Expedia Fails the Customer Service Test

The other day I logged onto Expedia to book a trip. I got through most of the details, and then Expedia inexplicably asked me to log into the site again. As I normally do, I clicked on the Windows Live link to log in via my Windows Live/Passport login service (one of Microsoft's better Internet services). Instead of taking me to the login screen, Expedia logged me out of the site and posted a logout message. After several attempts at logging in via Passport, I decided that the Expedia link to the service was broken and that I would have to book my ticket through another site.

I logged into Orbitz and set up the itinerary, then realized that I did not have my frequent flyer number in Orbitz. Since I have my US Air Dividend Miles statement emailed to my Hotmail account (another site that uses the Live/Passport login service), I logged into Hotmail toget my frequent flyer number, and lo and behold, Expedia had sent me a confirmed itinerary for a trip that I had not known I purchased. Oops. 

I jumped on the phone to the Expedia Customer Service line and was immediately informed by their automated service system that call volume was unusually high because many travellers were calling the system at the time. Uh-oh. As a business person, this development meant nothing to me but a lot of potential hassles. As a software professional, it meant something quite different - the Expedia engineering team had pushed a change to their production systems that caused immediate and significant problems for their customers. Bad news. After sitting on the phone (on hold of course) for far too long, I gave up for the day. My time is way too valuable to sit on hold forever. 

Fast forward to today. I called Expedia's Customer Service line again to change my itinerary. Remeber, the one I didn't even realize I had booked, the one that I almost double-booked through Orbitz? Sorry, the Expedia customer service folks informed me, (oh yes, they actually answer the phone when they are not being deluged with calls from customers because of their broken web site), I would need to pay a $150 airline fee to change my ticket. 

I explained how the site had been broken (which they must know but would not admit) and how the site booked my itinerary without showing me that it had been booked.  Apparently that was my fault, the mistake by the Expedia engineering team notwithstanding. Sorry, I would have to pay, end of story.

Not that $150 is going to kill me, but I should not have to pay for their mistake. It annoys the hell out of me when companies hide their mistakes behind a wallof customer service representatives with carefully scripted responses to legitimate complaints. For that reason and the considerable annoyance and incovenience this problem has caused me, I have decided to drop Expedia for good as a booking site for my travel arrangements. Thanks but no thanks, Expedia.