Roasting on the Eagle

[Randall]

On May 16, I rode the TE from DAL to CHI in a roomette. An otherwise great trip was ruined by the lack of working A/C in the entire sleeper. All other cars had a proper temperature. The stifling heat in the room made the trip unbearable. I tweeted @Amtrak which led to a back-and-forth via DM, and despite a promise I would hear back, nothing yet. Question to the forum: should I have any expectation that I will get a refund for the sleeper portion of my ticket, or a voucher for future use? What is the best way to press my case? Thanks!

 

[pennyk]

On May 16, I rode the TE from DAL to CHI in a roomette. An otherwise great trip was ruined by the lack of working A/C in the entire sleeper. All other cars had a proper temperature. The stifling heat in the room made the trip unbearable. I tweeted @Amtrak which led to a back-and-forth via DM, and despite a promise I would hear back, nothing yet. Question to the forum: should I have any expectation that I will get a refund for the sleeper portion of my ticket, or a voucher for future use? What is the best way to press my case? Thanks!

Call during business hours and ask to speak to a customer relations agent.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I would calmly push for a full refund of both sleeper fee and rail fare. Being miserable because the AC is broken with nowhere else to go is on 100% on Amtrak.

 

[NYP2NFL01]

If you are an AGR (Amtrak Guest Rewards) member, try calling the dedicated phone number: 1 (800) 307-5000. At the very least they should offer you a voucher applicable towards future travel. Sorry about your uncomfortable room

 

[GAT]

I would calmly push for a full refund of both sleeper fee and rail fare. Being miserable because the AC is broken with nowhere else to go is on 100% on Amtrak.

This would be a good place to start, but I expect you will have to back off that position to reach an acceptable settlement. After all, Amtrak did get you to your chosen destination, and you possibly availed yourself of the meals included in your sleeper fare. And, assuming the coaches weren't 100% full, you could have gotten your AC there, as well as in the sightseeing car during opening hours. Admittedly that's not what you paid for or expected, but it could have been worse.

I would suggest you set your bottom line (confidentially) at a certain percentage of the roomette upcharge. Keep in mind the three P's: patience, persistence. and politeness. And, if your first telephone conversation with a real customer relations person is unsatisfactory, switch your communications method to email and address it to a real person like a supervisor. Also, IMO, you just have to state the facts without too much emoting about the suffering it caused. They are well aware of the consequences of no AC on a crowded train.

Cash or voucher? That's a personal preference. If they offer only a voucher, be sure you understand all its T&Cs before accepting it.

Good luck!

 

[Palmland]

I wonder if an email would have been better than a tweet especially if sent to [email protected] (customer relations office). But, as Penny suggested, it’s best to start with a phone call to the customer relations office (the agent at the 800 number will transfer you).

At about the same time as your trip I had a bad experience and wrote to Amtrak. I did get a reply - 5 weeks later. Although in my case I was offered a voucher the day after my trip, so a call wasn’t needed, but still wanted to go on record with my dissatisfaction.

 

[PVD]

This would be a good place to start, but I expect you will have to back off that position to reach an acceptable settlement. After all, Amtrak did get you to your chosen destination, and you possibly availed yourself of the meals included in your sleeper fare. And, assuming the coaches weren't 100% full, you could have gotten your AC there, as well as in the sightseeing car during opening hours. Admittedly that's not what you paid for or expected, but it could have been worse.

I would suggest you set your bottom line (confidentially) at a certain percentage of the roomette upcharge. Keep in mind the three P's: patience, persistence. and politeness. And, if your first telephone conversation with a real customer relations person is unsatisfactory, switch your communications method to email and address it to a real person like a supervisor. Also, IMO, you just have to state the facts without too much emoting about the suffering it caused. They are well aware of the consequences of no AC on a crowded train.

Cash or voucher? That's a personal preference. If they offer only a voucher, be sure you understand all its T&Cs before accepting it.

Good luck!

I think the SSL car has been missing from the Eagle for quite a while now. It would be a great place to go to get out of the room, but I don't believe that option is presently available.

 

[Randall]

All - thank you for your considerable responses. I eventually raised customer service and the agent offered a 100% value voucher for the room portion. I accepted. Already cashed this voucher for another try at #22 DAL > CHI in a roomette in October. Wish me luck. #gluttonforpunishment

 

[MARC Rider]

I wonder if an email would have been better than a tweet especially if sent to [email protected] (customer relations office). But, as Penny suggested, it’s best to start with a phone call to the customer relations office (the agent at the 800 number will transfer you).

At about the same time as your trip I had a bad experience and wrote to Amtrak. I did get a reply - 5 weeks later. Although in my case I was offered a voucher the day after my trip, so a call wasn’t needed, but still wanted to go on record with my dissatisfaction.

Around 2010, I had a really bad delay on the Northeast Regional that involved sitting in the cold somewhere between Route 128 and Providence, and a night sitting in the waiting room of the otherwise closed South Station. I wrote a letter to the CEO of Amtrak expressing hope that we could reach a settlement. I heard nothing back, and then a while later when I got bustituted on the Capitol Limited from Pittsburgh to Washington (I missed my breakfast and had to sit in a crowded bus for 5 hours) I went to Customer Service at Union Station, and they told me to write to Customer Relations about it, which I did. I think I also sent a whole bunch of ticket receipts for which I was unable to enter my AGR number at the time I bought the ticket for some reason or other. I also either got a call or a letter saying, to the effect, "we've been trying to reach you for some about your bad trip on the Northeast Regional." So I got a voucher for what they estimated to be the value of not being able to ride the sleeper between Pittsburgh and Washington, and they gave me a bigger voucher for my Northeast Regional adventure, and they also totted up all by AGR points, and it turned out that I qualified for Select Plus!

Yeah, I say it pays to contact customer relations. But don't bother writing to the CEO. They'll get back to you eventually, but it will take a long time.

 

[TinCan782]

Didn't the Eagle have an A/C issue a few years ago? Pretty serious from a health standpoint I believe.
Or perhaps a HEP failure.