Author: Michelle Couch-Friedman

Michelle Couch-Friedman
About the Author Michelle Couch-Friedman has served as the executive director of Elliott Advocacy since its inception. She is a dedicated consumer advocate, mediator, author, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) specialist, content strategist, and licensed psychotherapist. Her expert guidance has been cited in Consumer Reports, Travel & Leisure, Newsweek, Popular Science, CNN, CNBC, Travel Weekly, Reader's Digest and more. You might even catch Michelle on tv helping fix a situation. :) She spends as much time as possible fiercely defending consumers and exploring the world with her family. Contact her at Michelle Couch-Friedman or on Linkedin, Twitter or Facebook. Read more of Michelle's articles here. Check out our 5-star reviews on Great NonProfits!

Why did American Airlines call me a no show for a flight it canceled?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman Updated on:

How could American Airlines consider a passenger a no show for a flight it canceled? The answer to that question is, of course, it can’t. Yet that seems to be precisely what happened to Sherri Gleason – and at the worst possible time for the grandmother-to-be.

During a recent snowstorm, an American Airlines agent informed Gleason that the airline had canceled her upcoming flight. That flight was meant to take Gleason to Dallas, where she would attend her daughter’s baby shower. With no replacement flights available to get her to the event on time, she reluctantly accepted the inevitable.

But soon, Gleason’s tremendous disappointment at missing her daughter’s special party turned to outrage. First, American Airlines swiftly rejected her refund request for the canceled flight – claiming she’d been a no show. And when she pressed for further information, the airline accused her of canceling the much-anticipated trip herself.

Now Gleason is asking our team for help. She wants American Airlines to give her money back for the canceled flight. But the airline continues to stand by its claim that Gleason was a no show for a flight that operated as scheduled.

So what’s really going on here? Let’s find out.

Royal Caribbean accepted my $4,200 upgrade bid for a downgraded cabin

By Michelle Couch-Friedman Updated on:

Royal Caribbean offered Stan Fernald and his wife the opportunity to bid on an upgraded cabin for their upcoming cruise. So they did. Then just days before the Liberty of the Seas set sail, the cruise line accepted their $4,200 RoyalUp bid. But this wasn’t welcome news for the couple. Not at all. By that time, they had paid Royal Caribbean thousands of dollars to switch to one of the largest suites onboard the ship.

The cabin Royal Caribbean awarded the couple through RoyalUp was actually a RoyalDown.

The Fernalds rejected the smaller cabin assigned to them through the auction. And Royal Caribbean just as quickly rejected their refund request of the $4,200 bid.

Now with RCCL standing firm on the nonrefundable nature of RoyalUp bids, Fernald is asking for our help. He hopes we can convince the cruise line they’ve made a mistake and get his money back.

Can we do it?

What does United Airlines owe you during a flight delay? (Hint: not $10,000)

By Michelle Couch-Friedman

What does United Airlines owe you after an extended flight delay? Joseph Baloun took a wild guess during his recent experience. A really wild guess. He calculated that United Airlines owed him $10,000 in future travel credit for an unpleasant 16-hour delay.

But does United Airlines owe him anything at all?

If you’ve ever wondered what you can and can’t expect in compensation after an extended flight delay, then this article is for you. (Last updated April 2022)

Could Hertz send you to collections after offering you a goodwill gesture?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman

Hertz customer Aaron Baird made a costly mistake during his last car rental. Because he returned the vehicle to the wrong location, the car rental giant slapped him with a $780 upcharge. Ultimately, in the spirit of positive customer relations, Hertz offered Baird a goodwill gesture and erased the debt.

Lesson learned, and all was well – or so Baird thought.

A few weeks after Hertz offered the goodwill gesture, a different department within the company resurrected the invoice. That Hertz team sent Baird’s account to collections and put him on the Do Not Rent (DNR) list.

Now an exasperated Baird is hoping the Elliott Advocacy team can help. He wants Hertz to take his account out of collections and remove his name from the DNR list.

Can we make that happen?

