Video of Agent Brings United's Latest Apology

She threatened to cancel reservation because of recording, says passenger
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted May 10, 2017 6:11 AM CDT
Video of Agent Brings United's Latest Apology
A United Airlines ticket counter at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago.   (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

United just can't catch a break: In the latest headache for the airline, a California man says a United counter agent in New Orleans threatened to cancel his reservation because he began recording his dispute with her. Navang Oza, 37, says he started filming the "rude" agent around 4am Monday after he was charged $300 to check an oversized bag for his flight to San Francisco, when he'd previously been charged $125 for the same luggage. The video, posted to Twitter, begins with the agent telling Oza he does not have permission to record her. She then tells another agent to "call the cops" or "cancel the reservation" before pulling out her own phone and apparently recording Oza, per Business Insider. "I'll do the same thing," she says.

An airport police officer soon arrived and told Oza he had every right to film in a public place, reports Raw Story. Oza, who eventually booked a flight with another airline, later posted his video online because "if people are being rude, if people are making up rules at kiosks of airlines, I feel like that's something we should be recording and sharing with everyone," he tells NBC Bay Area. Adding that his alcohol consumption the evening before the flight was not a factor in the dispute, Oza says he now wants compensation from United for his missed flight and for the airline to cancel his future flights without penalty. A United rep says the airline is investigating, but "the video does not reflect the positive customer experience we strive to offer, and for that, we apologize." (United is still dealing with fallout from the death of a giant rabbit.)

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