# Compensation for viewliner with no toilets



## cbqbill (Jul 26, 2010)

I'm traveling from BOS to CHI on 449. The toilets in the Boston sleeper have been out of service since we left Framingham. I'm traveling on a two-zone roomette AGR reward ticket through to Denver. Should I call AGR and ask them for compensation? How much should I expect. It will be a real pain to go back to the coaches for relief at 3am (get dressed, etc.)


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## abcnews (Jul 26, 2010)

No other roomettes available?


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## Acela150 (Jul 27, 2010)

cbqbill said:


> I'm traveling from BOS to CHI on 449. The toilets in the Boston sleeper have been out of service since we left Framingham. I'm traveling on a two-zone roomette AGR reward ticket through to Denver. Should I call AGR and ask them for compensation? How much should I expect. It will be a real pain to go back to the coaches for relief at 3am (get dressed, etc.)


I don't know if AGR would be able to offer anything since you didn't pay for it. If you paid for your reservation you could call Amtrak Customer Relations and complain I'm sure they would offer you a travel certificate. But since you booked through AGR I think you're out of luck.

Steve


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## Ispolkom (Jul 27, 2010)

Acela150 said:


> cbqbill said:
> 
> 
> > I'm traveling from BOS to CHI on 449. The toilets in the Boston sleeper have been out of service since we left Framingham. I'm traveling on a two-zone roomette AGR reward ticket through to Denver. Should I call AGR and ask them for compensation? How much should I expect. It will be a real pain to go back to the coaches for relief at 3am (get dressed, etc.)
> ...


This spring I was on a AGR award on the California Zephyr. Heck, it was a loophole trip DEN-SAC-PDX-MSP. We had a nonfunctioning, unflushed toilet in our bedroom for 20 hours. I called Customer Relations, apologized for complaining, and got a $250 voucher even though the agent confirmed with me that it was an AGR award. I'd complain. What do you have to lose? And, while I'm not one for whining (this was my first complaint in almost 30 years on Amtrak), functioning toilets are a key component to the travel experience.


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## RRrich (Jul 27, 2010)

I recently traveled from ALN to ALB. We arrived about 4 hours late which left me $200 out of pocket (with receipts)

It was an AGR trip so when I get home I shall call AGR and give them an earful!!


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## the_traveler (Jul 27, 2010)

Acela150 said:


> If you paid for your reservation you could call Amtrak Customer Relations and complain I'm sure they would offer you a travel certificate. But since you booked through AGR I think you're out of luck.


What does "paying with cash" have to do with anything? You "paid with cash" for the prior travel on Amtrak to earn the AGR points that you "paid" for this trip with!






I had an AGR reward trip (completely "paid" with points) cross country. Many things went wrong - including a derailment (of a freight, not us), a bustitution, a 12 hour late arrival at my connecting point, no hotel offered, so I cancelled a portion of the award and just went home. I contacted Customer Service (actually addressed it to the President of Amtrak



) - and received a $500 voucher! That trip had *NO* cash outlay!


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## Devil's Advocate (Jul 27, 2010)

the_traveler said:


> Acela150 said:
> 
> 
> > If you paid for your reservation you could call Amtrak Customer Relations and complain I'm sure they would offer you a travel certificate. But since you booked through AGR I think you're out of luck.
> ...


Agreed. Call Amtrak. Treat it like any other revenue trip. So long as Amtrak keeps touting toilets as part of their amenity list you should expect them to be functional and demand substantial compensation for every trip that fails to meet that standard. Sounds like $250 would be a good starting point for this sort of failure.


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## had8ley (Jul 27, 2010)

We used the old (Ex) Slidell loophole with all AGR points. The A/C went out in our room about 2 hours out after breakfast. We went to the diner where we were immediately thrown out because "It's not serving time." We went to the lounge and somebody left their barrel of Bourbon Street Hurricanes all over the floor; there was nobody in the car.The smell knocked me backwards. The Amtrak rep said we were entitled to half of what the sleeper fare was at high bucket even though we were on AGR and the loop hole to boot; a nice $375 voucher but really not worth the problems.

P.S. Don't call AGR as it is Amtrak that issues the vouchers.


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## jmbgeg (Jul 27, 2010)

the_traveler said:


> Acela150 said:
> 
> 
> > If you paid for your reservation you could call Amtrak Customer Relations and complain I'm sure they would offer you a travel certificate. But since you booked through AGR I think you're out of luck.
> ...


Wow. When I have had service problems I have just received a partial or full return of points for that award segment.


