Did United Airlines Just Try To Scam Me? No, But…
- Konrad Tillman
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
Intro
In the past years, we have seen an uptick in scams within airlines. Whether it be the consumer's fault by dialing an incorrect number found online, someone intercepting a call mid-dial, or an agent transferring the customer to an exterior line, like we saw with the person who was ‘scammed’ out of 17 thousand dollars, we have to be careful.
With that being said, I had an interesting interaction the other day with a United agent, and one has to wonder if this was a United agent…
What Happened?
2 days ago, I got a phone call from United Airlines itself about something, and this was the first time that I have ever received a call from United while I am not traveling (next flight in 3 days). I did miss the call, but figured I would try them back since I found it a tad peculiar.
Anyways, I give them a call back on the direct United Airlines number, which I have called many, many times, and that is saved on my phone. I press 0, 0, and 1, followed by 2, and am immediately transferred through with no wait due to being 1K. An agent by the name of “Sunshine” picks up, and the following encounter occurred:
She says, “Thanks for calling United, my name is Sunshine.”
I reply, “Hi Sunshine, I was just wondering, I received a call from United, and just wondering what it's about.”
Sunshine replies, “Let me check on that” (she proceeds to check and says), “Your reservation from Los Angeles to Hong Kong has been cancelled”.
I proceed to check my app, website, and laptop, and it’s fine, so I reply, “Everything is fine on my end, I just picked my meal order today”.
She said, “Nope, it is showing as cancelled for the PNR “XXXXXX”
I replied, “That is not the correct PNR.”
She replied, “You haven’t given me the new PNR.”
I replied, “You should have the PNR as it’s tied to my account.”
She replied, “You haven’t given it to me; we have a problem with our system.”
As soon as I saw that she was fishing for my PNR, which every agent should have, I hung up.
My Thoughts Surrounding This
For starters, I want to point out a couple of things here:
United, the airline itself, is definitely not trying to scam me
However, I call United probably 2x per week as I travel with them so much, and never once have they not known the PNR for a booking.
Additionally, the way she asked for it was as if she was probing for a PNR, and if it really wasn’t United and the call had been intercepted, my booking could have easily been cancelled.
But what could this have been? Honestly, I am not entirely sure, and my guess is as good as yours. Perhaps it was a poorly trained agent, perhaps the call had been intercepted, and perhaps it was a United agent who was going to transfer me off like the person who got ‘scammed’ for 17K. Needless to say, be careful with who you call and provide your DOB, MileagePlus number, and PNRs. If it doesn’t feel right: HUCA.
How Did United Respond?
Due to this uneasy interaction, I decided to reach out to the 1KVoice email and got a response from them the next day. Unfortunately, it doesn’t exactly address the issue which I was talking about, and just seems like an automated response, but what can you do…
“Thank you for your email, and I apologize for the poor service you received from the Premier 1K agent. The behavior and attitude you described are not reflective of our commitment to providing our Premier 1K members the highest level of service, and I apologize for the negative impression this situation has created.
All United employees are expected to provide our customers with friendly, professional service at all times. They are also expected to perform their duties with courtesy and efficiency while maintaining a compassionate regard for customer convenience, regardless of circumstances. Based on your comments, we did not meet our goal or your expectations.
We work hard to correct problems brought to our attention. Although we cannot explain the poor behavior, we can work to correct it. I will forward your comments to the Premier 1K reservations management team. They will try to locate "Sunshine" the agent you spoke to and this will be addressed. Your concerns will be taken very seriously, and I am confident necessary corrective action will be taken.
I apologize for the negative impression this situation created”
Final Thoughts
In this modern day of technology, we have to be very careful about who we give out information to, even as far as airline PNRs. If something doesn’t feel right, hang up, make sure you are calling the right number, and speak to another agent. Even if it might not be anything, it is better to be safe than sorry.
