Joel Johnson
TF Buzz
Hello Technofino community, this is my first post. I wish it could've been on better circumstances.
My problem begins in October 2024. I had to visit Bali (Indonesia) for my work for 2 weeks. I had to travel from Kochi (Kerala), via Kuala Lumpur, to Bali.
I had an SBI Prime card which gave me access to Priority Pass, so I was excited to use it for the first time. This card gave me
4 complimentary visits per calendar year to International Priority Pass Lounges, outside India (max. 2 visits per quarter)
8 complimentary visits per calendar year to Domestic Lounges in India (max. 2 visits per quarter)
So, on the 14h of October, I started from Kochi, entered the Earth Lounge with my SBI Prime. Then, the next day, I reached Kuala Lumpur for my transit and entered the Travel Club Lounge with my Priority Pass. Then went to Bali
On the 30th, I returned from Bali and reached the Kuala Lumpur Travel Club Lounge once again. Then came back to Kochi and did not enter any lounge in India that day. Just went home.
In January, when I checked my SBI Prime card statement, I was surprised to see a charge of almost Rs 2700. So, I contacted SBI Cards and they said I used Priority Pass in India on the 30th (the day I came back), which shouldn't be done.
I said, there was no way I entered the lounge in India on the 30th. The flight landed at 11 PM and I was so tired from the journey, I just wanted to go home and sleep.
Then they sent me the exact statement they got from Priority Pass:
Country-India/Lounge-Travel Club Lounge/Visit Date-20241030/Guest-0/Total Visits-1/Reverse-0
Country-Malaysia/Lounge-Travel Club Lounge/Visit Date-20241015/Guest-0/Total Visits-1/Reverse-1
At this point, even I was starting to doubt myself. "Did I even go to that lounge that day?" even though that made no sense.
But on looking again, I found the problem. Both entries say "Travel Club Lounge" . That's the name of the lounge I went in Malaysia. However, there is no lounge in Kochi airport which is called "Travel Club Lounge". The one in Kochi is called "Earth Lounge"
On checking further, the closest Travel Club Lounge (which is operated by a company called TFS) is in Chennai. And my itinerary proves that I couldn't have been in Chennai that day.
Also, it shows that I visited the Kuala Lumpur lounge only once which is not true. I visited it twice (both to and fro on 15th and 30th). So here is what happened. My second lounge entry on the 30th at Kuala Lumpur was wrongly marked in their system as an entry in India. Its a computer error.
So I emailed SBI again, then they called me today. I explained everything to them. They believed me but they said they cannot do anything. Priority Pass just gives them these details and they have no control on charges. They asked me to contact Priority Pass directly.
When I checked, there weren't any customer support in India. There are only a couple of international numbers on their website. Now I have to recharge an international pack just to contact them.
Look, I wouldn't mind spending 2 or 3k. I'm not someone who complains about bank charges, but when you carefully spend time meticulously reading all their terms and conditions and then plan your journey accordingly to avoid any charges, and in the end you still get charged anyway feels like extortion. I'm not going to pay for a system error. This was my first experience with Priority Pass and I'm dissapointed to say the least.
Does anyone have any advice for me?
My problem begins in October 2024. I had to visit Bali (Indonesia) for my work for 2 weeks. I had to travel from Kochi (Kerala), via Kuala Lumpur, to Bali.
I had an SBI Prime card which gave me access to Priority Pass, so I was excited to use it for the first time. This card gave me
4 complimentary visits per calendar year to International Priority Pass Lounges, outside India (max. 2 visits per quarter)
8 complimentary visits per calendar year to Domestic Lounges in India (max. 2 visits per quarter)
So, on the 14h of October, I started from Kochi, entered the Earth Lounge with my SBI Prime. Then, the next day, I reached Kuala Lumpur for my transit and entered the Travel Club Lounge with my Priority Pass. Then went to Bali
On the 30th, I returned from Bali and reached the Kuala Lumpur Travel Club Lounge once again. Then came back to Kochi and did not enter any lounge in India that day. Just went home.
In January, when I checked my SBI Prime card statement, I was surprised to see a charge of almost Rs 2700. So, I contacted SBI Cards and they said I used Priority Pass in India on the 30th (the day I came back), which shouldn't be done.
I said, there was no way I entered the lounge in India on the 30th. The flight landed at 11 PM and I was so tired from the journey, I just wanted to go home and sleep.
Then they sent me the exact statement they got from Priority Pass:
Country-India/Lounge-Travel Club Lounge/Visit Date-20241030/Guest-0/Total Visits-1/Reverse-0
Country-Malaysia/Lounge-Travel Club Lounge/Visit Date-20241015/Guest-0/Total Visits-1/Reverse-1
At this point, even I was starting to doubt myself. "Did I even go to that lounge that day?" even though that made no sense.
But on looking again, I found the problem. Both entries say "Travel Club Lounge" . That's the name of the lounge I went in Malaysia. However, there is no lounge in Kochi airport which is called "Travel Club Lounge". The one in Kochi is called "Earth Lounge"
On checking further, the closest Travel Club Lounge (which is operated by a company called TFS) is in Chennai. And my itinerary proves that I couldn't have been in Chennai that day.
Also, it shows that I visited the Kuala Lumpur lounge only once which is not true. I visited it twice (both to and fro on 15th and 30th). So here is what happened. My second lounge entry on the 30th at Kuala Lumpur was wrongly marked in their system as an entry in India. Its a computer error.
So I emailed SBI again, then they called me today. I explained everything to them. They believed me but they said they cannot do anything. Priority Pass just gives them these details and they have no control on charges. They asked me to contact Priority Pass directly.
When I checked, there weren't any customer support in India. There are only a couple of international numbers on their website. Now I have to recharge an international pack just to contact them.
Look, I wouldn't mind spending 2 or 3k. I'm not someone who complains about bank charges, but when you carefully spend time meticulously reading all their terms and conditions and then plan your journey accordingly to avoid any charges, and in the end you still get charged anyway feels like extortion. I'm not going to pay for a system error. This was my first experience with Priority Pass and I'm dissapointed to say the least.
Does anyone have any advice for me?
