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Delta Raises Maximum VDB Compensation to $9,950 in Vouchers

Delta Raises Maximum VDB Compensation to $9,950 in Vouchers

Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:05 pm
  #76  
 
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Originally Posted by Kevin AA
Preferred by Delta but most certainly not preferred by the passenger. Who wants to pay for a hotel themselves for $89 in exchange for 89 Delta dollars?
It depends on the location and how much time I have to think about it. If I can get a decent hotel for $45, and I have time to figure out where it is, I'd rather pay the $45 and take the $89 Delta dollars. But it would be a lot to think about on top of rescheduling my flying, so I'm glad the airline makes the hotel booking for me and saves me the mental taxation even if I could theoretically come out ahead the other way.

Seth
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:06 pm
  #77  
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Originally Posted by The Situation
The $9,950 is to fall just below the $10,000 mark for federal reporting requirements for anti-money laundering. If DL has another IT meltdown, it happens around a major holiday and you can't get the VDB home for a few days, yes I could see it approach the limit. If DL is offering $2K even, I am happy to celebrate xmas a few days late!
This. It also falls just below the CBP $10k reporting requirements for declaring currency entering/exiting the US.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:08 pm
  #78  
 
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The $9,950 is in vouchers. Is there a reporting requirement for vouchers (as opposed to cash)?
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:09 pm
  #79  
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Originally Posted by Widgets
Hotels for volunteers aren't part of the published customer commitments.
Missed that nugget. Thanks for the correction.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:10 pm
  #80  
 
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In general, an airline's budget for hotel/meal vouchers vs. travel vouchers might not share the same cost center, so staff can be incentivized to use the compensation type that doesn't get pulled from their own cost center in order to have better-looking financial reports for their department. I saw this at the first airline I worked for, and Delta might be no different.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 12:51 pm
  #81  
C W
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Originally Posted by Edward_YUL
$9950 which include 195*$50 ahhhh
What?

195*50 = 9,750
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 1:14 pm
  #82  
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Originally Posted by The Situation
The $9,950 is to fall just below the $10,000 mark for federal reporting requirements for anti-money laundering.
The C in CTR stands for currency, which is notably absent from the issuance of an electronic voucher.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 1:33 pm
  #83  
 
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Originally Posted by javabytes
The C in CTR stands for currency, which is notably absent from the issuance of an electronic voucher.


If I am a DL lawyer, out of an abundance of caution, you have to ask the question, "what happens if... and what's the risk?" What happen if a customer gets the voucher and is travelling overseas and declares they have a financial instrument over $10K? What happens if that customer that gets the voucher then sells it to drug dealers who are attempting to launder money and in turn they flip it again (they frequently use gift cards to aid in the effort)? Although the gov can argue that DL was trying to skirt rules and should have know a large voucher like this could be used for illicit purposes, by keeping it just under $10K, it is one more added protection that at least minimizes risk.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 2:10 pm
  #84  
 
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No practical change. I rarely see it making it to 1000. People elbow each other on the way to the podium to claim 300$
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 2:11 pm
  #85  
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Originally Posted by The Situation
If I am a DL lawyer, out of an abundance of caution, you have to ask the question, "what happens if... and what's the risk?" What happen if a customer gets the voucher and is travelling overseas and declares they have a financial instrument over $10K? What happens if that customer that gets the voucher then sells it to drug dealers who are attempting to launder money and in turn they flip it again (they frequently use gift cards to aid in the effort)? Although the gov can argue that DL was trying to skirt rules and should have know a large voucher like this could be used for illicit purposes, by keeping it just under $10K, it is one more added protection that at least minimizes risk.
The slip of paper they hand you has no value whatsoever. It's a receipt.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 2:37 pm
  #86  
 
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Originally Posted by C W
According to Widgets, employees have been instructed to fully use the policy to essentially eliminate IDB.
A great, positive move by Delta to meet the spirit and letter of 14 CFR Part 250 - OVERSALES

250.2a Policy regarding denied boarding.
In the event of an oversold flight, every carrier shall ensure that the smallest practicable number of persons holding confirmed reserved space on that flight are denied boarding involuntarily.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 4:23 pm
  #87  
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A good Daily Telegraph article on Delta's limit increase

Some interesting excepts:

In an internal memo obtained Friday by The Associated Press, Delta Air Lines said gate agents can offer up to $2,000, up from a previous maximum of $800, and supervisors can offer up to $9,950 (7,943), up from $1,350.

United is reviewing its own policies, including incentives for customers, and will announce any actions by April 30, a spokeswoman said. The airline would not disclose its current compensation limit.
Pretty neatly sums up the differences in corporate cultural...

Last year Delta got more passengers to give up their seats than any other U.S. airline, partly by paying more than most of the others.
Delta no doubt hopes that gate agents and their supervisors won't need to make maximum offers, and the financial cost to the airline is likely to be limited. If Delta paid $9,950 to every person it bumped involuntarily last year, that would total $12 million. Delta earned nearly $4.4 billion.
An Associated Press analysis of government data shows that in 2015 and 2016, Delta paid an average of $1,118 in compensation for every passenger that it denied a seat. Southwest Airlines paid $758, United $565, and American Airlines $554.
Pretty amazing that Delta already pays over double of what AA does per pax and nearly double UA. Phenomenal customer dedication.

Last edited by C W; Apr 14, 2017 at 4:29 pm
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 4:27 pm
  #88  
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Originally Posted by WidgetKid

That being said, I do think the $9,950 cap for redcoats extraordinarily high
It's chump change compared to what United will be paying to settle its issues.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 5:03 pm
  #89  
 
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Originally Posted by C W
I didn't get this from MQD. I can't even see MQD as a non-US based Medallion. I have no MQD counter and no itemized MQD on my activity.

I got those numbers from the Base Miles divided by 5. Don't know if that's computed the same way as MQD or not.
Both MQD and base miles use the same distance based apportioning mechanism ( segment distance / trip distance times total Delta revenue). This is not the formula used for IDB.

IDB is calculated as (Y fare for Denied segment) / (sum of Y fares for all segments on ticket individually). Walkup Y fares tend to be high-ish for everything, so this helps prevent $6 fares (which i have also experienced on SEA-YVR segments after an international trip). It's a much more generous method of apportioning cost.
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Old Apr 14, 2017, 5:06 pm
  #90  
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I'm sure everyone here is old enuf to remember PeoplExpress, right?!?

Keep in mind that, this is WAY before the days when you needed to show a BP to get thru security to the gates . . . .

Fares were simple. Peak and off peak. I remember PIT/EWR was $23 peak and $19 off peak. Every seat. I can't remember how it worked if you were connecting.

On PeoplExpress, you didn't pay your fare til you were on the plane, and the plane was in the air. Then, during the flight, a FA would wheel a cart down the aisle and collect cash, or imprint a credit card.

To make a reservation, you could call and just give your name - or any name, I believe. They even had a weird system where you could call into their res system and book a flight simply by entering your phone number as your ID.

Now, BPs were stickers issued at the gate. When they ran out of stickers, the flight was full, and if / when another person showed up, the flight was overbooked.

SO . . . . You could call in and simply punch in your (or any) phone number, go to the gate and wait in line to get a boarding sticker. The idea was, to continuously let people who were getting in line behind you - to get in front of you, so you were always the last one in line, thus, the least likely to get a boarding sticker. If you were the last person in line, and they gave you a boarding sticker, you simply walked away!

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