Air Carrier Access Act Technical Assistance Manual (2005)

C. General Complaint Resolution Tips

• You should familiarize yourself with this manual (and Appendix V containing the full text of part 382) and your carrier’s policies (concerning the law as well as good customer service). First and foremost, you must not violate the civil rights of passengers with a disability. In addition, you should treat passengers in a manner consistent with good customer service policy.

• You should work as quickly as possible to ensure prompt service and, at the same time, respect for the needs of passengers with a disability.

• You should be aware of your carrier’s procedures for addressing complaints. You should take the time necessary to resolve the complaint while maintaining flight schedules. If an unfamiliar situation presents itself or you have any doubts or questions, you should contact your immediate supervisor or a CRO for prompt resolution of the issue.

• You should make reasonable attempts to keep the passenger with a disability informed about your or other carrier personnel’s progress with respect to resolving a complaint.

• You should avoid engaging in an argument with a passenger with a disability presenting a complaint

• You should listen carefully and actively, evaluate appropriate options under the law and your carrier’s policy, and communicate the basis for the action taken (or not taken) to the passenger with a disability in a respectful and polite manner to ensure effective complaint resolution.

• Even if you call a CRO, it is important to be able to assess the situation firsthand through observation, communication, and information gathering because a CRO is not always available on site and may only be involved in resolving the complaint via telephone.