A good customer service story (SWA)

[2017ish]

I managed to leave my rain jacket on the plane when disembarking early last week. (How that could happen given the number of flights we take, I'll leave to your imagination.) Unfortunately, it had my wallet in the pocket!

Luckily, we were on our way to SFO, where we are spending 3+ weeks "babysitting" our granddaughter to free the kids up for a variety of reasons.... Thus, we had no urgency, particularly since DW had brought along a couple of credit cards, along with our google pay apps.

Filled out the online form from SWA website, but the lost and found people actually sprinted past that procedure. Got a phone call within 3 days (had contact information in the wallet), and shipment from Austin TX was arranged through my FedEx account.

Received the package today, and avoided the need to cancel credit cards and get a new license. (I checked the credit cards usage several times a day until I heard from SWA, with the intent to cancel as soon as any weird charges showed up.)

Good experience--although the automated lost and found system is still telling me that nothing pertinent to my online report has been found!

Not a big deal, but given our proclivities to reporting bad experiences, I thought this worth passing along.

 

[DrRoy]

It's nice to get a pleasant surprise now and again.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Very nice story!

I have a similar story. In 2019 I flew out of Newark for a two week trip to Italy. There was a problem with the plane, causing a major delay, me missing my connecting flight, and also my charter group bus to Alba from Turin. (Good news-the bus was held up for me).

So I killed time in Newark reading my old Kindle, only to leave it behind in the airport. Two weeks later, after my return flight, I went to the airport lost and found and recovered it. It was easy to prove it was mine, since it was called ******’s Kindle, password protected, and I knew what book I was reading.

 

[Dreamer]

Great to hear stories like these.

I think that most people are basically good. Unfortunately you hear about the bad way more than the good.

 

[Gumby]

Great to hear stories like these.

I think that most people are basically good. Unfortunately you hear about the bad way more than the good.

Oh, you're getting kicked out of the Misanthropes United club for that.

 

[Luvtoride]

Here is a good documentary to watch on Hulu about airport lost and found.
Inside Airport Lost & Found Streaming Online | Hulu ...
They really do try to track down owners of ALL (alot of it weird) lost stuff. Very interesting and supports your experience.

www.hulu.com › series › inside-airport-lost-foundWatch Inside Airport Lost & Found Streaming Online | Hulu ...
Watch Inside Airport Lost & Found Streaming Online | Hulu (Free Trial) 1 season available (1 episode) From weird to wonderful, see what happens to all the lost stuff at airports. more.

 

[braumeister]

If you're ever in northeastern Alabama with time on your hands, it's worthwhile to visit the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro. That's where all the lost bags from all the airlines are sent.

 

[Drake3287]

Great story with a nice outcome. It also wouldn't hurt to send SWA a letter telling them about your positive experience.

Year's ago, a United gate agent on Maui went totally out of her way to rebook our family on new flights after our's was canceled at the gate. I ended up sending United a letter explaining how great this employee was during this process and how she had gone out of her way for us.

Months later and we received a Christmas card from Maui and it turned out to be the Maui gate agent thanking us for the nice letter. We saw her again the next year at OGG and she still remembered us.

 

[braumeister]

I'll offer another good customer service story.
We're making a change to DW's car title, putting it in my name instead of hers. Went to the local clerk's office this morning, and found that they require "current" proof of insurance. The standard card wasn't enough, because of some strange rule in this state. I had to have my insurance company send it to them directly, and within a few days.

Went home and called USAA, expecting a long session on the phone, but was amazed that I got them to fax the proof to the clerk's office within two minutes, without ever speaking to a human. Their phone system was that intelligent and easy to deal with!

 

[Dreamer]

Oh, you're getting kicked out of the Misanthropes United club for that.