Customer grievances toward airlines aren’t all that uncommon. After all, estimates say there are between 100,000 and 130,000 flights every single day around the world. Things like lost bags, delays, and cancellations are bound to happen and are common complaints.
One woman, however, recently issued a more unusual complaint. She says Delta staff attempted to extort her as she was checking in.
In her video, which got over 45,700 views, shopping editor and TikTok creator Bryce Gruber (@brycegruber) calls out the airline not just for what happened, but also for the way it allegedly handled it afterward.
What Happened While She Was Trying To Check In With Delta?
“OK, this is absolutely nuts, but I think I was just airline Mafia bullied,” Gruber says at the start of the video. “And I wanna talk about it, and I’m gonna give Delta an opportunity to respond.”
She says the situation cost her several thousand dollars, an extra half-day of her life, and caused her to miss important plans.
According to Gruber, the incident happened when she went to check in at Toronto Pearson Airport.
“I go to check in at the Toronto Pearson airport, put my bags in, and the woman at the gate tries to extort me,” she says. “Not kidding. Like, insane. I have never seen anything like it.”
In the comments, Gruber added more detail about what she says happened.
“[She] told me she would lower the price if I gave her my new bottle of perfume from my bag :/” Gruber wrote.
She says she tried to move on, checked her bags, went through security, and decided she would call Delta while waiting for her flight.
“As soon as I am checked in, I call them,” she says. “I try and file a complaint as I’m waiting for my flight.”
That is when, according to Gruber, the airline mishandled the situation.
A Complaint Led To Her Missing The Flight
She says Delta told her she had to finish the complaint during that same interaction, even though she was worried about missing her flight.
“I’m like, I think I’m gonna miss my flight if I do this,” she says. “And they’re like, it doesn’t matter. You must finish now.”
Gruber says the call took more than an hour. By the time it was over, she says, she had missed the flight.
“Do they rebook me? Absolutely not,” she says.
According to Gruber, she was told that maybe she could fly the next day, but she would have to buy a new ticket. She also says she missed a connecting flight on another airline, which added to the cost.
So instead, she says, she had to go to Air Canada and buy a new ticket from Toronto to Athens.
“They were lovely,” she says of Air Canada. “But I have to buy a several-thousand-dollar ticket from Toronto to Athens.”
In the caption, Gruber wrote, “Ughhh they used to be so good and now @delta thinks this is acceptable??? Grateful the people at @Air Canada were nice and I guess I’ll be on my super expensive flight to Athens soon :/”
What Can She Do Now?
Although Delta is a U.S. carrier, because this happened at Toronto Pearson, Canadian air passenger processes can be applied.
In the alleged incident, it could be argued that the airline itself caused her to miss her flight. The first move would be to contact the airline and submit a formal complaint.
If it doesn’t get resolved, Gruber could also file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA). However, the regulator notes that passengers must contact the airline in writing and give it 30 days to respond before making a CTA complaint.
The CTA says international passengers may be able to claim damages under the Montreal or Warsaw Conventions and notes a two-year time limit for court action.
Commenters Had Advice
In the comments section, many viewers were stunned by Gruber’s story.
“Dispute all charges with your credit card company!” one person wrote.
Another commenter sympathized with the bad experience but said they probably would not have stayed on the phone if it meant missing the flight.
“This is a bad experience, but I don’t know if I would have missed the flight to file a complaint unless it had to do with more money then buying a new ticket or there was harm,” they wrote. “I hope this gets resolved.”
A third viewer argued that the situation showed why international travelers should avoid U.S. carriers when possible.
“When flying internationally, don’t use an American carrier,” they wrote. “Airlines in other countries have better passenger protections.”
@brycegruber Ughhh they used to be so good and now @delta thinks this is acceptable??? Grateful the people at @Air Canada were nice and I guess I’ll be on my super expensive flight to Athens soon :/
BroBible has reached out to Gruber via email and Delta via contact form for comment and more details.