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## OlympianHiawatha (Jul 27, 2010)

I would think at minimum they could "refund" some Points back into your Kitty.


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## Ispolkom (Jul 27, 2010)

RRrich said:


> I recently traveled from ALN to ALB. We arrived about 4 hours late which left me $200 out of pocket (with receipts)
> 
> It was an AGR trip so when I get home I shall call AGR and give them an earful!!


I'd call Amtrak Customer Relations, not AGR.


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## Shanghai (Jul 27, 2010)

*I was in roomette from NYP to IND four weeks ago. About half way on the trip, my toilet and the air conditioning*

*failed. I wrote Amtrak CS complaining and requesting compensation (I was on a paid ticket). I received an e-mail*

*two days later (3 weeks ago) saying they received my letter and have heard nothing since. I think Amtrak should do*

*s better job with their customers. *


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## Ispolkom (Jul 27, 2010)

I'd call. Writing seems not to work as well.


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## Devil's Advocate (Jul 27, 2010)

Maybe Amtrak employees can't read? ^_^


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## leemell (Jul 27, 2010)

Shanghai said:


> *I was in roomette from NYP to IND four weeks ago. About half way on the trip, my toilet and the air conditioning*
> 
> *failed. I wrote Amtrak CS complaining and requesting compensation (I was on a paid ticket). I received an e-mail*
> 
> ...


Calling almost always works better.


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## jmbgeg (Jul 27, 2010)

Ispolkom said:


> I'd call. Writing seems not to work as well.


I agree.


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## WMJ_NJ (Jul 28, 2010)

On a trip to Florida I boarded the Meteor in Newark to be told by the car attendant that my Bedroom had a malfunctioning toilet and he was moving me to Coach. I told him I am not riding to FL in coach and that I would stay in the bedroom and just use the toilet in the lounge. The next morning I was able to use the toilet in a roomette that was empty after JAX.

On my return I called AGR and they gave me 5,000 points back.

Bill J


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## IHC (Jul 30, 2010)

So, after reading this thread, it sounds like the thing to do is call *BOTH* Amtrak Customer Relations and get a $$ credit voucher, *AND* also call AGR and get some points refunded too.


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## cbqbill (Jul 30, 2010)

This matter has been resolved nicely. I called AGR, their agent transferred me to Amtrak Customer Relations. The CR agent listened to the problem, put me on hold for a few minutes while she investigated. When she returned she apologized for the inconvenience and arranged for a $200.00 voucher to be sent to my home address. I will use the $200 to pay for most of the cost of a roomette to Toledo. I'll use points for a TOL-CHI-LAX-SEA two-zone roomette.


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## Ispolkom (Aug 1, 2010)

cbqbill said:


> This matter has been resolved nicely. I called AGR, their agent transferred me to Amtrak Customer Relations. The CR agent listened to the problem, put me on hold for a few minutes while she investigated. When she returned she apologized for the inconvenience and arranged for a $200.00 voucher to be sent to my home address. I will use the $200 to pay for most of the cost of a roomette to Toledo. I'll use points for a TOL-CHI-LAX-SEA two-zone roomette.


I'm glad that it worked out to your satisfaction, and that the unpleasantness didn't put you off to train travel.


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## Shanghai (Aug 4, 2010)

Shanghai said:


> *I was in roomette from NYP to IND four weeks ago. About half way on the trip, my toilet and the air conditioning*
> 
> *failed. I wrote Amtrak CS complaining and requesting compensation (I was on a paid ticket). I received an e-mail*
> 
> ...



*I am pleased to report that today I received a telephone call from Amtrak Customer Service offering me a travel*

*voucher for $250.00 (the cost of my roomette). I gladly accepted.*


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## Shanghai (Aug 4, 2010)

*If I use a travel voucher for Amtrak travel, will I receive AGR points or will it be considered free travel?*


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## AlanB (Aug 4, 2010)

There was a bit several months ago at AGR that such vouchers would not earn AGR points, only any amount paid over and above the voucher amount would earn points. However, I've not heard if Amtrak & AGR have actually figured out how to tell the difference and kill those points.


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## Shanghai (Aug 13, 2010)

*If I use my $250 Amtrak Voucher to purchase a round trip Acela trip from NYP to BOS to NYP,*

*will I get rail points for the trip? When traveling on the Acela between designated point,*

*rail points are based on the Acela trip, not the cost of the ticket. For example, NYP to BOS*

*in Business Class yields 500 rail points, although the cost of the trip is less than $250.*

*For First Clss, one receives 750 rail points, not double the cost of the ticket. Has anyone*

*tried this before?*


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