Yes, United Breaks Guitars is a great video with a catchy tune:

"I should have flown with someone else or gone by car
'Cause United breaks guitars"

The refrain is going around and around in my head! Read more: [www.squidoo.com]

If you read up on the story a bit more, he told Ms. Irwig that he would write 3 songs about his experience. This song was simply the first.

If he accepted compensation, then no doubt there would also be the requirement to not release the other two songs. The reason why he shouldn't accept the money and shut up are threefold:

1) He's probably making more money from the publicity of this event than United is offering in compensation.

2) After a year's worth of working with the airlines to rectify the situation, United now wants to make this go away by finally doing the right thing. Their deliberate antipathy shouldn't be rewarded with a quick cover up. He's making them pay, just not in the coin they prefer.

3) He gave his word to write three songs. He's only 1/3rd of the way there.

Is there a picture of the case and if it is damaged?

When I worked at a music store, a guy came in wanting a quote for a hard-shell case to replace his that an airline had damaged (may have been an Anvil, I don't remember, but it was a good case). They had stuck a forklift prong right through the neck. They told him they would replace the case, but not the Martin inside it, because it could have been any guitar in the case. Nevermind that he showed employees right after it happened...

After that, we recommended that travellers invest in a hard-shell case, put the case in it's original box (well-packaged), and ship it UPS (properly insured). Not that UPS is infallible...

Also of note, is in regards to the costumes in the video. My wife, who is from Mexico was questioning why the band was dressed in the hats and mustaches. So I don't think she found it too amusing.

Still, though, great song.

When I arrived in Buffalo I wasn't able to get my bag plane side as I didn't have these special tickets, but I could see the bag sitting on the tarmac, with my souvenirs that were on the side smashed to bits. I finally got my bag back (not worrying about the smashed souvenirs), left the airport, and drove back to Toronto. After a whole day of traveling I was tired, and went to sleep. This apparently was my downfall, as when I did realize what happened to my MacBook Pro screen (Completely smashed to bits) it had been over United's "24 hour claim" period. You probably know how expensive Apple computers are, and replacing a screen on them certainly isn't cheap - especially not for a university student returning from conference. After months of emails, I've been flat out rejected for ANY compensation, and so I've taken to telling everyone I possibly can to not fly United.

Feel free to share this with your readers as I know for sure that United just doesn't care - and they should see what that does to their consumers! (And thankfully the video being viewed 300,000 times will help!)

Thanks,

Mat
Toronto, Ontario

@Philly Falcon: I would also guess that since he was traveling with his band, he was probably doing a show and the booking agent make the plans and was responsible for deciding how the band's equipment was to get to the site. It seems unlikely that he'd be travelling with his fellow artists and on a personal trip somewhere that he wouldn't carry on his instrument or gate check it. He might not be a big enough "star" to rate a truck to carry the band equipment or they don't have enough to bother spending the money on a transport vehicle and the stuff gets put into cargo when traveling to gigs/shows. Just a guess, though.....

@HomersBrain:

Nice.

Traveling musicians have known for YEARS that you DO NOT take your most expensive and beautiful instrument on the road if you want to keep it. You don't take your $3700 Taylor. You get a Takamine or an Ovation or an Alvarez and go out with that, a decent sounding knockaround guitar, not your expensive one. The only place an expensive guitar counts is in the recording studio. Out on the road it's going to sound the same as any other guitar to the audience, especially considering the sound systems most places have installed. Why did he risk his best instrument on the road?

#2 is, again, every traveling musician knows that if you like your instrument, you DON'T CHECK IT IN AS LUGGAGE. Let it be a carry-on, buy a seat for it, whatever, but don't check it in as luggage. Do you think that classical musicians put their violins or cellos in the cargo hold? Of course not, because these things happen to them as well. The fact that airlines routinely smash up musical instruments is not news.

