Aer Lingus Wins 5 Stars for Customer Service

Probably like most who’ve traveled a lot I have a deepfelt resentment of the way airlines treat people. Sometimes this is mildly assuaged when we catch an upgrade from BA, but generally the drive to low cost has left all of them in the “crap” category when it comes to customer service.

For that reason it gives me a special pleasure to report an unusual experience.

Having checked in online for last nights Aer Lingus 397 from Vilnius to Dublin, we arrived at the gate to be told our seat allocation had been changed. The service agent offered no explanation, simply suggesting we write to the airline with any complaint.

Whenever this has happened in the past complaints to the crew have always resulted in the same disappointment. They always say “take the seats you have now and we’ll sort it out when everybody has boarded”. Of course they never do.

Last night it was a different story. I think the lady’s name is Michela Maloney (hopefully I’ll be forgiven for any misspelling). Michela is an absolute jewel when it comes to customer service.

No fuss, professional, sympathetic she explained there must have been a problem with children originally allocated exit row seats and subsequently moved to ours. She asked a crew member to check out the situation – we should just wait at the front.

Within a few minutes her colleague led us to a pair of seats in the exit row.

As a result we got better seats than originally allocated, and Aer Lingus gets the 5 Star Customer Service award.

It’s often said that something going wrong is an opportunity to prove quality customer service, and this case is a perfect example.

Now the real icing on the cake will appear if Aer Lingus is monitoring Twitter and picks this up.

I wonder? Hey guys give me a shout if you do. It will be nice to know one big brand is actually listening.

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Tagged as: Aer Lingus, Airline, British Airways, Business, Consulting, Customer service, Dublin, Education and Training