[Resolved]  Indigo Airlines — Delayed Flight post which forced to travel by road at double the cost

Address:

Jaipur

Hi,
I am Ashay Gaur. I booked Indigo flight for my journey Jaipur to Delhi on 19th Feb 2021 with PNR TLIPVJ, flight no being 6E 203. For 270 kms from Jaipur to Delhi which can be covered even by road (spending Taxi fare of INR 3600), I deliberately chose to fly by Indigo spending INR 13104 for myself and my family. My reason for travel by air instead of road was:-
a) Safety from Covid as I found cabs in Jaipur and Delhi not taking adequate sanitization precautions
b) discomfort and fatigue caused by road travel
c) delay caused by Kisan Aandolan on Jaipur Delhi highway
d) had to catch another international flight from Delhi to Bahrain for which my reporting time was 7:00 pm on 19th Feb 2021.
Above reasons prompted me to book air travel even though it was so expensive as compared to road travel. On the morning of 19th Feb 2021, like a prompt passenger, I reached Jaipur Airport at 9:30 am to catch my Indigo flight to Delhi at 12:15 pm. However, I was told by Indigo staff that the flight was delayed, and that the revised departure is 12:50 pm. Then I was told that the revised departure is 01:45 pm. After half an hour on further enquiry, I was told that the revised departure time is 04:35 pm which later became 05:00 pm and then again 05:15 pm (I have all messages stored with me which I Kept receiving from Indigo). During all this time with constant hecklings with Indigo staff at Jaipur Airport, I got perturbed as I had to catch another connecting international flight from Delhi to Bahrain. I kept requesting the Indigo staff at Jaipur Airport that I cannot afford to lose my international flight from Delhi as road travel takes at least 6 to 8 hours to reach to Delhi Airport. Surbhi, Harsh, Shiv, Ramya, Monarch, Khushboo are the names I remember on duty at Jaipur Airport for Indigo on 19th Feb 2021. At 2:00 pm, coolly, I am told by these people that I can take full refund and can go by road. I was like are you people out of your minds? Or have gone insane? Have I not been telling you that I have a connecting international flight from Delhi for which I am supposed to report by 7:00 pm. How on earth will I travel by road and reach there by 7:00 pm if I start at 2:00 pm. I got no absolute answer. For your information, I was doing my parallel enquiry with someone known at Delhi Airport who told that flight 6E 203 was to come from Dehradhun and the same flight was supposed to fly to Delhi and thereafter to Jaipur. However, this flight had not flown only from Dehradhun even at 01:30 pm. This fact was completely hidden from me by Indigo staff who kept telling flight is delayed due to bad weather condition at Delhi Airport. Seriously? Delhi weather was bright and clear that day. I later also realized that Jaipur Airport remains shut for runway maintenance from 2:00 pm to 04:30 pm which is why probably the flight was further delayed till 05:15 pm. If I were kept abreast of all these developments, I would have not reversed my decision of going by road, right? But in that panicking situation with lackadaisical approach to handle my request, I was forced to take a decision at 2:25 pm, to travel by road as Indigo staff was giving me lame excuses and no certain answer. I appeal to the reader of this complaint, what would a sane person do when he has a connecting international flight scheduled from Delhi after 7-8 hours (which I booked with sufficient margin) and he is constantly being told by Indigo staff that Jaipur to Delhi flight is being delayed after lapse of every half an hour. Would he not be in panicking situation? I stood to lose INR 1 lac at 2:25 pm for my further travel from Delhi to Bahrain. Indigo staff just brushed me aside telling you can take full refund. They even delayed in giving me back my luggage (when I was forced by them to take a decision to travel by road) which was taken earlier for check-in. Is that an answer to a harried passenger standing to lose his international travel? Further the airport cab took full advantage of my precarious situation and demanded INR 7000 (double the cost of normal cab fare) for travelling by road from Jaipur to Delhi Airport. In this entire episode, Indigo staff mishandled and I hold them responsible for the following:-
1. Suppressing the facts from me and forcing me travel by road instead of my pre booked air travel at such high fare of INR 13, 104.
2. Putting my family at complete distress by travel through road. My wife is still recovering from post-delivery back aches and other personal undisclosable problems.
3. Forcing me to book a shady airport cab with no hygiene and sanitary precautions.
4. Financial loss to me to book a cab from Jaipur to Delhi Airport at INR 7000 when the normal cab fare to Delhi airport costs just INR 3600
5. In my entire road travel to Delhi Airport I was so stressed that it gave me panic attacks, undue anxiety and fear of monetary loss of INR 1 lac (international travel cost). Further after reaching to Delhi Airport at 8:30 pm, I had to literally beg Air India to allow me to board the flight. It was all due to Indigo staff’s utter mishandling of a passenger’s request which caused me public humiliation and disrespect even at Delhi Airport before Air India staff (my travel partner from Delhi to Bahrain).
I claim compensation from Indigo which brought me hardship, panic attacks, headache, stress, anxiety, public humiliation and disrespect at Delhi Airport also due to Indigo’s mistake at Jaipur Airport.
Further, after this incidence at Jaipur Airport, while I was boarding the Cab to reach to Delhi Airport, I received a call from Mr Osama from Guest Experience and Feedback to whom I narrated the entire incidence. I was assured by him that I will receive my entire refund within 48 hours and that in half an hour I will again receive a call from Customer Care of Indigo to adequately address my grievance on this entire incidence narrated above. Well, neither the refund came nor did any call come. I have reached Bahrain now and would be unable to take any calls from India. I have waited enough for a day and time has come for me to act in writing through social media, Twitter, aviation regulator DGCA, consumer dispute redressal forums and various other platforms that I can get hold of. My email id is ashay.[protected]@gmail.com