Dis-claim-her: All characters in this review are real. Resemblance to actual people is purely intentional & their actions is accurate, as seen from my side ;-)
Curiosity traps the aam aadmi: the root cause of this review – a brief flashback on how I had my tryst with MMT ( MakeMyTrip). I am asked to book BLR-TRVM & return on 21st & 22nd November, respectively. An onward journey by Jet & return by Kingfisher suits me. Now I am left with going to these 2 sites & book individually. Suddenly from nowhere a temptation to check out services of MMT come in me. I yield, not having to visit 2 sites, enter card details twice, take 2 printouts etc. Soon I am registered & booked & got my E-ticket, printed & slept peacefully.
Kahani mein Twist: on Nov. 5, As if to make this review possible the universe conspired a twist in the itinerary with me having to stay 1 more day – to return on 23rd. Having booked thru MMT I had to change dates only thru them. What follows below is a blow-by-blow account of the events of the next 20days.
1)I call MMT line in Bangalore, who say all customer support is from Gurgaon only which means I have to make STD calls. They do have BSNLMTNL/Airtel toll free number which means others telecom users have to shell out a lot on STD charges, considering that issues don’t get solved in one call!
Lesson#1: wise not to use MMT, wiser not to use their helpline.
2)I call Gurgaon office & meet MMT support officer Sirish. I ask for a return date change. He quotes Rs. 1150. He says “sir, Rs 900 is what Kingfisher charges & 250 is MMT service charges” I start regretting MMT, thinking if I had done thru kingfisher, I save at least 250, for MMT was charging 250 for no service.
Lesson#2: why pay the middle man when the source is with you? same internet gives you airlines websites & there also u need to printout. It’s the same way as ‘god is free, but we have to pay the priest to access him” ;-)
3)for lack of many flights BLR-TRVM I go ahead wit date change. Sirish tells me, he will process the payment. How? I am to give my CC number, CVV, name, card validity details on phone!!! I enquire about the safety. He says its secure. That’s when I recalled the original payment I made on MMT was also insecure. One just enters all CC details into a web form. The site is not secure! Imagine a disgruntled MMT employee having your details & misusing it. Of course there is cyber police, IP address etc to track? But why invite a headache just because dispirin is available? ;-)
Lesson#3: unsecure payment methods
4)My 6th sense is restless thinking I have been charged excess. I seek opinion from others including my manager. Everyone thinks 1150 is a bit too high. Being a disciple of THE TRUTH & seeker of truth in day to day life, I set out to find the truth. I call Kingfisher helpline. I narrate the above & ask her if KF would charge so much. She gives me figure of 350Rs & declares I have been charged excess.
Lesson#4: listen to the gods(airlines) for the priests(middle men like MMT) have vested interests
5)I am in a dilemma. Do I go ahead & fight for refund or do I simply keep quiet. Since I can claim the expense from company I could keep quiet too. But I work for the ‘Ethics company’ that prides in its adherence to ethics. Though the amount looks small why let MMT indulge in daylight robbery? Wouldn’t that amount look better in my company’s balance sheet? Also I wonder on what basis did Sirish quote 900Rs for kingfisher? Don’t they have a standard price list for issues like date change etc, the way KF lady explained to me? I decide to fight. I began the battle on 2 fronts – landline & online – by way of calls & emails.
Lesson#5: when in dilemma, just fight. The war must go on ;-)
6)I call MMT & meet Deepti this time. I narrate 1 to 5 above. She readily agrees I have been charged excess, but doesn’t have an answer as to why Sirish would quote 900 on his own. She assures refund of Rs 550, the remaining 600 going 350 for KF, 250 for MMT service charges(?)
Lesson#6: there is no logging in of customer queries & resolutions. So every time you call be ready to narrate the whole ramayan!
7)After 2 days I check on my CC statement online to see refund. I am in for a surprise! Instead of refunding 550, I see 2 charges of 1150. I sent a mail to MMT, Namrata replies “our databases show you have been only charged once”. I call Citibank, they not only confirm double payments to MMT, but also provide me with transaction reference numbers which proved 2 payments to MMT. They also assured me that if I give a declaration that I haven’t incurred a certain expense, they will investigate & act against MMT.
Lesson#7: MMT is unethical & does robbery assuming most ppl will not pursue the issue.
8) confronted with solid Citibank evidence Prateek from MMT sheepishly agrees charging me twice & agrees to refund 1150+550=1700 with in the ‘next 48 hours’. I got busy with work & travel for the next 6 days, but MMTs 48 hours had not still passed. By this time everyone I spoke to/mailed to at MMT had apologized & the number of sorries now stood at 235!
Lesson#8: MMT trains its staff to lie & say sorry twice in every sentence. I told them sorries do not mean anything unless you an act of correction. I also added british looted everything from india & left 2 words ‘sorry & thank u’ which you ppl are overusing, to which the reply was ‘sorry sir… thank you for telling this. ;-)
9)I call again to convey that I am not resting until this issue is resolved. Before Nikhil can say sorry, I attack –“tumare sorries leke muje achaar nahin daalna”. I threaten them saying ‘ I have recorded all my conversation with MMT & I have all the mails. So I am ready to go not only consumer court but Supreme Court also. I am put on the ‘floor manager’ umang, who tries to blame the delay by throwing big words like ‘server’, ‘transaction’ etc. I tell them I am an engineer & know how it all works. He promises refund within 24 hours.
Lesson#9: no co-ordination between support & accounts function within MMT
10)Umang’s 24 hours was =72 hours & I see a refund in my card statement online- At last after 20 days, 150 minutes of scolding on phone, 12 emails.
Lesson#10: for to-fro flights no need of going to overnight mushrooming sites like MMT which you can do thru any operator website. Not sure if their other activities like hotel, package tours etc are organized crimes. But from this experience I feel like a bobby deol singing
‘eisa zaqm diya hain,
jo na phir bharega
har haseen chehre (travel portals) se
ab yeh dil darega
hum toh jaan dekar
yun hee mar mitenge(will fight till end, even with a sooside bomb)
sun lo yeh haseeno(beware MMT, among your customers there are jehadis like us)
yeh humse ab na hoga
conclusion: Avoid MMT as far as possible!