A North Texas customer’s dispute with American Airlines shows how difficult it can be for an ordinary consumer to get a company to correct a mistake, even when the customer has records and a reasonable explanation. According to Charles Mersky, American Airlines refused to return $1,188.90 in travel credits after the credit was apparently used by another customer because of a one-digit error. The issue was not resolved until Texas News Express (TNE) contacted the airline.
Mersky, a retired attorney, told TNE that he and his wife received travel credits from American Airlines after changing departure cities during a trip to Norway. Instead of leaving from Bergen, they departed from Oslo, and American issued travel credits connected to the change. Months later, Mersky tried to use his credit to book a flight to Atlanta for a family wedding, but the airline’s system showed the credit had already been used.
Mersky said he knew he had not used the credit and began trying to get the problem corrected. According to TNE, he spent hours on the phone and exchanged multiple emails with American Airlines. Eventually, he said, a representative researched the issue more closely and determined that his trip credit number was only one digit different from another customer’s credit number. Mersky said he was told a customer service agent likely entered the wrong number by mistake, causing his credit to be applied to an unrelated customer’s booking.
That should have been the turning point. Instead, according to Mersky, American Airlines still refused to restore the credit. TNE reported that the airline told him credits must be applied correctly at the time of booking and that once a credit has been used, the company could not retroactively reassign or refund it because of input errors. In plain terms, the company appeared to acknowledge that something had gone wrong, but still would not make the customer whole.
Mersky compared the situation to a bank allowing the wrong person to withdraw money from someone else’s account and then refusing to put the money back. His point was simple: if the customer did not use the credit, and if the credit was used by someone else because of a company-side input error, the burden should not fall on the customer. Yet his complaint did not change the outcome before TNE became involved.
After Mersky contacted Texas News Express, the situation changed. American Airlines thanked Texas News Express for flagging the issue and acknowledging they will fix whatever error might have been made, although the airline did not directly address Mersky’s allegations. Mersky later said the company issued him a new travel credit for the full amount, valid for one year.
The case is a classic consumer-affairs example of a customer hitting a wall with a large business until media pressure created accountability. Before TNE got involved, Mersky said he had a paper trail, a clear explanation, and an apparent admission that his credit had been used by mistake. Still, the company did not fix it. Only after TNE investigated did American Airlines make the correction and restore the customer’s $1,188.90 travel credit.
If you have a problem with a business who hasn’t treated your fairly, contact Texas News Express’ Consumer Affairs Investigations and we will help you hold business accountable.
