off before it expired?
Well, it turned out I could get a bunch of Preference points instead. The points don't expire. And if it turns out I do take a bunch of train trips after all, the additional points I accrue might even bump me up to the next tier of their loyalty program.
I went with the points option and they've already been added to my profile.
So I guess if there's a moral to the story, it's ... persistence (potentially) pays off?
As I mentioned in that post, the canceled cataract surgery (originally scheduled for May 31) was rescheduled to August 28, but I was put on a cancellation list. Then on July 8, I got a call asking if I was available the following day. I deliberated for maybe a quarter of a second before saying yes. It did mean bailing on a Music & Beyond concert I'd thought about attending, but the prospect of better vision won out.
Things went smoothly this time. Exactly one week from today, I'll be finished with all three varieties of eye drops I was prescribed. I've needed glasses since I was seven years old so it's truly a novel experience to be able to watch TV or go for a walk without them. I still need glasses for a few things but over-the-counter drugstore reading glasses are doing the job reasonably well until I can get my eyes tested again.
I also wrote about a cancelled Air Canada Ottawa-to-Winnipeg flight that was scheduled for June 10. After returning to Ottawa, I followed all the instructions on the Air Canada site for applying for compensation, giving all the requested details of the flight. A day or two later, I got their standard boilerplate brushoff, saying that the cancellation was determined to be within Air Canada's control but required for safety reasons so I was not entitled to compensation. But I persisted.
I replied that of course I understood that passenger and crew safety must not be compromised and that that particular plane couldn't be dispatched as originally scheduled. However, I went on, the substitute flight was certainly not equivalent to the one I had selected at time of booking in a number of respects, so I felt I should qualify for at least a partial refund. Would they be prepared to review my case?
That seemed do the trick and I was passed up the chain of command. Soon I got quite a reasonable e-mail back from someone else (maybe even a real live human!) saying that she had been assigned to look at my request and determine the amount of my refund. Then maybe a week or so later, I got an itemized account of how much I'd paid them and how much I'd be getting back.
So essentially they agreed to refund half of what I paid. They say it will be refunded to my credit card but that I should allow two billing cycles for it to appear on my credit card statement.
I haven't seen my money yet but I'll be keeping track and holding them to account!
In my June 17 entry, I also mentioned my latest trip on VIA rail, from Toronto to Ottawa. The train was late but before we even disembarked, we were informed that we could get 50% off the next ticket booked, as long as it was within 12 months.
I probably didn't really need to do anything in this case but I decided to e-mail them anyway, to ask whether I could expect some sort of coupon to appear in my online VIA Preference profile. I'm glad I did.
The thing is, I'm not sure at the moment when my next train trip is likely to be. What if I found I didn't want to take a train trip over the next 12 months and couldn't use my 50% off before it expired?
Well, it turned out I could get a bunch of Preference points instead. The points don't expire. And if it turns out I do take a bunch of train trips after all, the additional points I accrue might even bump me up to the next tier of their loyalty program.
I went with the points option and they've already been added to my profile.
So I guess if there's a moral to the story, it's ... persistence (potentially) pays off?