Robinhood froze my $2,400! How do I get this money back?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman

Robinhood, the online millennial-focused brokerage site, brags that “Investing is simple here.” That sounded great to Bryan Santer when he was looking for an easy way to invest some cash. So, he followed the onscreen prompts, transferred $2,400 into his Robinhood account and prepared to make his first transaction.

Of course, as is true with any investment, Santer knew there would be some risk involved. But what actually happened, he never saw coming. That simple investment he hoped to make turned into an instant nightmare. Robinhood accepted his money, immediately froze his account, and refused to explain why.

That was four months ago.

Since then, Santer has been in an ongoing, highly emotionally charged battle with Robinhood to retrieve his $2,400. But now he’s reached his limit. Santer is hoping the Elliott Advocacy team will join this fight and convince Robinhood to give him back his money.

Can we do it?

Royal Caribbean let my frenemy cancel my cruise. What can I do?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman Updated on:

Royal Caribbean recently gave Rita Yates an unpleasant surprise when she called to make the final payment on her upcoming sailing. An RCCL agent explained that the cruise Yates intended to take to celebrate her 40th anniversary had been canceled. Assuming that the cancellation was another casualty of the pandemic, Yates asked why the cruise line hadn’t informed her sooner.

That’s when Royal Caribbean gave Yates an even bigger surprise: Explorer of the Seas would be sailing as scheduled. In fact, the RCCL representative explained, records showed Yates had canceled her own cruise – and forfeited her deposit.

Yates says she absolutely did not cancel her cruise, but she believes she knows the troublemaker who did. Now, with Royal Caribbean unwilling to refund her deposit or reinstate the voyage, she’s hoping our team can help.

But with police reports, lawsuits, and other threats being tossed about, is there anything we can do?

Will United Airlines ever let these little dogs fly home?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman

United Airlines had no problem allowing Patrick Corley to fly with his two little dogs to Honduras. But now, the missionary and his wife want to come back to the United States with their pups. Unfortunately, United has made this “mission” nearly impossible.

Corley hopes that we can convince United Airlines to allow both Max and Howard to fly home.

But wait a minute. Is there something more to this story that’s preventing United Airlines from transporting the two little dogs?

Let’s find out.

Did this Airbnb host forget to mention something really important?

By Michelle Couch-Friedman Updated on:

Scrolling through Airbnb one evening, Jeremy Little thought he’d found the perfect vacation rental for his family’s trip to London. With scenic views and a spacious layout, it had everything he, his wife, and children could need…and more. Unfortunately, the “and more” turned out to be a real deal-breaker: total strangers sharing the common area. That’s something the host failed to mention until after Little booked and paid for the Airbnb.

As a shared space rental was never part of his family’s vacation plans, Little immediately asked Airbnb to cancel. Much to his surprise, the listing giant allowed the cancellation but refused to refund the payment.

After many unsuccessful attempts to retrieve his money, Little hopes the Elliott Advocacy team can help. But with Airbnb firmly on the side of the property’s Superhost, is there anything we can do?

Norwegian Cruise Line has a heart. Here’s how I found out for sure

By Michelle Couch-Friedman

Last May, even as the cruise industry remained paused, Norwegian Cruise line began its NCL Giving Joy contest. The competition, launched to coincide with Teacher Appreciation Week, would honor 100 of the top educators in the United States. The nominees would vie for giant cash prizes for their schools. The cruise line would also award 100 dream cruises to the winners.

In August, after months of voting, Norwegian Cruise Line announced those winners in a joyful Facebook live stream event.

David Sowerby, an orchestra teacher from Caledonia, Mich, was shocked to discover he had won second place in the contest. His win meant that NCL would donate $15,000 to the middle school where he’d taught for the past 17 years. Not only that, but David and his wife, Rebecca, were awarded a dream cruise to Alaska.

In his thank-you speech, David explained that the money would buy new instruments for his school’s orchestra. He felt on top of the world.

But things took a sad and unexpected turn soon after NCL’s festive award ceremony.

This dedicated teacher would never get to hear his students play the shiny new instruments the $15,000 would buy. Nor would he get to see the majestic glaciers of Alaska aboard NCL’s Sun with his wife of 21 years.

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