Sorry, I don't have a lot of sympathy for this guy. Of course the airlines owe him a guitar. Are they going to pay? Never. A few simple precautions could have prevented this, and not only that, they're precautions that the musicians' community has known about - and talked about - for YEARS.

An AA baggage handler *stole* more than $3k worth of camera gear I was forced to check at the gate in Miami in January 2009. And I'm supposed to just say it's my fault for checking it? Uhm, no.

The guitar situation here is clearly worse, but the reason I won't fly United Airlines again is because they sold adspace on my tray table on my last flight. What an obnoxious invasion of privacy.

As a former airline supervisor, I advise folks never to check anything they don't want to risk losing or have damaged. I ran a PAWOB Desk (Passenger Arrival WithOut Baggage) desk for a United Express carrier for several years, with PAWOB oversight of half of the stations our Express carrier served. I've seen it all and handled most of it.

I personally took many thousands of claims, found thousands of bags/lost items and learned their system inside and out. There are many, many exclusions in all airline baggage rules. Musical instruments are only one of them. Everyone needs to review the baggage rules and exclusions of the carrier they are flying with before travelling.

FWIW, I ship many things ahead on UPS or FedEx these days.

Was right around Christmas. Someone had a good holiday.

Social networking do your thing!

"This has struck a chord with us, and we've contacted him directly to make it right," said Robin Urbanski, a spokeswoman for United.

Thanks

It's green on Fark

LOOK out UNITED! It's going viral!

It's not just United. The horrible things these idiots do are in plain sight. I never check luggage. While waiting, I watch the baggage handlers tossing & dropping & kicking & laughing. I point it out and watch others blanch.

I went to Japan for 2 weeks without checking luggage. The airlines should hire gorillas with shock collars. Actually, I'd be fine if they just put the shock colllars on the current employees.

The entire baggage handling system and process is designed with anything but care towards the very bag they're designed to move from point A to B in the cheapest manner possible.

Bonus: this song is actually kind good. and I'[m not a country music fan.

In a comment from United Airlines today printed in the Halifax, NS newspaper:

Robin Urbanski, a spokeswoman for Chicago-based United, said late Tuesday afternoon that the airline has changed its course and wants to speak with Mr. Carroll today to settle the matter. She declined to comment further until she spoke to him. "This has struck a chord with us," she said. "We're going to contact him directly."

[thechronicleherald.ca]

Because if he did his guitar might not be destroyed now

I am not an animal! I am a man!

@Foneguy: Well, the song could get radio play-the video wouldn't work too well :).

It's the same with my homeowners insurance. It doesn't cover any of my tools or materials that I use for my business. My business policy covers them.

@Eat A Peach: *worth 8-10 grand each that are covered under my renter's insurance....

@frank64: Just imagine a "gangsta rap" song about it...

"T.S.A. (Tag that Sucka's Ass)"

"...I'm gonna ID him, so I can I.E.D. him...."

I'm sure that would go over well.

@Philly Falcon: A lot of policies won't insure a musical instrument if it is being used to make a profit. Both my fiance' and I play guitar and because we are in a band (local) and travel and play for money at gigs, our equipment (sound and lights) and instruments that are taken with us aren't insurable under PA's insurance laws. I tried 7 or 8 different insurance companies to have the stuff covered under home owners and then later under renters insurance and no dice. The only way they could be insured was to buy a professionals' policy (for artists that use their "tools" to make a profit) and that's REALLY huge money. We have insurance on 2 of the guitars that never leave the house that are worth 8-10 each that are covered under my renter's insurance but the amps and speakers, soundboard, lights, pedals, and other gear we use on gigs isn't.
I would imagine that since he seems to be a true professional artist (making a living off his music) I would guess that either his agent or contract company has insurance on all of his equipment along with the band's other stuff while on the road.

Outstanding song. I understand his frustration with this airline and its management. Very catchy, and hopefully he will be made whole in the end.

/imjustsayin

Farewell to Nova Scotia
Will you ever heave a guitar or a wish for me?

