Names at check in

[Saintsman]

I've recently booked tickets on line. Unfortunately I made a mistake with one of the names. Not spelt incorrectly but surname and first name wrong way round.

Is this likely to cause a problem at check in? AF want €50 to change it.

[BRUpax]

You will be at the mercy of the check-in and gate staff. In this age of computers, "no discretion" policies for staff, and "security" issues, it could be risky. If they refuse you on the day it will cost a lot more than 50 quid to rectify (i.e. new ticket at possibly 10 times the cost of the original - as you are subject to the available fare on the day)! I would suggest you call reservations again and ask for a supervisor. Perhaps he/she will use a little common sense and make the change for free. Failing that, if the airport of departure is not too far from you, go to their ticket desk now and see what they might be able to do. Good luck.

[PAXboy]

Yes, good advice. I would contact the carrier right away by email/phone/fax whatever you can (with proof like recording the conversation :) )

Leaving it to check in leaves no time for the carrier to consider the problem and, my guess, more likely to result in rejection.

[striparella]

Pish posh - me being me i'd try my luck. And i'm saying it because it's more common than you think! I see it all the time on certain flights where a 'western' agent has booked it and got the first and last names the wrong way round.

It'll be a 50 euro change fee whether you do it now or on the day of departure, so what i'd do is turn up and see how far you get, and if they want it changed, least you're prepared for the payment.

The names are not incorrect, so i don't consider it a problem, but that's just me!

[bealine]

I fully agree, striparella. In this day and age with respect for other nations, religions and customs, it is extremely common for names to be the other way round to that we would normally expect. As long as the names are there, (ie Smith John or John Smith) or a spelling mistake is not more than two letters adrift (eg spelling Clarke as Clairke), we will usually accept it.

The only noticeable exception is the USA where it is essential that the APIS (Advanced Passport Information System) details exactly match the booked name, otherwise the US Immigrant Officers might get upset!

[BRUpax]

Ah yes bealine, but then again you work for a real airline. AFR might well be just as tolerant, so perhaps no problem for Saintsman. However, for others reading this and flying with the likes of EASYJET or RYANAIR, I would think twice about it.

So, there you are Saintsman, as always with any questions, you have totally opposing views! Not much help really.

[Saintsman]

Actually I was going to risk it - its not my name thats wrong;)

If all it takes is €50 either now or on the day I've nothing to lose. I might pop in to SOU though and get their take on it.

[jet2impress]

Has it ever crossed your mind that the airlines want the correct names in the system so they know exactly who is travelling?? Eg, John Smith might of been in trouble on a flight and found him self banned with travel with them. He thinks, right I will try con the system and books as Smith John or John Smithe or what ever... then he slips through the net! So the airlines are not just being mean, they are following proceedure for everyones sake.

Also, the point of internet booking is to help the airlines costs, save them money to take net bookings, so cheaper fares can be offered. However, if you make a mistake and then have to call the airline to change it, it costs them money to correct your mistake. I personally make sure I double and double check everything I do on the net when parting with cash.

[striparella]

Actually I was going to risk it - its not my name thats wrong;)

Tee hee hee.....loves it.

[Saintsman]

I personally make sure I double and double check everything I do on the net when parting with cash.

Oh I did check. Unfortunately because the names were correctly spelt you see what you want to see - everything looking correct.

[TotalBeginner]

At my airline, spelling mistakes, and names which are entered inverted, can be corrected free of charge. The only time we charge, is if a different person is travelling, or, a passenger has recently married, and can't produce a marriage certificate.

[The late XV105]

With my work I fly a lot both short haul within Europe and long haul to Asia and the States. The office administrator who books my tickets often uses the short form of my first name instead of the given first name that's in my passport. To date, BA, Easyjet, Ryanair, and Virgin staff have all said "tut tut; please get it right next time" but I've never been prevented from boarding.

I'm therefore with the "take a chance" crew, especially as in your case the names are actually correct, just the wrong way round.

[WHBM]

My first name is William in all official documents, but generally known as Bill. My office, smilarly to XV105, has a habit of booking me as "Mr B xxxxx".

I have asked about the "official requirement" for this at check-in and received a whole range of answers ;

- Fine, no problem.
- No, it must be identical to your passport.
- We can decide if it is reasonable or not.
- We have no leeway to decide.
- I can't understand your question.

