Ex-EU: Denied boarding at start of B2B
Mar 10, 2017, 10:08 am
#31
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold; Hilton Honors Diamond
Posts: 3,232
I think part of the issue here is that a lot of people, including BA employees, think that people on ex-EU tickets are somehow fiddling the system or that it's otherwise morally reprehensible behaviour. The B2B concept muddies the water as well.
For anyone living outside of the UK on mainland Europe the whole concept of ex-EU isn't anything other than the norm. When I lived in Brussels I didn't perceive my BRU - LHR - LAX return as being somehow less valid morally than someone flying LHR - LAX.
The B2B add-on is irrelevant too. What's to stop me taking the Eurostar to Brussels for free using points / miles and then flying from BRU at a significantly reduced rate, or using Thalys points to take the train to Schiphol and flying from there. The mode of transport is different but the result, benefitting from cheaper EU prices, is the same.
Until such time as either there's a change in the law or BA change their fare conditions or general terms and conditions to somehow prevent B2B then I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with ex-EU tickets with or without B2B. As long as people go into an ex-EU with their eyes wide open and aware of the potential pitfalls I don't see any issue with it at all.
For anyone living outside of the UK on mainland Europe the whole concept of ex-EU isn't anything other than the norm. When I lived in Brussels I didn't perceive my BRU - LHR - LAX return as being somehow less valid morally than someone flying LHR - LAX.
The B2B add-on is irrelevant too. What's to stop me taking the Eurostar to Brussels for free using points / miles and then flying from BRU at a significantly reduced rate, or using Thalys points to take the train to Schiphol and flying from there. The mode of transport is different but the result, benefitting from cheaper EU prices, is the same.
Until such time as either there's a change in the law or BA change their fare conditions or general terms and conditions to somehow prevent B2B then I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with ex-EU tickets with or without B2B. As long as people go into an ex-EU with their eyes wide open and aware of the potential pitfalls I don't see any issue with it at all.
Mar 10, 2017, 10:56 am
#32
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 8,820
Because I think BA could arguably do something about B2Bs if they really wanted to, whereas I don't think they could plausibly do anything about non-B2Bs.
Moreover, the reason I think they might possibly consider it is precisely *because* B2B is such a low-risk and easy option as you rightly say - whereas taking an earlier rotation is riskier and less desirable, unless you want to take all day/stay overnight, and again there's nothing BA could really do about that.
I agree this is a valid point. It's also fair to say that a lot of people do B2Bs not so much for fare savings but for TP running purposes, and my hunch is that BA is not averse to people chasing status.
Moreover, the reason I think they might possibly consider it is precisely *because* B2B is such a low-risk and easy option as you rightly say - whereas taking an earlier rotation is riskier and less desirable, unless you want to take all day/stay overnight, and again there's nothing BA could really do about that.
Moreover, the questions that I've been asked by crew when I've done back-to-backs (as well as some posts here) suggest that it is not uncommon for passengers to do this for non-fare saving reasons: Sometimes it is literally to hand over documents to someone at the destination airport and to fly straight back. Would BA really want to prevent this type of travel?
Mar 10, 2017, 1:14 pm
#33
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 6,189
Yes I think the evidence suggests that BA have not been overly concerned about B2Bs so far, perhaps for the reasons you suggest.
My point was that incidents like OPs - which may well get reported up the line - could encourage BA to rethink this.
Again I’m not criticising OP as I’m sure any of us here could have made the error, I’m just noting that the more hassle this practice causes for BA the likelier it is to get reviewed.
My point was that incidents like OPs - which may well get reported up the line - could encourage BA to rethink this.
Again I’m not criticising OP as I’m sure any of us here could have made the error, I’m just noting that the more hassle this practice causes for BA the likelier it is to get reviewed.
Mar 10, 2017, 1:43 pm
#34
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 8,820
Certainly no mountain intended. It was one incident. I was merely musing - on a quiet Friday - that there might be some guy at BA starting to wonder if the B2B thing is becoming a bit of a problem that might warrant some attention...
Whether or not that's the case is I have no idea. For all I know BA may be well see it as a very nice source of incremental revenue rather than revenue foregone.
Whether or not that's the case is I have no idea. For all I know BA may be well see it as a very nice source of incremental revenue rather than revenue foregone.
Mar 10, 2017, 3:43 pm
#35
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2015
Programs: BA GGL
Posts: 251
Yes, I should have added something along those lines. If you miss the DUB-LHR flight the rest of the ticket will be cancelled. I am not sure whether that would happen quickly enough to kick in prior to boarding the LHR-DXB so possibly that would only have happened after the LHR-DXB flight departed, although the OP would then have been stranded in DXB with no valid inbound flights.
Just to follow up on how quickly the system offloaded us once we missed the first leg. Our DUB-LHR was at 1905. The onward LHR-DXB was 2150. Around 8-830ish, the DM came to us in the lounge to say that we'd automatically been offloaded from our LHR-DXB flight for missing the first sector (not sure if offloading=cancelling in a technical sense). However it sounded like they'd been monitoring the booking so immediately reinstated it. It was really an FYI, in case we had trouble at the gate. Or perhaps to (reasonably) drive home the point that you can't go around missing the first sector.
So offloading seems to have happened pretty quickly after missing the first leg.