Is Delta Bullying Cheap Flyers to Spend More?
Jeff Edwards August 17, 2015
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A flyers rights group says that Delta’s final message to passengers attempting to book ultra-low-fare tickets is an attempt to embarrass them into purchasing pricier seats.
It is not news that passengers who spend more money are generally afforded more dignity when flying. Excessive legroom and curtains that keep first class passengers from having to gaze at the hoi polloi in coach have been around as long as there have been distinct airfare price tiers, but one consumer group claims Delta Air Lines has crossed the line and is actually trying to humiliate flyers who wish to purchase cheap fares.
At issue is a message on the company’s website that only pops-up when passengers attempt to book ultra-low-fare tickets. The notice, only seen by bargain hunters, reiterates the restrictions and disadvantages that come with purchasing an inexpensive ticket.
Customers must confirm that they understand the hardships that accompany the cheapest of tickets before they are able to complete their booking. Among the burdens these customers will endure, Delta warns, are: no seat assignment, absolutely no refunds and no changes.
FlyersRights President Paul Hudson told the Los Angeles Times that the practice amounts to a high-pressure sales technique designed to make flyers question the decision to purchase the lowest fare available. Hudson says his non-profit organization is concerned that the bullying practice will spread to other carriers.
Delta spokesman Anthony Black dismissed the notion that the message is an attempt to embarrass bargain hunters, telling the Times that the notice is simply “an attempt to make people aware of what they are buying.”
[Photo: Delta Air Lines]
And if Delta didn't provide any warnings, flyers rights groups would claim that Delta was deceiving passengers by selling one fare class that excludes many of the benefits travelers have come to expect. Delta is being fully transparent here. This isn't bullying. On my September DCA-ATL-DCA trip I gladly paid the $20 more for the next booking class above 'E'. I am elite so have more to lose, but I probably would've done it even if I didn't have status. Flyers rights groups always seem to take it too far so I have a hard time taking them seriously.
I flew Basic Economy this past weekend between Seattle and Phoenix. My seat was assigned at the gate. Ironically, I was given 4A, directly behind First Class, so with plenty of leg room -- one of the best tourist class seats on the plane. Clearly, many of the pricier seats do not sell.
Drivel. This author is a attempting to be a provocateur. Hardships? Burdens? Bullying? No one is buying his editorial. These are sensible T&C for a fare bucket. General consensus seems to be, no point; it's hardly reporting, and DL has explained the low fare in complete terms via a pop-up. If pax want to buy this fare, they have been informed.
I avoid Delta as much as practical, but I think this is a great move by them. I wish there had been a popup like that when my wife booked flights to Germany and only found out later that seating assignments are no longer complimentary on Lufthansa and Swissair. Something tells me the popup only works on Delta's website and not on broker websites.
Bullying??? It's the passenger who intentionally buys a cheap ticket and then tries to bully or wheedle the gate agent or cabin crew into supplying perquisites that bothers me. Thank you, Delta, for doing what you can to head off undeserved requests.