Given Velocity Gold only to be revoked days later?

[aaah_chu]

In brief - I recently joined a prominent company as an adviser and was afforded Velocity membership under their corporate scheme with Virgin Australia. Upon the HR department sending through the paperwork to Virgin Australia, my online profile was updated taking me from a person with no status (red) to a Gold velocity member. I signed up for partner offers using the helpful advice on this forum (i.e. HHonours, Europcar).

Given I was due to fly soon, I wanted to know when my Gold membership kit would arrive. I phoned the Virgin call centre (131 875) and was seemingly transferred to an overseas call centre whose staff had little customer service skills (i.e. being placed on hold without warning, not being addressed by name, constantly forgetting the reason for my call and asking again why I was calling, etc.). I was eventually told that my kit had been posted and to expect it in 7 days.

7 days passed and no kit arrived. I phoned again and again was dealing with the overseas call centre. This time, the call centre operator told me he did not understand why I was asking about a gold membership kit given I wasn't a gold member! I disputed it and asked him to check his records - whilst on extended hold I logged into my account online and noticed that yes, he is right - I was downgraded from gold down to red the day I phoned asking where the gold membership kit was. After coming back, he told me that yes I was a gold member and the kit had in fact been posted already. He told me to just use the card and everything would be ok. I told him it wouldnt given the online system was indicating I was not a gold member. He said he would "try" to "get more information" and would phone me back in a couple of days.

Given I saw his response as a bit dismissive and flimsy, I thought I should try to get in touch with a person in Australia. I realised that they have no complaints line so lodged a letter via their website. The e-mailed confirmation notes that Virgin "aim to contact all guests within 21 days where possible" - the use of "aim" rather than a more definitive word like "will" and "contact" rather than "resolve the issue" makes me think it the complaints department is in the same category as the overseas call centre.

Has anyone had this situation before? Or any ideas on how I could approach them? Am I being too precious? I feel very wronged by all of this.

 

[777]

No expert on this at all but I would say your first port of call is with the company that has nominated you as Gold. Their relationship with velocity explains why you were given or might not be given gold so understanding how that's happened is probably useful. Just make sure they've done it all correctly from their end before getting onto velocity? Assuming they've got the details right then then by all means pursue it but i'd suggest their leverage may be stronger than yours.

 

[mella2007]

My business also has a corporate scheme and I have the authority to give 2 staff members Gold and to be able to revoke it if I choose to do so. This is a separate department within Virgin called "Accelerate" and the overseas call centre would know very little about it.
You need to speak with your company rep in case they for whatever reason withdrew it on their system, however it takes about 30 days for the status and the kit to arrive via this program and there are teething programs when adding or subtracting people from the scheme (it is possible they had to remove someone to give the status to you, hence perhaps the computer error)

 

[Andyc]

The complaints form on the website is a good idea. The one time I've done the same I was VERY impressed with how the Virgin staff went above and beyond to resolve the issue. I hope you receive a similar response.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I agree with the other comments and also have no answers with what you are experiencing, but for future reference, if you get the OS call centre to recognise you as gold (which it seems they finally did), immediately request to be transferred to the gold status support desk. Every time I've done this, they've complied without issue (in fact they're probably somewhat relieved). At least then you are talking to someone in AU with an accent you can understand.

 

[samiam]

Am I being too precious? I feel very wronged by all of this.

1. Yes
2. Why? It's free (okay, everything comes at a cost but you get my drift).

 

[Fruitcake]

2. Why? It's free (okay, everything comes at a cost but you get my drift).

I respectfully disagree - the gold status was extended to aaah_chu by virtue of a contract between his employer and Virgin Australia. So his company has paid for his gold status - presumably via a promise of a certain amount of travel spend or maybe an upfront cost. Promise of gold status with Velocity (which does have meaningful value for personal travel) could well be one of the factors which aaah_chu considered when deciding to take the role. So aah_chu's employer isn't getting what it paid for.

 

[Mal]

I respectfully disagree - the gold status was extended to aaah_chu by virtue of a contract between his employer and Virgin Australia. So his company has paid for his gold status - presumably via a promise of a certain amount of travel spend or maybe an upfront cost. Promise of gold status with Velocity (which does have meaningful value for personal travel) could well be one of the factors which aaah_chu considered when deciding to take the role. So aah_chu's employer isn't getting what it paid for.

... and that's the reason the OP needs to go back through his/her employer to get the situation resolved.

 

[samiam]

I respectfully disagree -

Open bracket, read, close bracket.

 

[RWJ777]

Oh Lord, what a frustrating situation: would propel youi nto the arms (wings) of another airline!

I have had that Gold offer from my employer for some time and it just rolls over year after year. In fairness, it does attract me to use VA in circumstances where, as a business traveller, I never would have once before used their economy service. So for their measure of poor wine and Hank's jam in the lounge, it probably works for them.

But I have also noticed the appalling customer service provided by VA's call centres and online portals. I sent their online portal, over a period of about a year, three messages. I receiced a reply to NONE. So don't expect to get an answer by that means.

I am finding increasingly these days that a letter -- yes, with an envelope and a stamp!! -- elicits a response where an email or phone call is all too easy to ignore. My tip: find out the head of VA's loyalty program and dart off an item of snail mail, personally addressed.

Good luck.

 

[lazybones1987]

My tip: find out the head of VA's loyalty program and dart off an item of snail mail, personally addressed.

Good luck.

Woah woah, the op hasn't tried to resolve the issue through the employer, as others have pointed out, it could very well be an issue with the op's employer.

