Dear Sir/ ma'am,

I availed an offer from Spicejet to attend to my ailing father and bring him to Mumbai for treatment. I had the following problems for which I lodged complaints:
Routeing of Baggage. Complaint no 34949. I rushed to Kolkata after my final MBA exams on 07 May 09. My baggage was routed to Bangalore ! I was forced to stay at a relatives house in Kol, instead of proceeding as planned, losing out the benefit of arriving early by using the more costly air travel. Baggage arrived the next afternoon, despite many phonecalls.

Complaint no 35844- Dad's condition deteriorated by 17 May. I requested Spice to consider rerouteing us early as an emergency case, without the additional costs, as they were quite high. Imagine, to my chagrin, only my 82 yr old father was permitted to fly early, ie 29th albeit unescorted (as son not permitted). I suppose the cost difference was hardly anything- and cannot imagine how insensitive the airline was! Naturally, I refused.

Complaint no 36466- When 82 yr old father finally manages to reach Mumbai (after all the poor experience) he sustains a open-wound injury to his right hand ringfinger, whilst being transported from the aircraft to the terminal by wheelchair. Its the hand he uses most, at this old age, specially to steady himself. This shows the sense of responsibility of the personnel involved, whom we trust.

its not surprising to note that the most serious- the last complaint has been ignored totally!

My numerous letters and calls have not revealed satisfactory answers, namely:
I'm interested in knowing:
(a) Was an investigation carried out?
(b) Any inspection of wheelchairs undertaken and after how much interval wrt complaint. In the intervening time, how many spicejet flights landed or took off.
(c) Any examination of handlers undertaken with regard to knowledge, skill and attitude? After how much interval wrt complaint. In the intervening time, how many spicejet flights landed or took off.
(d) What remedial actions were taken to prevent recurrence of the incident, and after how much interval wrt complaint. In the intervening time, how many spicejet flights landed or took off.
(e) What measures were instituted to ensure safety of wheelchair passengers in the interim, till the problem was effectively resolved.
(f) What checks were taken to gauge the effectiveness of the remedial measures and at what interval?
(g) Who in the chain of command were the entire details reported to? What were their reaction?

The response to these questions is awaited. Meanwhile, I'd approached an expert in customer service, Mr Cyrus Gonda, co author of the book on customer service titled "Where is my Ketchup?" His response is

Dear Commander Sanyal,

At the outset let me thank you for having reposed faith and trust in the modest expertise I have acquired in the important area of Customer Service.
I personally feel it needs to be an area of priority and imperative for the management of any organisation today, especially of organisations in the service sector, that they gear their resources towards ensuring that their customers receive excellent experiences and Moments of Truth time after time after time. Only then can Customer Retention and Positive word of mouth publicity, which are the drivers of business success, be attained.
In the particular episode you have referred to me, as a neutral observer, I feel that the least that is expected of an organisation when it receives a customer complaint is that it responds with alacrity and openness, which is definitely not the case over here. from the multiple reminders from your end to the airline, it is very clear that the complaints you have rightly raised have not been given the prioriy they deserve. even when a response has been provide, it fails to clearly address the issues you have specifically raised. it is clearly more of a response meant to soothe and pacify, a very generic response, rather than a specific one meant to resolve the issues which you have been forced to face.
As a senior defence personnel, you have taken tickets under the scheme which the airline has formulated with an apparent sense of patriotism. this is a good and noble act on part of the airline, but it needs to be translated into action at operational levels. Since the scheme is meant to provide convenience to defence functionaries such as your goodself, who due to budgetary constraints in terms of remuneration (else all us citizens, including the airline and its staff would have to pay enhanced taxes), not only should the benefit be passed on at the reservation stage, but flexibility in minor resheduling of two days as you have requested, which in my opinion is very reasonable, should not come at such a high monetary price, especially since the change at your end was to accomodate your elderly and ailing father to undergo urgent medical attention. having said that, and having undertaken responsibility for your father's well being and safety on and after the flight in your absence, it is highly unfortunate that your father has sustained an injusry, apparently due to careless handling by ailrine personnel. this point raised by you, (and which would have been raised by any dutiful and aggrieved son), and the subsequent queries you have made in your communication as to the training meted out to the handlers who handled your father in the wheelchair, has not been responde to at all by the airline.
All this, in my opinion, displays lethargy and attempt to cover up, or at least be vague rather than be clear and specific and endear oneself to an aggrieved customer.
The issue of your baggage being ineptly handled and wrongly sent off, which was the reason why you were further inconvenienced, is also not answered.
In my view, so many lacunae in the handling of one important passenger is unacceptable, and not even responding to such a customer when he raise these issues leaves me with the feeling that the airline has a really long way to go when it comes to meeting even basic standards when it comes to the all crucial area of customer service.
Thanking you once again for having considered my opinion to be of value.
Kind regards
Cyrus

May I request you to kindly guide this duty-bound son in getting justice, as my father passed away on 25 Jul 09?

Regards,

Amit