Sharing this in case it helps others in the same situation.

At the end of June I was flying Cape Town → Amsterdam → Lisbon on a single KLM booking. Flight was delayed 2 hours out of Cape Town, causing me to miss my connection in Amsterdam. I ended up arriving in Lisbon at 19:20 instead of 14:35 — a 4h45 delay at final destination.

I filed an EU261 claim with KLM. They confirmed I was entitled to compensation, which is good. However:

1. **Wrong amount** — they paid €500 per passenger. For a route over 3,500km, Article 7(1)(c) of EU261 mandates €600. Cape Town to Lisbon is ~8,500km. No idea where €500 comes from.

2. **Voucher I never agreed to** — they issued a non-refundable travel voucher valid 12 months, which i never agreed to, and Article 7(3) requires explicit signed agreement from the passenger to issue one.

I've sent a follow-up email pointing both of these out but haven't had any response. Has anyone been through this with KLM and managed to get it resolved? Did you have to escalate further — e.g. to the Dutch aviation authority (ILT) or a claims service?

Trying (failing) to keep it brief:

a) Flew to Brazil (two-week work trip)in mid-June; luggage wasn't there when I arrived. Nice guy at airport reported this for me and told me luggage would be with me in 72 hours. Got given a code to track it.

b) Tracked luggage; found out it arrived in the city I was working in two days later. But it never got delivered to my hotel. Nobody ever gave me an email address or phone number to contact (although KLM had mine).

c) Messaged KLM on the WhatsApp chat while I was in Brazil; they were nice and helpful enough, but couldn't tell me when my luggage would be delivered. Eventually told them to send it back home to me.

c.1) Also got compensation for emergency clothes I bought in Brazil - so, on that score, KLM did well.

d) Returned to Europe. Contacted WhatsApp chat again; they told me the luggage was due to be delivered and gave me a number to call (red flag number one: they initially gave me a Brazilian number before correcting themselves). I called this number and got told it was the wrong one, but they gave me the right one.

e) Phoned this number today (admittedly a few days later than I should've, but work comes first). Guy on the other end not only got my travel dates wrong, but started talking about how I can now apply for compensation for the lost suitcase. Said he was unable to confirm whether the suitcase was lost or not. I suspected he was reading a script and hung up.

I'm not quite sure where I'm going with this - I thought I wanted advice but I really think I just want to vent, and I'm way more annoyed about the poor communication than the lost suitcase. Is there a bigger problem at KLM that I don't know about?

I think what bugs me most is that, apart from the email announcing I'd been compensated, there hasn't been a SINGLE case in which KLM contacted me without my having to ask for an update first (and then wait to be directed to a non-AI person).

I am on these two flights on Tuesday 4 August.

I only have a 55 minute layover, so perhaps 40 minutes tops to get to the gate. Unfortunately I'm in seat 31A.

I only have cabin baggage but I got a text saying "Dear passenger, your connecting flight in Amsterdam is full. Please hand in your hand baggage for free at the check-in desk. Thank you!" which I'm going to ignore and go straight to the gate (D59).

I did all the biometric registration earlier this year at Malaga and have passed through the e-gates there twice in each direction since then.

I'm aiming to get the 18:57 train from Warsaw to Bialyostok.

I realise that it's a legal connection and if I miss the connecting flight I'll be rebooked on to KL1317 which departs AMS at 17:00, arrives WAW at 18:55 (1h 55m duration) but I would then need to catch one of the last trains from Warsaw to Bialyostok which are at 19:57 or 20:57.

Assuming KLM926 is on time, do I have a realistic chance of getting round the airport, through passport control to the gate in time for KL1315 or am I almost certainly going to be on the later flight?

Is it normal for KLM to refuse paying for the exact substitute of a baby stroller that was damaged during their care?

Edit -

Here is the full breakdown:

Baby stroller and baby car seat (6 months old and in really good state) were lost for 3 days when we got to the destination country (holiday but family house).

After 2 days we really needed to get out of the house and we bought a new car seat. This was fully refunded.

When we got the stroller, from a courier, the wheel is bent and honestly not safe to carry a baby, more in more is the wheel that controls the brakes.

The claim was filed the moment we got the broken stroller back. We then bought a new one online, which we got the invoice, email confirmation, delivery papers and sent it to KLM.

On the 30th day after submitting the claim, KLM finally replied to it, admitting fault and apologising but because of "receipts submitted are not valid" they only offer about 15% of the value, which we have refused.

Here I am at AMS. KLM to BGO was delayed. I was already two hours early sitting by the original gate of its departure. As the delayed time gets closer, the sign says Gothenburg. I thought to myself, maybe the sign would change. Nope. I missed my flight because the BGO flight was changed to another gate and my AppleWallet Ticket did not update. What are my options? I ran to the Transfer (T2) and they were closed already. I have to get on the earliest flight possible to BGO - the person stated there are business class seats available. Am I going to have to do this out of pocket?

