An Edinburgh family has been left fuming after their holiday plans - years in the making - were nearly ruined after their flight was cancelled hours before they were due to fly.
Frances Mitchell booked a trip to Florida all the way back in 2019 for her silver anniversary with her husband Paul and son Samuel. Three years of Covid meant they had to continue to put off their plans until, this year, they were finally able to go ahead.
However, their long anticipated trip was thrown into jeopardy when British Airways emailed them the night before their flight to tell them it was cancelled. Forcing them to make new plans at the last minute.
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The early morning flight was scheduled to leave Edinburgh Airport at 7.30am on July 3. However, the family were only informed of the cancellation at 5pm on the night before.
Their flight was rescheduled for a few days later. However, Frances and her family had already planned a stay at a Disney resort and the new flights would bring that stay down from five nights to two.
After hurrying to find alternative flights and speaking to the customer service team, they finally managed to book an indirect flight to Florida, via Washington. The family said the entire experience has been extremely upsetting and left their youngest son with stomach cramps.
Frances said: “It was extremely upsetting for us all, especially since this holiday has been booked for three years and postponed due to Covid.
“We felt devastated but we’re a good resilient team so Paul got onto the PC and started looking for other flights whilst I went on hold to BA for 48 minutes.
“The customer service representative was not interested; in fact their attitude was very ‘and what would you like me to do about it?’
“It was honestly as if I was calling because I’d lost a sock. Customer service for BA is a misnomer; no-interest-in-the-customer is a better description.
“Paul is currently trying to get a refund from British Airways in full but the website isn’t working for refunds.”
A spokesperson for British Airways said: “We've apologised to our customers whose flights have been cancelled due to the continuing industry challenges we are facing and have offered them a seat on an alternative flight at the earliest opportunity.
“Customers are also being offered the option to travel with other carriers, use alternative modes of ground transport or accept a full refund. We are extremely sorry for the frustration and inconvenience caused.”
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