Originally Posted by
IAH-OIL-TRASH
I don't think the agent should push any upgrade through that does not conform to UA's published upgrade rules on the waitlist priority. That being said, the huge (UA's self-inflicted) problem is the occasional appearance of available PN or PZ when a waitlist exists. It allows a new buyer to immediately upgrade. If a new buyer has that opportunity, everyone on the waitlist should be able to grab it for themselves. UA really needs to close that loophole so when PZ/PN is being added to availability it checks for waitlists before becoming available to new customers.
While I have benefited several times from the flaw, I'm pretty sure I have also suffered for it. UA: just fix the issue so #1 on waitlist can expect to get the next PN/PZ seat UA adds to availability. Right now, that is not the case.
So, if UA eliminates the possibility of PN or PZ randomly opening up or automatically assigning that space in a way that conforms to the waitlist order, then I'm fine to live with that. I'm much less concerned with the details of the policies than I am with understanding
what the policies are.
In this regard, what you're citing as a "flaw" is something that I interpret as conflicting policies. I clearly don't like this, as it makes it difficult to understand what policy is being followed. (In this vein, I don't like the conflicting set of rules that apply to four-way stops.) That said, if UA
can't restrict when PN/PZ space opens up or can't have that space automatically assigned via the waitlist, then the way it currently works is the most fair, I think. Anyone can grab the space that opens up, including people purchasing tickets and those who are already on the waitlist. But it's not a great solution because there are two conflicting sets of rules out there. Something tells me that this issue isn't very high priority for UA ...