Delta to Pay $3000 for Canceling Award Ticket & Accusing Passenger of Fraud

An unnamed passenger triggered a fraud alert when he used a friend’s reward miles to book a plane ticket, but used his own credit card to pay excess fees and taxes on the fare.

A Delta Air Lines passenger who was wrongly accused of fraud by the carrier is due to receive 11,000 Israeli Shekels ($3,118) in compensation, TheMarker reports.

In an incident which occurred in October 2016 on the religious holiday of Yom Kippur, an unnamed traveler used the reward miles of a friend to book a seat on a flight from Tel Aviv to Bangkok on Aeroflot, a SkyTeam partner of Delta. However, the outlet reports that the man then used his own credit card to pay for outstanding taxes on the flight.

This payment triggered a fraud alert with the carrier and the man was prevented from boarding. However, it later transpired that the transaction was genuine, but the passenger was not able to make the flight due to the Yom Kippur holiday.

The traveler was issued an alternative ticket, but rebuffed Delta’s initial $200 offer of compensation. The man eventually took Delta to small claims court in Israel, where the law found in his favor.

The presiding magistrate, Judge Udi Hecker, ruled that the carrier was responsible for any damages due to the incident. Delta countered that the unknown plaintiff should have presented his friend’s ID for inspection at the airport, but this point is not specifically noted in the airline’s terms and conditions.

“The mere fact that the plaintiff was forced to turn to the court in order to win his due, in the circumstances of this case, is a matter of severity,” said Hecker, as translated from the original Hebrew-language article. “The plaintiff and those who act like him must be encouraged to act to realize his rights and to promote law enforcement, and the defendant [Delta] must be deterred from conduct such as that which was revealed in the case before us,” he added.