Fortunately my second name also starts with a B so would be a getout.

Likewise Mrs WHBM :) has her pasport still in her unmarried name, due to all sorts of petty issues at her home country consulate with changing it. Now she really is Mrs WHBM and I have the marriage certificate to prove it but again we have got

- Yes the marriage certificate is OK.
- No the marriage certificate is not OK.
- Fine to book as Mrs WHBM
- No, don't book as Mrs WHBM, book in passport name.
- I can't understand your question.

The real problem comes fom airlines who try to put a rule into a single "one size fits all" sentence, but then insist on precise compliance with it and do not realise there are hundreds of variations on the theme of what constitutes "your name".

Regarding inversion of entries, I recall, as doubtless many others here do, that for years when entering the US you were given two forms, the I-94W immigration form and the Customs Form. Both asked for today's date and they used different formats, one the International DDMMYY and the other the American MMDDYY. You had to be quite sharp to spot the different requirement. And I recall inspectors on arrival getting uppity with anyone whose form had the "other" format and sending them to the back of the line again. I do not know what it is about travel that makes for such pernickity detail over what information customers give you. If I treated my own customers at the office like this over trivia, let alone spoke to them sharply and rudely about it, I would be dismissed, I can assure you.

[Globaliser]

Fortunately my second name also starts with a B so would be a getout.Not your third name? ;)

[GBALU53]

Gone are the days where check in staff had some flexibilty, but computers and airlines have put pressure on security.

If the name does not tie uo with passport and tick that will be x pounds to change the name.

Common sense in some cases does not prevail and in the end the user as always has to pay.

[WHBM]

Not your third name?
Who on earth has a third name ? ;)

[Newforest]

Who on earth has a third name ? ;)

My school mate had five christian names and the middle one was ALOYISUIS!

[Crepello]

Who has three names? Rupert The Bear.

Been in your situation, Saintsman, but spotted the error just after I booked and called the airline. First guy wanted to charge me. Politely declined and had an excuse to run. Called again and was even more ultra-polite; all taken care of buck-shee.

Depends on how you handle risk - if, like me, you'll lose sleep the night before the flight then just call them back, roll with the 50euro punch.

And oy, Newforest, it's probably ALOUicious, as in my late, great uncle. Admittedly, his years as Dublin bus conductor probably explain the number of cars in that city since then - the expression "customer service" meant something different in his day. :}

[GlobalConnex]

I've recently booked tickets on line. Unfortunately I made a mistake with one of the names. Not spelt incorrectly but surname and first name wrong way round.

Is this likely to cause a problem at check in? AF want €50 to change it.

If the names are just the wrong way round with the spelling correct, I don't see the problem. That happens quite often, and at my carrier we just put a comment 'Pax passport name is _____,______ Mr(s)', sometimes without authority, sometimes with consent of a Duty Manager (depending on the staff member involved, really). But I can't ever recall any fuss made when it is so obvious what went wrong. Furthermore, as you are evidently booked in a group with other people whose names are all okay, it should not be suspicious. Plus, if you paid for the tickets, just bring the relevant credit card, which proves that it is indeed you and thus that you are not trying to transfer the ticket to another person!

I don't think you should pay for a re-issue. Are AF really that mean?!

PS. The other points raised here where names are abbreviated, such as William to Bill, that is a different matter, although it might seem just as obvious.

[ExSimGuy]

My first name is "stuart", but the Arabic-speakers seem to have a problem hanging two vowels together, or two consonants at the beginning of a word. So very often I am "As'turat" (I suspect that all of my Arabic-language docs have that but, of course, I can't read them to be sure!)

When I first came to the Middle-East, the visa application asked for "first name", "father's name", "Family name". So I duly filled in "Stuart", then my dad's first name, and our surname. Nobody picked up on it when my visa and passport were processed, but when I came to get a local driving license (with no test, based on my UK licence) it all went pear-shaped as the name on my resident's docs (my dad's name) was not the same as the UK license!

All got sorted out fairly efficiently, but what I did not realise when applying for the visa was that, in this part of the world, a son automatically has his father's first name as his "middle" one, but they don't explain that when you fill out the visa form!

(BTW - A woman here does NOT take her husband's last name- unless you are a foreigner, when they INSIST that all your docs are changed when you get married :confused: )