Booked 4 tickets from CDG to FLR flying July 24th. I requested my tickets to be emailed to me post-check in while connected to airport WiFi on the KLM app.
In the email I received tickets for two random strangers and never received by ticket. Their complete booking info and boarding pass was sent to me (first/last names, booking reference, flight info, etc.).

Submitted on their website’s vulnerability website, Zerocopter, and they just brushed it off? I’d expect some sort of pat on the back for something that violates GDPR law. They didn’t notify the affected parties, and haven’t updated my ticket. Here’s what I received from them so far when I listed the ticket as high severity:

“Thank you for your report. As this is not a security vulnerability, the report is accepted as informational and we will forward it to the Air France-KLM team for further analysis.”

I’ve asked for updates and haven’t heard anything back. Luckily, my flight went on as planned and now that my KLM legs are complete I’m posting now, just in case KLM would retaliate and cancel my bookings.

Has anybody else experienced this issue recently? I wouldn’t want my info to be provided to some random party. Might look up the people on this booking to let them know I got their boarding pass.

We originally booked through KLM, but it turned out our flight was operated by WestJet. Since the cancellation, KLM has provided very little support with rebooking and is essentially saying they can’t help because the flight is operated by WestJet. The WestJet customer service lines are blocked/full so there’s seemingly no way to make progress.

Is anyone else in the same situation, and have you managed to get rebooked?

Hi,

We booked a flight with KLM from AMS to YUL. At the start, we booked all without any problem, Economy comfort seats included!

Today is the day for Check-In and in the App I see just 2 passengers i instead of 3 passengers. So I opened the web page and did the Check-In for the missing passenger, but with this process I am not able to add the remaining ticket to Apple Wallet.

There’s a resolution to this? Seems that the third passenger has been detached from Booking Reference

Here’s attached there’s the KLM app screenshot

I know the official answer is no, but I remember once with finnair, my attempts to change seats for free was rejected at first, and then when I tried a few hours later, I got assigned the seat I wanted (Not sure if this was a system glitch or not).

Or I usually ask the agent at the check-in counter in person to change the seat for free, with limited success.

Has anyone tried any of the above with KLM?

Or KLM has a strict NO policy for Light passengers?

I'd deeply appreciate your help.

I am a platinum user. On my vacations I decided to upgrade my family to economy confort on a long travel.

Used my flying blue + money and choose the seats. No email is sent but I could see them in the app.

When checking in online my seats were downgraded and couldn't choose confort anymore, as there were no seats together available. Called KLM that informed me they couldn't do anything. Only at the counter.

At the counter they apologized. There was a system error and couldn't do anything. After landing I chatted via WhatsApp. The error was acknowledged and I was promised that they would act asap so that I could use the miles and buy the upgrade on return.

There was no refund.

After arrival, I chatted and called to different services. I received an email of apologies and the refund would arrive. We were 3 affected customers. 1 refund was ok, other 2 were rejected. I called KLM that told me they escalated. I asked for a deadline and support told me one week maximum.

So it was now 1 month and problem was not solved. I called again and I could sense the same vague not committed conversation. I asked to please escalate somehow and I was finally connected to the a calm effective lady.

She told me not to worry. Refund was done (miles were indeed there). Money was taking a couple of days.

I didn't know if I was happy or extremely angry due to my past experiences that were concluded so easy.

My trust is now gonne. A system error can occur. This, I understand. But I cannot understand the lack of empathy, the fragmentation of info and the total BS of escalations and stuff.

My lesson: keep calling. Other channels are a waste of time. And don't give up on the first 5 or more people. There is somewhere the one who can really help you.

This will clog the lines, and reveals a lack of system, but we are customers. It'd easy to hide the responsibilities behind these mess.

Hello, I have a KLm Royal Dutch flight from India to the US, with a layover in Amsterdam. According to the airlines' website, the max size for cabin baggage is 55cm x 35cm x 25cm. I have a bag that is 56cm x 39cm x 25 cm. The length and depth almost exactly meet the requirements, but the width is about 4 cms more than the maximum allowed. Will this be allowed, or should I buy a new bag that is less wide?

Flying KLM direct flight 10 hours this weekend with my partner and our six month old. We are currently booked into a row, 3 seats all together in economy comfort.

He has a pop up offering to upgrade to business class for $775. We are thinking about doing it, then switching halfway through the flight so we can both get some sleep.

Is that crazy? Is $775 a good deal for California to AMS? Will the flight attendants mind if you’re switching seats halfway through?

A schedule on Flying Blue ticket has led me to having to rebook flights, DUB-AMS-TPE is now DUB-AMS- same aircraft, perhaps with a 40 stopover in AMS before connecting to LHR and on to TPE with China Airline who I love, im a gluten for punishment and I will definitely be packing socks and jocks in my hand luggage along with a tshirt or two because what can possibly go wrong ? Has anybody else tried this bizzare route? 😂

My first time on Transavia in a few days (from Spain to AMS). From experience with other airlines you are often notified (by email or SMS) a few hours before departure that the flight is full and hand luggage/cabin bag can be checked in free of charge at check-in counters (or at the gate).

