Virgin shifting me out of my seat.

[THE WIZARD]

Originally Posted by geniefan

I have already put a phone call in to Virgin - I did this a few weeks back. The man I spoke to was helpful and when I asked for some sort of confirmation email to prove I had made this call and it was logged, he said "oh its okay just tell them that David in Swansea has noted it"... thats all!

So ive typed it in the notes on my phone exactly when I made the call and at what time etc should there be any arguments.
I know its a slightly trivial thing to be worried about, but its a big thing to me. Especially as I'm already paying extra to sit in PE, I want this to be a fun and comforting experience. not a stressful one.

I just hope its all okay!

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Ring Virgin again (Dave in Swansea means absolutely nothing to be honest & no one is going to be ringing head office to see if they can find your call that you have details of trust me) so ring again and if they say its already on your reservation just say - 'oh what an idiot I am, first time flying alone, yes I had forgotten I had already done it' - if its not on your notes ask them for an email confirmation as you have a medical condition and you want to take their confirmation with you.
Bottom line is picking a seat is a request not a guarantee so get it noted for medical reasons now and get it confirmed then relax & don't stress about it.

[Kraken]

I normally fly Upper Class - often alone - and have been paged twice in the Delta Sky Club lounge in Orlando. On both occasions I went to the desk and was handed the phone to speak to a Virgin Atlantic rep. On both occasions they wanted to move me on the plane.

Occasion 1, I refused. I was booked on the K side of the plane (as you get to see the sunrise) in the middle of the cabin and the reason was just "so a couple can sit together". The Upper Class seats are not particularly good for couples due to the side walls on the seat anyway. Got onboard and I got dagger-looks from the person who I had refused to swap seats with for most of the flight. There was karma though - he did not get his meal choice so I ate my beef main course slowly, savouring every mouthful in full view of him (he wanted the beef).

Occasion 2, complete different kettle of fish. They wanted my seat so a Doctor travelling with a patient in the next seat could sit together. Same argument could be said about the seats not being ideal for anyone travelling together, but medical reasons make a difference. During the flight the doctor did indeed make frequent checks / tests on the passenger & had a permanent pulse-rate monitor on her finger with the wire doing over the seat wall so he could monitor the output from his seat.

I would always agree to being moved so a parent & under 16 child can be seated together, or if there is a medical / special needs issue. Other than that, sorry, the seats are available for all to pre-book. If it's just to appease a perfectly able-bodied person then sorry. I should point out that in occasion 1 [above] they wanted to move me from 9K (a really good seat) to 12A (one of the worst Upper Class seats, IMO). The friend I was travelling with on this occasion, on a separate booking, was also in 9A.

[Mr Tom Morrow]

In may this year about 5 of us moved 1 seat in UC so that a Husband and Wife could sit together. However it was a decision that everybody was happy with.

Thus my Wife and I went from 8 & 9 A to 7 & 8 A and so on.
That freed up seat 11.

However everybody was happy and it helped the Lady in question who had a baby on her lap.

[scoobydooby]

I’ve been moved, with my DD, in ore booked PE seats chosen 11 months in advance. Ultimately it’s in their T and CS that they can move you so best manage your expectations TBH. I didn’t like it either but they can and do make these changes so it’s far better you prepare for that than get yourself wound up about it. If it’s passengers asking you and you can cope with toughing it out and saying no. Then say no. However. Bottom line is passengers have no ultimate power and you’ve bought a product where you agrees to Ts and Cs which mean you can be moved. I am not defending it. I am simply advising you of the facts.

[mskitty]

Why not do online chat asking them to confirm if the notes are on your booking and then that way you can request a copy of the transcript of the chat to be emailed to you (it's an option when you close the chat from memory). At least then you have written record of it. This helped me once. I'd done online chat once to order kids meals. When the meals were served they didn't have us down for kids meals. When I questioned it they were very rude and basically made out I was lying. I pulled up the email with the chat transcript on it and suddenly the kids had chicken nuggets, jacket potato and beans and a bag if sweets brought to them from upper class as an apology

[folkie]

Originally Posted by geniefan

TPlus I need to isle seat so I can jump up at any time and grab my medication that will be locked away in my carry on above in the little hold thing.

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Just on this subject, I'd put your medication in a smaller bag that you can take out of your carry-on once you're on board so you can put it under the seat in front or in your seat pocket during the flight. If there's turbulence the seat belt sign will be left on and you might not be allowed to get out of your seat (this can happen for hours if you're really unlucky) so better to have it closer to hand.

[gismo1554]

Originally Posted by geniefan

I know its a slightly trivial thing to be worried about, but its a big thing to me. Especially as I'm already paying extra to sit in PE, I want this to be a fun and comforting experience. not a stressful one.

I just hope its all okay!

See more...

Have you also requested assistance online on the booking? I think there is one for mobility. Although you don't physically need the assistance from the sound of it its worth flagging on there as well as it can help reduce the chances. As others have said they can move you but they are less likely to when there is a medical reason for choosing the seat. I can't remember with the mobility assistance but I think you can say "no wheelchair needed" like you can with the visual one (which is what I've selected).

[KarenG]

The thing is, you can never completely remove the possibility of being moved.

I had the situation recently flying home from LAX. We were in Economy Classic, had pre selected seats together, did OLCI (all that good stuff) and somehow were still moved to opposite sides of the plane, not sure how. I actually didn’t realise until we went to get onboard, so I explained to the boarding staff who did manage to sit us next to each other but the seats were really not ideal for us - again for medical reasons. However the plane was full so there was nothing we could do (the staff tried really hard).

It’s not worth worrying about though, it’s unlikely to happen but it’s one of those things which is out of your control.

[ABZDisney]

If it happens, stand your ground & suggest that the person sitting next to you offers to swap his or her seat with the person sitting next to their friend / partner / husband / wife etc.
Very rarely do people want to swap their seat for a worse seat but they do expect you to do it.

[ERICSMUM]

Originally Posted by ABZDisney

If it happens, stand your ground & suggest that the person sitting next to you offers to swap his or her seat with the person sitting next to their friend / partner / husband / wife etc.
Very rarely do people want to swap their seat for a worse seat but they do expect you to do it.

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Exactly !