@CaffiendCA:

As others have noted, the video is not of the incident. And on Carroll's web site he mentions "hard case out of the padded protective exterior case".

I bought a Taylor 414 about 10 years ago and it came with a pretty nice hardshell plastic case. Judging from the video the guy has a hardshell wooden one, which is about the stoutest thing you can get without buying an aftermarket travel case.

I have to say, they must have abused the hell out of that guitar to actually snap the neck. I've knocked over and dropped guitars several times with nothing worse than a little ding. Likewise, I've never even seen or heard of anyone breaking the neck of a guitar, by accident at least.

That said, I never checked a guitar; I always carried it on. Granted, the last time I traveled with an instrument was probably 10-12 years ago, before all of the recent unpleasantness...so it's probably a lot tougher to carry one on now. I love the way Taylors play but in my experience they have been very fussy and require regular adjustment to keep in good playing condition. I think even just the swings in temperature and humidity between baggage handling, cargo hold, and tarmac would be enough to knock it out of whack.

I will avoid United in the future.

Maybe you're the one being racist.

Also, maybe he was sitting, on the plane, next to people who were dressed like that.

Or maybe people in big hats and mustaches are hilarious.

Either way, get over it.

An ounce of prevention...

It sucks, but its Dave Carroll's fault he didnt unstring his guitar before putting it in the unpressurized luggage part of the plane.

I love when people get the last laugh. United destroyed my favorite suitcase a few years ago. Pretty much tore it in half. They did give me a crappy replacement.

I love when people get the last laugh. United destroyed my favorite suitcase a few years ago. Pretty much tore it in half. They did give me a crappy replacement.

Damage insurance is a fine idea but gross neglegence on the part of the airline is inexcusable.The reason we pay high insurance rates has a lot to do with attitudes like this !

How about just doing the job you are paid to do?
Willfully destroying property is probably outside the job description of baggage handler. When an employees is in the wrong the company should do the right thing... take responsability and correct the problem.

whats up with the mexicans in the vid? Hopefully your assuming based on United's name that they "Unite" the world with their service.
You should of thrown an indian and african in there.

hmmmm,......i think i'll hold of on the racist comment.
Great vid btw, hope the CEO see's it.

Very nice-looking video, too. Bravo.

@CaffiendCA: he's a professional musician, he probably has at least one. They just used manufacturer cases for the video filming.

@larrymac: because you have to give the rest of the band something to do that is unexpected and weird.

I've started forwarding this to people that I know.

It's sad that the airlines are charging major money to carry luggage and STILL damaging it and losing it with the same lack of care they have always had.

HELLO! UNITED! YOU CHARGED MONEY TO CARRY THIS! YOU FAILED TO PROVIDE THE SERVICE YOU CHARGED MONEY FOR!

This sux - if some DB who can't even read at a 4th grade level is lucky enough to get an easy union bag handler job he should atleast try to do it well. I guess he was in a hurry - had a union mandated 2 hour afternoon break coming up.

@TheWillow: I liked that. Another great song/vid produced in the wake of misfortune. Worth the few minutes:

I wonder if the negative PR will hurt United as much as this is Possitive PR for Dave's career.

The problem is that instruments are as unique and as individual as people, and that a musician's instrument is on par with their soul...and we don't take kindly when it gets stolen, damaged, or destroyed. Glad I'm not flying United at the end of the month.

hah

@theblackdog: don't be so sure. I play professionally, and had people at Harrisburg PA think that my $12,000 flute was a pipe bomb or other type of weapon. Scared the crap out of me. "It's a bunch of metal tubes right??? weird stuff on them?? (keys) What else could it be??"

Thankfully their superior's daughter played flute in the high school band and she knew what it was.

But no, I've never, ever, ever checked it. I had a flute stolen from me five years ago as I sat on a bench at my college, and the person sitting next to me always looks at me a little funny when I take the flute case out of the gigbag and sit in my seat with my arms wrapped around it.

