Ummm - Guys and girls - I could use a little advice here. Please?
OK - this is probably not the correct place to put this item, and boot it somewhere else if you think it is the way to go Woomera, but here goes. I am asking a higly intelligent group of human beings about the events in my little Travel Agency over the last 2 weeks.
A lady who is obviously mentally disturbed, but who presents well and is always clean and well if casually dressed has been coming into my office for the last 5 years at least investigating fares to relatively obscure locations compared to the local traffic.
She talks to herself sometimes while waiting if the office is busy, but is generally pleasant if off with the pixies. On some visits she is totally lucid and intelligent, at other times she knows what she wants, but while the information is being retrieved talks of her daughter being turned into an elf by some unintelligible villain, and how George Bush is out to get her and similar things.
Yes, the system has obviously failed her but she came into my office a fortnight ago, carrying all of her important documentation and prized possesions as she always does in a suitcase on a blue deliverymans hand cart.
She wished to go to Guangzou - the former Canton, and I duly arrange the airfares with QFlink and SQ at an acceptable fare, issue Travel Insurance with the normal advice that without declaration that if there is a pre existing ilness it will not be covered unless disclosed and assessed. Single entry Visa arranged. Mental illness is not coverable.
With much trepidation, I conclude the transaction, and as always my card with after hours mobile is inside the ticket wallet.
DPO airport and SQ are warned by me that the lady is non dangerous but if spare seats are available, it would be wise to make sure one is next to her for the comfort of other passengers.
There was a small to do at DPO as she did not want her hand luggage to be handled by the FA or stored - compromise reached.
SQ No problems.
The day after she arrives in CAN, a panic call to my office. The poor lady is in massive stress mode and panic attack saying she woke up with blue marks all over her arms and is sick. Cant get the Hotel (at 12 Airport Rd so she hasnt even really cleared the Airport) to call the insurance dudes, so she calls me. I call the insurance to get her a Doc - they move heaven and earth and get a chinese doc to housecall which is very difficult.
They have to break the Hotel room door down, as she has barricaded herself in the room.
She is now in a Guangzou Psychiatric Hospital, the thought of which does not please me, and I have spent the day in contact with Mondial Assistance (totally brilliant) and her daughter, who is a lovely lady who lives in NSW, until last night blissfully unaware mum was in China. She hasn't had a lot of sleep either over this.
It should be pointed out that the passenger advise me that she was persona non grata in every other DPO Travel Agency. I will also point out we made less that $180.00 on the entire transaction.
My question is - should I have refused her travel? I had no reason to believe she would produce more than a temporary annoyance to fellow passengers on commercial aeroplanes otherwise I would have had to refuse.
I guess I am damned either way. I send her, not knowing the total specifics of her condition and am possibly liable to and ambulance chaser suing me, and I refuse her service and have another Government service on my can and another possible court case.
If I ascertained she was a danger to an aeroplane or other passengers I would have done what I did with a dead set drug crazed loony I had in my old office 12 months ago. Quoted double on all fares by air. He left and the next night threw himself overboard and drowned off the Spirit of Tasmania.
I just had no reason to deny this lady, once obviously very pretty and intelligent, the booking she asked for and paid for in cash.
I will be honest - I just need to know what you guys and girls would have done in the circumstances as this has gutted me. I cannot imagine a Chinese Mental Institution is that pleasant.
Thanks for indulging me by reading this.
Best all
EWL