The first song, United Breaks Guitars, has now been played 3,515,357 times on YouTube, become a smash hit on iTunes, and has resulted in Carroll's rather bemused appearance on every major news network in America. Meanwhile, within four days of the song going online, the gathering thunderclouds of bad PR caused United Airlines' stock price to suffer a mid-flight stall, and it plunged by 10 per cent, costing shareholders $180 million. Which, incidentally, would have bought Carroll more than 51,000 replacement guitars.
United's stock, which trades below $4 per share, actually rose after the videos came out in early July. The stock only fell after little things like second quarter earnings were released. The stock has since recovered.
Dave Carroll's videos show the power that a single aggrieved consumer can wield, but we would be very surprised if they had any impact on United's stock—though wouldn't it be great if they did?
Revenge is best served cold – on YouTube [The Times]
PREVIOUSLY: Dave Carroll Says No To Guitar Hush Money From United
United Breaks Guitars
@Dabby: He could claim defamation of character all he wants to. He could say that calling him responsible for a 180 million dollar loss made people lose respect for him or some such thing. You could claim defamation of characted for practically anything, doesn't mean you'll win, though.
]]>The Tariff is written to protect the transportation company from fraud and potential fraud.
Over the years the tariffs have been re-written, one can only assume as problem areas are discovered, the tariff is re-written to cover those specific issues.
There is also a release value issue. Federal or International Laws apply to the release value.
For example, UPS is limited to $50,000 of excess value insurance per package. It might be a Picasso worth millions, but UPS is only going to pay a max of $50,000..... if you can prove the value. That is the big catch, you got to prove the value. And there are whole classes of goods which damage claims are not allowed.... even if UPS hauled the goods.
Same with UAL. Read the tariff. There are release values and classes of goods for which they will not cover damages. Period. You can ship the stuff.... at your risk.
Why the obnoxiousness? Think about if for a momement from their perspective. IF I were to ship my antique guitar (worth millions) via the airline and afterwards claim the airline destroyed the guitar.... how does the airline know that the guitar was not broken before hand? So the airlines does not cover antiques or electric guitars. Simple solution.
IS this fair? Hell no. But it is in the tariff. And when you buy a ticket you argee to the tariff.
]]>I sent them info on a CL scam where a company was phishing for credit cards/names promising they'd set one up with a cheap monthly mortgage payment on a place going into foreclosure - yeah, real scum mf'rs to be preying on people home hunting.
They didn't even reply, let alone post it, and this is something ANYone could fall for, trust me (I did not, but came close).
I assumed it was because ConCon is mostly libbies, and from my posts you'll realize I'm more conservative (NOT Repub though, I look at each issue individually and apply my own common sense and Xian sensibility to thinking up a solution - y'all should elect me prezzie for a year - I'd have our country back on track in no time, I'm so very serious. I'd get shot for it, but it would almost be worth that. We all gotta die sometime anyways)
well, ConCon, I guess you screw all your readers with your pseudoTIPS box. For SHAME!!
]]>uhhhh lets all make crazy conjectures about the super complicated stock market
]]>Click on the 1 month chart. Doesn't look like UAL suffered much since the beginning of July...
]]>I'll admit that 4 million youtube views won't hurt their stock (much), but being on the evening news with a clip saying how much your airline sucks will cost you something.
It won't be 180 Million, but as someone else mentioned above, even 1000 people picking a different airline will cost you a fortune.
]]>@Rachacha: Do it! might make their stock price fall :)
]]>On June 2nd, the last trading day before the video was posted, the stock closed at 3.31. The stock closed this past friday at 3.79, up 14% from when his video was posted.
]]>If they're lying in order to explain a stock-plunge that happened for more common reasons (which they probably are), it's awesome that they Streisandded this, probably giving it a lot more power by whining publicly about it. \m/
]]>And I, too, have never had a problem with United.
]]>Errrmmmm.... no.
]]>I recently made the mistake of ATTEMPTING to fly United because it SHOULD have put me at my destination at pretty much the ideal time.
Then there was a 2 hour wait, with the gate agent telling the passengers nothing except pushing back the departure time. Then he said "you might wish to consider rebooking." No one mentioned anything about it being canceled...this was only confirmed like half an hour later. And I didn't get an electronic notice of the cancellation until about 4 hours later.
According to the ticket agent I spoke to, it was due to a part they had replaced the night before not working. Could they not have tested it the night before? I mean, the plane hadn't left the ground...this determination was made on the ground, AFAIK (it was a very early flight). So either United fucked up handling information about the situation, or United fucked up making sure they'd fixed whatever problem they were trying to fix AND fucked up handling information about the situation. If they'd informed passengers earlier (and they probably could have figured out the flight was canceled the night before), some of them would have been able to get on earlier flights out. People missed connections that turned day-long flights into 2 day ordeals.
I got rebooked on US Airways. I am not a fan of US Airways, but when they ALSO had a delay (which was actually just a delay) the gate agent kept the passengers informed every step of the way.
United is shit.