@Skankingmike: From the picture, he clearly has a case from the manufacturer. I have guitars, and would never check one of those cases. I don't know specifically about Taylor, but my Ovation came in a case that wouldn't give it adequate protection on an airplane. The luggage routing in most airports is more than brutal enough to screw up a guitar in a fitted case.

This is blantantly clear abuse, and United is going to have to pay up on this to stem the bad publicity.

Any company which has such bad customer service that this customer service inspired a website has its head up its tail:

www.untied.com

@CaffiendCA: I fly every year to go hunting out of state. I invested in a costly gun case that, while too heavy to actually be tossed around, has many serious gouges and dents in its metal exterior. The rifle and the revolver contained within it are very tightly sandwiched between two dense pieces of foam but still end up shifting slightly (and I blame them for causing me to re-sight my scope every time I arrive at my destination).

Yes, the airlines (American, in my case) should take better care of our luggange, but it is nonetheless prudent to take precautions against when they are not if you are transporting something you care a great deal for.

@lannister80: There's the word I was looking for! My brain is still on Monday morning.

United PR people / execs and customer service people...listen up:

You are MORONS for letting this get this far, denying the claim, and further not responding. I hope this video loses you tons of business, you deserve it and you have lost mine.

What makes you think customers should just sit there and let your thug criminal and probably non-screened tarmac monkeys deliberately smash people's valued possessions? How would you like it if YOUR things were destroyed this way? What would the united CEO do if HIS stuff were treated this way? Fire the tarmac monkeys. But it's not his guitar, so it's okay.

I actually wish the OP would go ahead and sue, and present this video as evidence. The judge, jury and everyone but the dumb-ass defendants would love it and the guy would probably get bonus money in the judgment.

Further, you could subpoena United for the names of the tarmac monkeys and sue them personally or have them arrested for vandalism and destruction of private property. I would, after I got them fired.

Oh, and it's a shame one of the very few sure-fire ways to get satisfaction in these situations is to make a catchy viral video. What are the rest of us talentless, uncreative schmucks to do?

@hillsrovey: Probably because they have some clause about no liability for "accidental" damage or loss of property over $100 limit or something similiar in place.

Same thing if your expensive electronics gets "lost" or damaged in transit. Checked luggage is a "at your own risk" thing for anything of value.

About 20 years ago my 10 year old son and myself rented a log cabin in one of the Pennsylvania state parks. One evening we came back to the cabin to find someone had opened one of the windows to get in and took several items.

I checked with the company that wrote my homeowners insurance policy and found out I was covered for the loss, minus my deductible.

But if they watched workers intentionally tossing it around, he should have filed a police report for vandalism. People do it for theft(it gets the airport to act), and with witnesses the vandalism should be easy to prove.

Changes the whole meaning actually...

though if he was from the states he might have used "why not just admit it" because most people don't know what libel means :).

One way I got around actually checking a guitar, possibly by fluke, was to take it as a carry-on. Once I got to the plane, they put it in the cargo for me. IT was nice to have the control up to that point. Same for when I got off the flight, just grabbed it out of cargo.

("Thank you, Republic Airlines/ For breaking the neck of my guitar.")

So United is the airline that treats your luggage worst AND they charge for even the first checked bag...

In this age of farecompare and bookingbuddy, I am usually willing to fly with anybody so long as they are the cheapest with one exception: the obnoxious carry-on Nazis at United.
Thanks for the vid Dave! I hope you get restitution from those goons. Nobody deserves to have their things treated like that, especially after you are extorted to check your bags.

the latter doesn't even flow :P

just saying...

love the country song btw

btw where does it state in the article that he didn't have said case?

needs more cowbell

Then maybe some responsibility will be taken.

That sucks. But next time, the guy needs to invest in an Anvil case. A bit more expensive, but if you're checking that caliber of guitar, you'd be much better protected.