Positively concluded cases - March 27, 2005

To: the director, Britannia Travel Agency:

I would like to make some comments on the Mediterranean cruise I went on with my friend Polly Tabone from July 14 to 21, 2004. The trip was very pleasant and there was food galore as well as the shows. However not everything went well.

I paid almost Lm700 for that cruise so I expected the best. In one week our cabin was changed three times. We had cabin numbers 107, 121, and 127. It was very inconvenient and uncomfortable. Every time the stewardess told us to move, "because someone else had booked that cabin". Why don't you book passengers with the cabin numbers like they do in other countries?

Our second disappointment was the group leader. When I asked Mr Fenech for his cabin number in case anything happened (we were two old ladies), he said I had no right to know it. He told us to 'phone the stewardess. I think this is very absurd because, when one is sick, the other would be completely at a loss. Besides, my friend does not speak Italian and very little English.

I hope this will be settled by next year and we will have better service. We both however expect some form of compensation. (Carmen Stafrace)

Here follows the highly encouraging, brief letter confirming a highly positive conclusion well worth sharing:

I would like to thank you for your intervention between the Britannia Travel Agency and me. Our problem was solved on good terms. We discussed the problem and we were offered 15% discount on our next trip through the same agency.

You are a good help to all your readers. Thank you. (Carmen Stafrace)

I thank and compliment the director, Britannia Travel Agency, on his co-operation and customer orientation.

Krea (Malta)

To: the managing director Krea (Malta)

I ordered some furniture for my living room from you on September 3 and was given an estimated delivery date for Octobe 15.

The date passed and you did not contact me to inform me whether the furniture had arrived or not. When I eventually got in contact with your office, I was told that the furniture had arrived and an appointment for delivery against a charge was made for December 6.

The furniture was delivered on the day but we discovered that one half of a library unit was missing. When contacted by your own delivery man, your office said that this piece had not arrived and would not be available until January 15.

On the day, I paid for my order less the amount for the missing piece. Since then I have called your office countless times, only to be told that the item had not arrived yet. The last date I had been given was February 10. I duly called the following week and was told again that the item had not arrived.

I have now been waiting for more than three months with half assembled furniture in my living room and the glass doors for the cabinet which I am missing lying in my garage with the risk of accidentally breaking them.

To add insult to injury I recently received a copy of Phone Direct magazine with a front page advert by your company advertising the type of furniture I ordered (and paid full price for) at 25 per cent discount and the advert also promises delivery in March for orders by end of February.

I am now expecting some overdue customer service from your company without further delay. Twenty-five per cent off my total order would have been more than Lm100, so the least I expect now is prompt delivery and my balance of Lm33.99 to be waived! (Doryne Abela)

Subsequently I received the following letter about a highly positive conclusion:

Further to my letter regarding my complaint, I am pleased to inform you that I was contacted by Krea only a few days after I sent my letter. They immediately made an appointment to deliver my missing piece of furniture, which they did as planned and also waived my balance due as I had requested.

Even though I had to lodge a complaint to spur them into action, I must stay the promptness with which they dealt with it and the fact that they accepted my request for "compensation" has made up somewhat for my having to wait for so long. (Doryne Abela)

I must compliment Krea (Malta) Ltd, and Britannia Tours on their customer orientation. Indeed these are cases in which customers are left with a more positive impression of the respective companies than the customers would have got had the bad situation never happened in the first place.