SAA Voyager reviews and complaints

I want to use my Voyager miles to fly to Barcelona in March next year. Voyager got me a flight with Lufthansa using 60 000 miles, 120 000 for my and my wife. The taxes amounts to R8 027 per person, R16 054 for both of us.

Then I went on Lufthansa's web site last night and for exactly the same routing and flights I can purchase 2 tickets (including all taxes and fees for only R13 898)! See attached download I did last night.

How is it possible that your price even after I use 120 000 of hard earned voyager miles are MORE expensive than the real price of an economy class ticket?! Is Voyager now making money out of the Voyager programme which is suppose to benefit loyal SAA users?

To Whom It May Concern
Voyager Number [protected]
Mr Aziz Kathrada
11 April 2011.04.11

Dear Sir/Madam

It is after much frustration and constant attempt at the Voyager call centre, needless to say to no avail, that I am taking the time out to lodge a formal written complaint to express my total dissatisfaction with your service. In November last year we flew Turkish Airlines Jhb-Istanbul-Jeddah return and my husband is a Voyager/Star Alliance member and his card was not swiped at the check in on the return leg, despite our request to do so. When viewing the miles summary I realized that the return leg of our journey had not been logged and on our return from our December break, we made contact with Voyager and were advised that we needed to submit the E-ticket Itinerary, original boarding passes via registered mail to SAA Voyager, 6 Jones Road, Isando, 1600. We subsequently followed due process and sent the originals as requested on 13 January 2011.

The document was received and signed by a G.Zide on 17 January 2011. The tracking number was RD [protected]. I subsequently called the SAA Voyager call centre and was advised that the miles will only reflect after 45 working days and they could not confirm at that stage whether the documents had been received but I should contact them after 45 working days.

Over that 45 day period I consistently called SAA Voyager to enquire whether all was in order with the understanding that the miles will reflect after the said 45 working days. Often no one could assist or once when someone did attempt to assist the call was cut (after holding for a period of 11 minutes before any contact with a call centre agent) and that was pretty much the end of that!

I calculated the give and take 45 working day period in my calendar and diarised to call SAA Voyager on 22 March 2011. I had called SAA Voyager on numerous occasions in the space of time and no one could confirm whether the documents were received but all advised to try again once the 45 day working period had lapsed.

On 22 March I call the SAA Voyager call centre. I spoke to a relatively friendly gentleman by the name of Gavilon. I stated the entire case once again, once again provided all the relevant details including the tracking number, name of the person who collected the documentation etc. He confirmed the following
a) They have not received the Turkish airline documentation
b) He’s requested a mail room search and will only be able to revert after 24-72hurs
c) Only if its located will I be advised
I enquired who the immediate superior was and was advised of a team leader. I requested the team leaders involvement and that I wanted to be contacted with a response even if the boarding passes were not located or else I want to escalate this matter to someone who could constructively assist.

Needless to say I did not here from SAA Voyager. I called again on the 03.04.2011. Spoke to a very disinterested call centre agent again! Her name was Tasleem. I stated my case again. She wasn’t particularly interested so I asked if I could speak to her team leader. I was advised that the team leader was in a meeting. So I kindly asked if the team leader could please contact me once she was done and provided the very disinterested call centre agent with all my relevant contact details. I also explained my frustration and the seriousness of the matter and re-iterated that I wanted to be contacted and advised what was going on.

Needless to say TO NO AVAIL

The other very frustrating thing about SAA Voyager is that there are only 2 contact numbers on the website: [protected] or [protected]. Has anyone tried these numbers? You only get the very annoying voice prompt and after following due process; you hold on for anything between 11 to 17 minutes and then you get cut off. Or when you finally get through to a call centre agent they put you on hold and then get cut off again! It’s amongst the most frustrating, time consuming, consumer-money-wasting call centre I’ve ever made contact with!

Does anyone know how frustrating it is to have to constantly call a service provider who has absolutely no serious interest in its customer. To take the time out to call, not ba contact, call again, wait for a 45 working day period to pass, call again, provide the details again and again to no avail!

It’s the most frustrating thing and I am becoming increasingly tired of the total complacent nature of service providers and the mediocre customer care, customer focus let alone customer retention!

Desperately requiring constructive assistance!

Mrs Kathrada
On behalf of Mr Aziz Kathrada
[protected]

SAA Voyager call centre line simply goes dead when you follow the prompts to speak to an operator.
They do not respond to email query's on line either.
How are you supposed to get hold of SAA Voyager and what is the point of a rewards program that does not interact with members?

My issue with Voyager arose when i needed to pay airport tax for a flight which i had acquired through their award point system.
They asked me to pay by credit card to which i replied that i do not have one. The consultant then advised me to go to the airport to pay there, I was informed that this option would cost R200 extra. I told him that i was four hours away from an airport and therefore could he please give me another payment option, ie EFT. He said that this is not available as a payment option with Voyager.
Its discriminatory against people who dont have a credit card because if you Dont have one:
- you have to be inconvenienced by going to airport (even if you are Hours away from one)
- at the airport you have to pay R200 more on top of the airport tax merely because you Dont have a credit card
- in my case the airport tax was R300 for a Jhb one way ticket, + the R200 makes it R500. I can BUY a one way ticket to Jhb for R600!
- where in Voyager's logic do they think someone would want to do all that if they can Buy a whole ticket for the same price (incl petrol) to get there?
WHAT HAPPENED TO CARING ABOUT THE NEEDS OF YOUR CUSTOMER-I LOST MY TICKET BECAUSE OF THIS.
When i called customer care to discuss this issue the lady couldnt have 'cared' two hoots and in fact didnt even ask for my name or number.