Travel agent allegedly tells tour group in Thailand to leave child behind after booking wrong Scoot ticket
A 17-member tour group from Singapore visiting Thailand couldn't board their flight home because the travel agency booked the wrong ticket for one person in the group.
Stomper Bianca shared what happened in a Feb 2 post in the Complaint Singapore Facebook group.
"ASA Holidays bought for one of us a child ticket which resulted in the whole entourage unable to check in," said the Stomper.
According to Scoot, a child ticket is for a passenger between two and 11 years old. If you're 12 years old and older, you need an adult ticket.
The Stomper's nephew is 12 years old.
She claimed: "When we called ASA, a woman instructed us to board the plane and leave the 12-year-old behind, and ended the call!"
ASA Holidays denied this.
The Stomper continued: "The Scoot ground crew insisted that we get in touch with the travel agent because they were unable to make any changes to the system.
"Given that they were dressed in the uniform, didn't they represent the Scoot? We were willing to simply pay the difference and get on the plane! We did have a seat after all! Just give us the tickets! Let us check in!
"At the last minute, by paying S$900 to the ground crew at Chiang Mai airport, we got the correct ticket and checked in."
She told Stomp: "It was tough because there isn't a Scoot office in Chiang Mai. It was another hurdle. The ground staff had issues to updating the system."
The Stomper said that somehow, they didn't have a problem with the ticket when they flew out of Singapore.
In her Facebook post, she had other complaints as well, about the checked-in luggage, tour guide, bus driver, hotel rooms and not having enough to eat for one meal.
The tour group returned to Singapore on Feb 1 after the five-day Chinese New Year trip to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
In response to a Stomp query, ASA Holidays copied to Stomp an email the travel agency sent to the Stomper on Feb 4.
The email said:
Thank you for reaching out to us regarding your recent trip to Chiang Mai with ASA Holidays. We sincerely regret to hear about your experience and the challenges you encountered. Your feedback is very important to us, and we take such matters seriously. Please be assured that we are currently reviewing your concerns with the relevant departments and conducting a thorough investigation. We will provide you with a detailed response as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience while we look into this matter and we will be in touch with you soon. Once again, thank you for your patience and understanding. We value your trust in us and look forward to resolving this matter soonest possible.
An ASA Holidays spokesperson told Stomp: "We would like to clarify that at no point did our staff instruct or suggest that the child be left behind at Chiang Mai Airport. As a reputable and responsible travel agency, our priority is to assist our customers in resolving any travel-related issues they may encounter.
"We take such matters seriously and remain committed to providing the highest level of service and support to all our customers."
Update:
The spokesperson sent Stomp an update on Feb 13: "We would like to inform you that the issue raised by Bianca has been resolved and we have reimbursed her $840.
"This case is now considered resolved and closed."
The Stomper said: "ASA has settled the issue with us. Thank you."