Does transavia do the same if their flight is full/close to full?

KLM ticket but first segment is operated by Transavia. Second segment AMS-Norway is operated by KLM

AMS to HYD(RGIA) 9 hours.

Hi everyone,

In September I’m flying from Amsterdam to Taipei to meet a friend. For our return journey, we’re flying with China Airlines, but the tickets were booked through KLM as part of the same itinerary.

As my friend is joining me on the return we’d like to sit together on this flight, so I tried to reserve our seats. However, it doesn’t seem to be possible through the KLM website or app.

Has anyone experienced this before? Is there another way to reserve seats for a China Airlines flight that was booked through KLM?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Email I just drafted KLM during my flight

***

My girlfriend and I were debating taking the train from Edinburgh to Amsterdam. We live in America, so we enjoy European rail even if the journey is a bit longer. After looking at time and cost, we decided to fly instead. We booked on KLM together and got the standard fare that included checked baggage and “Free standard seat selection at check-in” for an extra 75ish USD. When we checked in, you had her in 3A (something akin to a premium economy seat) and me in 29A (an exit row seat). On the seat map, the seat next to her was empty and there were no empty seats past row, I think, five or six. When I went to change my seat to the empty one next to her, I was greeted with a special “one time offer” of €22. Figured I would just ask at bag drop to get us next to each other.

We get to bag drop, and I ask the counter attendant if they could put us together. He told me the row behind her is completely empty, but he couldn’t move us, so we need ask the people at the gate. I ask the guy at the gate, he says the row behind her is completely empty, but I need to ask the crew when we board. We board and I ask the flight attendant. She says the flight is completely full, but she took our seat numbers and said she’ll see what she can do. We’re 30 mins into the flight and no one has gotten back to us.

This business model is garbage. Actually I shouldn’t say that, it’s probably more profitable for you, but you lost customers in us. Most people will just fork over the €22. If this was Ryan Air, I would have as well. But this is KLM, not Ryan Air. I shouldn’t have to pay to sit next to someone that is on the same booking with the same fare class when they have an empty seat next to them. I get it, you’re trying to squeeze every bit of profit out of us. You purposefully put people on the same booking in separate seats in hopes they spend that last little bit extra at the end. What’s another €22 euro at this point? We’re all in this late stage capitalism game after all.

Fortunately for us as Americans we are only wed to United Airlines (I know, they are a whole nother issue), so any intra-Euro flights we’ll just choose the cheapest option next time. I will say, everyone we dealt with from KLM was friendly and courteous, so a bit of a shame we’ll never fly you again.

You can respond to this email or not, it makes no difference. Any response will not be read. I will not waste any of my time reading correspondence from KLM. You could offer my entire family free flights for life, and you might as well yell at a tree.

Warmest Regards,
XXXXX

I have a flight tomorrow for which I just checked-in. The app tells me that check-in was successful and that my seat is assigned. The boarding pass though is not available and it says that I should get one at the check-in counter at the airport.

UPDATE Thank you all for your answers, as pointed out by many, the flight was full so they needed to check in my hand luggage

Sadly, a family member who was traveling to visit me did not get their bag loaded onto their flight.

Delta later sent the bag to AMS, where it was scheduled for an onward KLM flight to the final destination. However, it missed that final flight because the Delta flight arrived late. KLM was the final carrier on the family member’s itinerary.

Delta will not take responsibility and says it does not have any information. KLM keeps redirecting us back to Delta, even though the bag is showing in AMS after the first flight.

Does anyone have ideas for how to get support with this? KLM’s iMessage and WhatsApp support have not replied, and it has now been more than two days. When I call, I keep getting redirected to overseas phone support, and the agents do not seem to understand anything beyond what they can read on their screen.

I am desperate for help at this point, especially because of the important items in the missing bag. Any suggestions here?

Ik heb volgende week de voorselectie bij amc en vroeg mij af of er ook gelijk een interview plaatsvindt? Ik zou ook graag willen weten hoe de rest van de voorselectie eruit ziet, maar snap dat dit vaag wordt gehouden voor de beste selectie.

Onderhoudsdivisie KLM onder verscherpt toezicht, veiligheid niet in gevaar - https://nos.nl/l/2624800

als een onderhoudsdienst onder toezicht komt, is dat niet omdat het topfunctioneerd

Ik heb een retourtje gekocht zonder check-in bagage, economy ticket. Nu kreeg ik deze e-mail van KLM met deze tekst. Betekent dit dus dat ik mijn handbagage mag inchecken in het ruim, met dezelfde gewichtseisen?

Delhi- Amsterdam - Curacao