]]>As the son of a pilot who has watched and prayed that this company could survive such management I can only say I am deeply sorry that the suits would not pay for this guy's guitar. But please, don't take it out on United's employees.
]]>But seriously, I hope you're a fellow Soul Coughing/Mike Doughty fan, that would make your statement even more amazing :D
]]>(Disclaimer: Also flying on United next week)
]]>@xtc46 - thinksmarter on twitter: This is also only relevant if the said $4,000 instrument is your means of putting a roof over your head and food on your table. This is your life.
/musician, who is thankful she can carry her flute with her on the plane as long as she can convince the TSA goons it's not a pipe bomb.
]]>Your comment is only relevant to this post if you will be checking a $4,000-plus musical instrument with your baggage on that United flight and counting on it arriving unscathed in California. Did you have a point?
]]>@NeedsSharkRepellent_GitEmSteveDave:
I'm sorry, how is that libel?
]]>We will be flying United becasue they have always treated us well.
]]>Rail? Another tariff with another set of limitations and regulations.
No matter what happens we will always be screwed by the tariff.
]]>United just sucks all the way around, I guess.
]]>@LordofBacon: Pirates (or the lackthereof) causing global warming FTW!
]]>That is all.
]]>I already expected United to be full of fail. One of my colleagues booked a business class seat so she could sleep on a flight to Korea, but when she boarded, they bumped her to coach. How did United compensate this Mormon teetotaler for the inconvenience? They gave her drink tickets.
]]>@rwalford79: I think you may have encountered something here. Maybe Dave Carroll is a United shill, hired to make people believe that United breaks stuff and people will no longer bring their big expensive items. It is a brilliant plan actually.
]]>@cotr: Just make a music video about how terrible Consumerist is and post it online. That'l teach 'em
]]>Taco Bell tells their employees to be nice to every customer, since their average regular customer will spend $17,000+ there over a lifetime.
]]>The large red number in my portfolio would disagree with that statement.
]]>If people would read the darn tariff they wouldn't check much more than their tiddy whites and a change of socks.
]]>@Sudonum:
You might want to read the tariff of Southwest Airline. Their tariff has the same limitations as UAL.
International and Federal Law actually dictate much of the limitations.
]]>Not defending the airlines. I already had my run-in with a transportation company and the profanity tariff. I learn my lesson real quick.
]]>Read the Tariff.
If the carriers (freight, package, airlines, bus etc) are going to beat us over the head using the tariff they wrote, it is about time we actually read the document and understand the limitations and proceedures.
Each carrier has their own tariff and the terms are different between carriers and method of transportation
(a bus company has a different set of rules than a regional airlines. A regional airlines has a different set of rules than an international airline)
PS: Just because they haul it doesn't mean they actually have to cover damages to "it". They say so... in the tariff.
Here is the link to the UAL tariff:
47 page document.
]]>whatevs.
]]>But yes, yes it would be really nice if we lived in a world where companies were incentivized by nothing more than sheer greed. I actually was wondering to myself earlier to day what it would be like if share holders couldn't sue a company for failure to do everything possible to cut costs and raise profits, but stock market values were instead determined by a combination of profitability and good corporate citizenship.
]]>The broken guitar had absolutely no effect on United Airlines. [blog.vanno.com]
]]>@cotr: Join the club. I've given them tons of interesting tips for naught.
]]>Since the Times is just making stuff up, none of it matters. One could argue that since UA stock is UP since the video, they should break more guitars.
]]>So the SHAREHOLDERS lost $180 million, not the company. Company's profits are affected very little (in the short term) by stock price changes. Investors are.
]]>Awesome video and I kept hoping that he'd take the broken guitar and play it in the video. Glad he did...
]]>BTW, United's ground crew at O'Hare have been atrocious to me, too. One time, they wouldn't deliver my gate-checked bag to me, even though it was on the cart, while us passengers were standing out in freezing rain. Oh no... the rampers were chatting and laughing over luggage and important documents that ended up in a puddle(!). I almost missed my connection to Orlando because of it. Another time, on a flight back to Fort Wayne, the ground crew herded us passengers on like cattle and said "Let's move, move, move!".
No wonder I'm flying American on my next trip... so I won't have to put up with "the not-so-friendly skies".
]]>As a musician, I sold my United shares in disgust. I would never fly them again. Ever.
]]>What it comes down to is how many customers did they lose? Probably the worst it did is remind people who have had a bad experience with United how bad they were, this might have had people looking for a different airline. And any IF they incur any increased marketing expense + $3,500 for the "contribution to charity" - the tax tax deduction for the charity expense. Probably equal to .000000000000001 cents per share.
]]>United airlines is hurting, and any bad publicity is still publicity. However, Im sure many people will NOT be checking expensive items anymore.
]]>WRJ
]]>but Consumerist never contacted me back.... :-(
]]>Just to play Devil's advocate. It wasn't United that actually broke his guitar but the company that hires the baggage handlers. They (UNited) use contractors for that and are not really United Employees.
]]>