Originally Posted by
ryan754
Basically sometime between when I left SMF and arrived at the gate at PHL my seat was given away.. AA has no answers and is directing me to the web site.. I'm just going to write a complaint to the DOT... This is incredibly ridiculous... One AA agent told me I should buy full fare business/first in the future to avoid complications!
Seems to me - and others can correct me if I am wrong - denied boarding is just that, denied boarding. You had a confirmed seat on the flight. I would purse as denied boarding with DOT. Also, if they did not ask for volunteers, they violated the law as well.
The fact that US or AA changed the ticket without your permission is simply not your problem. (Otherwise, every airline would do it proactively!)