SEAT DISASTER

My fiancé and I booked our return flights to Perth on the 13th of December 2016. Our booking included seat reservations. We chose SAA due to the fact that it was the only direct flight from South Africa to Perth. On 5 September 2017 we noted that we were able to select our seats, which we then did. As we chose seats in the exit row, we were required to pay an additional fee. We did not mind paying the additional fee as we needed the extra space, due to the fact that my fiancé is tall and he will be comfortable if he had more leg room. The website of SAA requested us to pay within a few days; however when we selected payment the amount reflected in a foreign currency (krone) which SAA did not recognise. We were therefore unable to proceed with online payment. I telephoned customer care and was reassured that we will be able to pay once we depart and that we will receive the same seats we selected. A few days after the call we checked and noticed that the seats remained the same, therefore believing the consultant. On the 21st and 22nd of September 2017 we checked our seats which were changed to different seats in the exit row; although we weren’t entirely happy about it we accepted it because it was still in the exit row. For clarity I once again called customer care and explained to them my concerns. Customer care could not clarify the problem and requested that we visit the airport itself. The online confirmation likewise stated that the seats we booked and had been paid. We commuted to the airport, from Pretoria, on the 23rd of September 2017 and spoke to a consultant; he assured us that the exit row seats were ours and that no payment was due. We requested something in writing, which he then gave to us as proof hereof. On the 26th of September 2017 we checked the online booking and noticed that our seats selection was now “Not preselected”. My fiancé emailed ********** on the same day, till this day we haven’t received a response. Furthermore, when we checked in at the airport, on the 28th of September 2017, we were informed that we have seats near the back of the plane, in the middle of a four seater and that it was the only seats available where we could sit together. We then explained to the consultant the situation and showed proof of our booked seats. We also spoke to the Team Leader, which was not at all accommodating and ultimately through his hands in the air. Apparently a family of four checked in before us and received our seats. SAA stated that they couldn’t change their boarding passes. Their response to our dissatisfaction was that we call customer care. We then asked to visit customer care at the airport, which they then responded that there is no customer care service at the airport and that we could only contact them using our own sources. With all due respect to SAA this is totally unacceptable and nauseating. We had a problem and we weren’t assisted or accommodated in any way.