 

[aaah_chu]

Thanks for all the replies!

I suppose I am most annoyed at myself – if I hadn’t been impatient and made the ill-fated call, I would not be having this problem.

Contacting HR never crossed my mind – sounds like a good idea. A key issue is that back office HR is fully outsourced to Mumbai via ‘Business Process Outsourcing’ and they are the ones who actually deal with Virgin. You tend to get unintelligible responses from them. The smartest path is probably just during the next flight, sitting next to the executive I work for and just suggesting to him oh you have platinum – did you get that through the company? I have a funny story – they gave me gold and took it away, do you think we can get this fixed? Then get him to write a note to the HR GM to follow up with Mumbai.

Oddly enough, I have the Virgin Australia welcome letter in hand…. “As a valued corporate client of Virgin Australia, I am pleased to welcome you to Velocity Gold membership”….along with the gold membership kit since it had already been posted out when they took gold away.

My thinking is wait a week or two and see what happens via the 2 avenues I tried - the overseas call centre guy was supposed to phone me back plus the online form I filled out. If neither works, I then try getting transferred to the gold desk. If that doesn’t work, then start complaining about Virgin internally and get HR to follow up.

 

[Justchecking]

In brief - I recently joined a prominent company as an adviser and was afforded Velocity membership under their corporate scheme with Virgin Australia. Upon the HR department sending through the paperwork to Virgin Australia, my online profile was updated taking me from a person with no status (red) to a Gold velocity member.

Has anyone had this situation before? Or any ideas on how I could approach them? Am I being too precious? I feel very wronged by all of this.

And yet the problem may not be on the Velocity end at all. Did the OPs new employer tell him he should be Gold? Or did he assume that's what he should be? I know he was initially updated to Gold, but what if someone in HR at his company made the error and he was never supposed to be given that status under the company scheme anyway? That would be my first port of call. My second port of call would be to understand that when you are new to a company all sorts of things go astray. Again follow up with your own company first. It seems Velocity is not the only corporate here to avail themselves of overseas outsource services. The error, if any exists, could just as easily be with either entity.

 

[777]

Oh Lord, what a frustrating situation: would propel youi nto the arms (wings) of another airline!

I have had that Gold offer from my employer for some time and it just rolls over year after year. In fairness, it does attract me to use VA in circumstances where, as a business traveller, I never would have once before used their economy service. So for their measure of poor wine and Hank's jam in the lounge, it probably works for them.

But I have also noticed the appalling customer service provided by VA's call centres and online portals. I sent their online portal, over a period of about a year, three messages. I receiced a reply to NONE. So don't expect to get an answer by that means.

I am finding increasingly these days that a letter -- yes, with an envelope and a stamp!! -- elicits a response where an email or phone call is all too easy to ignore. My tip: find out the head of VA's loyalty program and dart off an item of snail mail, personally addressed.

Good luck.

1. The OP has acknowledged the original problem may stem from his employer's end - a bit hard to assume the blame is VA at this point.
2. I have found the customer service on the dedicated premium line to be pretty good, is that who you have been talking to?
3. In my experience emails directed the dedicated premium email address have always been answered, is that where you've been directing your correspondence to?

A letter may well do the job but i've not found it necessary personally.

 

[markis10]

Oh Lord, what a frustrating situation: would propel youi nto the arms (wings) of another airline!

I have had that Gold offer from my employer for some time and it just rolls over year after year. In fairness, it does attract me to use VA in circumstances where, as a business traveller, I never would have once before used their economy service. So for their measure of poor wine and Hank's jam in the lounge, it probably works for them.

But I have also noticed the appalling customer service provided by VA's call centres and online portals. I sent their online portal, over a period of about a year, three messages. I receiced a reply to NONE. So don't expect to get an answer by that means.

I am finding increasingly these days that a letter -- yes, with an envelope and a stamp!! -- elicits a response where an email or phone call is all too easy to ignore. My tip: find out the head of VA's loyalty program and dart off an item of snail mail, personally addressed.

Good luck.

I would suggest of you have had poor service, you have not been calling the Brisbane Premium desk, whom I have found to be fantastic. Not sure why you feel the need to change airlines should you be in the OPs shoes, I suspect it's very much the issue of the outsourced overseas HR desk for their company, something that DJ have no control over, a hasty complaint in the wrong direction will only serve to discourage DJ from continuation of the program.

 

[777]

<redacted quote>

[Ignoring the underlying assumptions there that verge on ridiculous] it's not really an option when you are talking about a benefit provided as part of an employment package is it?

 

[Ausbt]

My employer has recently signed onto Accelerate. Does anyone know the spend level you need to achieve to obtain Gold status?

 

[oz_mark]

My employer has recently signed onto Accelerate. Does anyone know the spend level you need to achieve to obtain Gold status?

According to the Accelerate program details, the offer is for a trial Gold membership. Virgin Australia Accelerate Program | Virgin Australia

 

[Ausbt]

Thanks. I forsee a bit of jockeying in our office for those comp Gold memberships. Shouldn't be an issue for me as I fly enough, but among the desk-jockey 'management classes' it'll be like Seagulls squabbling over hot chips.

 

[drewbles]

<redacted deleted post quote>
erm. Last time I checked, a good chunk of QF was not Australian owned. This whole 'national airline' thing is a farce. QF *used* to be Government owned. They're not now.

Personally, i'd rather fly with an airline that does right by me and provides me with a level of service I expect. QF does not meet those expectations these days. VA are now getting close (especially in their transcon J offering, which I use frequently).