John called the Clark Howard Show today with a question about two tickets he had purchased from Delta Airlines. He’s supposed to fly out next week and when he looked at the purchase order, he realized that his wife’s name had been mangled. When he called Delta and asked them to fix the problem, they said, “Sure, for $50.”

He talked to a supervisor, but didn’t get any help. So, he called the show.

I suggested that he call Delta’s corporate office. Since he knew exactly what time he spoke with the representative (who he said had a heavy accent), they could pull a tape of the call and decide who was right — John or the Delta ticket agent.

After we got off the air, Clark Howard Show producer extraordinaire, Joni Alpert (yes, she’s the pit bull of the show) helped John with his strategy. He just called Joni back to say that Delta not only fixed the ticket for FREE (!!!!) but gave him two $100 vouchers for future travel for his troubles.

Lesson learned: It pays to keep moving up the ladder. Eventually, with a little bit of luck, you’ll reach someone who not only has common sense but has the authority to fix the problem.

Congratulations John, and THANK YOU JONI!!!

Dec. 19, 2006