garykung

49 U.S. Code § 41713(b)(1):

CoC relates to the service of an airline. Breach of contract is a state common law claim (as there is no federal law saying that breach of contract is illegal).

Actually, DOT has the authority to adjudicate via Office of Hearing.

Dave Noble

I may have missed a post, but from what I have seen, there is no evidence that the airline had not asked for volunteers, just that the airline did not ask this specific passenger to volunteer

Exec_Plat

When there is ambiguity in a contract, and one party has not had the opportunity to request clarifications, the interpretation may go against the drafting party (Contra proferentem).

Exec_Plat

Agree.

OP? What happened in terms of announcements?

At what time did they deny you boarding? Could they have made an announcement to all passengers at X minutes before flight? Is an announcement to 5 pax at t-50minutes a bad faith attempt? 20 minutes? It the time alone an argument?

Often1

1. The COC don't require AA to seek volunteers. There is a list of carve outs in the COC which match the DOT IDB carve outs. Makes sense as AA has no reason to pay VDB to get people to volunteer when it won't have to pay IDB when others are denied boarding.

2. But, we have no idea whether AA did seek volunteers. OP wasn't there throughout.

3. AA did honor the contract. Just read it (the COC) and you can see for yourself. The fact that some don't like it doesn't mean that AA didn't honor it.

4. OP was entitled to a full refund if he wanted one. No need to rely on trip in vain. When AA could not board him on his booked flight, that's the end of it (if OP had wanted). TIV helps when there's a cancellation or delay at a connection point because it would get OP back to his origin, but that's not the case here.

Bottom line is that if OP thinks he has an IDB case here and wants to sue, let him. AA and the other carriers fought long and hard to get the small aircraft exemption for their express carriers and it's one of those things which has to be a line in the sand.

Dave Noble

AA's CoC explicitly states that it will - whether it did or not is unknown
http://www.aa.com/i18n/customerServi...t_IT#oversales

There is no exception based on type of flight


Um, why should there be a line in the sand and why should there be an exception for small aeroplanes? Indeed there may well be such an exemption and the OP seems to have no case at all against the airline from what I see, but don't see why there is any grounds for such anti consumer protection

CPRich

OP also **MUST** show up, or OP will lose!!!!

Do you believe AA is short on lawyers or legal staff, and they'll just allow a lawsuit yield a default judgement against them?

You consider avoiding an overweight, unbalanced plane to be a loophole?

Exec_Plat

Read the rest of the thread, then respond.

Your first comment has been well discussed

When AA loads on cargo at the expense of ticketed paid customers, AND AVOID PAYING THEM, I call THAT aspect of it a loophole.

Funny how much some people are cowed by "oh Safety first" kinds of thinking....

3Cforme

We don't that it was oversold, nor a nuanced definition of oversold as would apply here. Did AA sell more than the xx seats of standard capacity on the plane? What if they sold 5 fewer but needed to leave 8 open due to hotter than typical conditions that day?

SpaceCoastBill

But IF a small claims case were filed, AA would respond and have it moved to civil court. The process is really simple in this state :Either party may request to transfer a small claims case to the justice courts civil division prior to TEN (10) (work) days before the scheduled hearing.


Now their lawyers will motion the court disputing all your claims, showing precedent, and all the while racking up billed expenses they will surely come after you for later.

The bottom line to this whole thread is one thing:

I would not file a claim against AA, you are only going to be out time, money, and aggravation.

The only recourse you should try is a polite conversation with customer service. You might get miles, or the most likely outcome is a canned response. Call it a day and move on.

Often1

If OP thinks that he was wrongly denied IDB compensation, he is free to file a webform complaint with DOT. DOT will ask AA for details and, if there is merit, AA will likely pay up. If there isn't merit (and there is not merit) AA will respond, denying the claim. OP can then sue if he still thinks he has a claim.

People get mixed up between the law and what they think the law ought to be. If they want the law changed, that is a process through DOT which certainly could amend its IDB rule to include all commercial aircraft. But, until it does, the OP is doing something we don't discuss into the wind.

Dave Noble

Then there were more passengers holding confirmed reservations than there were seats available - which is AA's definition of oversold

If a seat cannot be used, then it is not available

Regardless, there is no evidence that volunteers were not requested and still cannot see that there is any point at all in the OP trying to sue the airline

LINDEGR

Thank you for a rare moment of sanity! In these exchanges where the OP is always the bad guy for not allowing for any possible complication and commonplace expectation that absolves AA of any possible wrong-doing, it is good to read that there is another reality: additional travel time and the relayed opportunity cost should be a factor before this site assumes all of us should travel a week in advance of the event...

alhcfp

OP- not that you have a case- but assuming you filed SC, how would you prove that AA makes a habit of selling more seats because it knows that it will later have weight and balance issues?

Your "they told me" is not admissible and in SC court there is usually no discovery.

LCS

Litigating AA on this case is a loser.

I haven't seen anyone reference the Airline Deregulation Act which means federal law preempts all state laws relating to rates, routes, and services.

AA has law firms with baby lawyers that will love to earn their stripes jacking you around on this case.

AA doesn't pay full value on even legitimate claims where there is liability against them without a fight.