You know, it's not every day that the airlines burn your luggage.

She looked out the plane's window and saw a man with a hose and a big plume of smoke.

The pilot told Tadel her smoldering luggage would not be allowed on the plane. She nodded in agreement.

The pilot went down and fished her medicine out of the smoking bag. When she returned to her economy seat, an apologetic crew member upgraded her to first class.

For more than two months, Tadel said, that was United's last act of kindness.

When she arrived at O'Hare International Airport, what remained of her belongings were stuffed into a much smaller bag and placed at baggage claim. Tadel opened it to find a hodgepodge of clothing and undergarments. A pair of jeans was pockmarked with burn holes. A blouse was charred and crumpled. Her turtleneck sweater was splotched with black soot.

The bulk of her belongings, roughly two-thirds of what she had packed, was simply gone.

She said that on Dec. 2 she spoke to a customer service agent, who took her information and told her she needed to file a claim form. Tadel said she went online Dec. 4 and filled out the form. She also submitted a detailed list of clothing and incidentals that were damaged or missing. She estimated her loss at $3,300.

The Chicagoan said she also sent a hard copy of the form to United's claim office the same day.

Weeks later, the airline then sent her a FedEx slip and asked her to send the damaged clothing back. Tadel said she took pictures of the clothes, then sent them to United on Jan. 8, along with a third copy of her claim form.

After waiting three more weeks for United to respond, Tadel reached the end of her rope. On Jan. 29, she e-mailed What's Your Problem?

"I have sent numerous e-mails, called several different numbers ... sat on the phone for hours hoping someone can help me," said Tadel, 25. "I have left many voice mails and yet still I have no response from the company."

And to think, she probably paid an extra $25 for that bag to get checked in.

Posted by: eddiebear at 03:11 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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