sard

Flight from AEX to ATL was delayed by 5 hours yesterday due to equipment issues in Atlanta. They swapped out a plane in ATL but my 5:30 flight ended up taking off at 10:30pm.
This meant most of the people on the flight missed their connection in ATL, but we were all told since it was equipment issue we would be put in a hotel.
Got to Atlanta and was told by the agent at the counter that they ran out of hotel vouchers (I was third on line, I think they had no vouchers at all) and we were all given a list of hotels to call.
Of course the hotels were all sold out so I spent the night waiting at the gate.

Should I email Delta to ask for some type of compensation or would Delta give everyone a standard X miles? What is reasonable to ask for?
I currently have no status with them

Thank you

Widgets

howtofreetravel

Why didn't you just buy a night yourself and ask delta to write you a check later?

sard

Called a few of the hotels on the list and they were sold out. (we were told Delta would ONLY compensate with those hotels on the list)
I didn't search further out/in the city because it didnt seem to make sense to travel out there when I have to be back at the gate in a few hours (but if the hotel was at the airport then its ok)

howtofreetravel

This is not true they will compensate other hotels ( i know this because I intended to use my travel insurance but delta paid)

sard

I am sure you're right.
But the agent told all of us on line that we had to get a hotel from that list to be reimbursed. I've never had this situation before so I just choose to listen to the agent.

The Situation

Like many (myself included), you learn the hard way the first time you encounter a situation like this, and you learn how to figure it out the next time. If I am in a situation like this, and DL is out of vouchers, I would just book whatever hotel I can find and ask for reimbursement. Also, if you have 5 hours waiting for a flight, go on to flyertalk and figure out what you should expect. Don't rely on DL to be forthcoming with what you are entitled to, especially in ATL. I would ask for specific and reasonable comp, otherwise you will receive either nothing or a disappointing amount. Write a short message describing the situation, i.e. "Due to an MX issue, my flight was delayed 5 hours resulting in a missed connection. I was told there would be vouchers for hotels once I got to ATL, but there were none available. Instead I was given a list of hotels, and that ONLY those hotels could be reimbursed. Those hotels were sold out and so I wound up sleeping in the airport. Only later did I found out that I could submit a claim for reimbursement for other hotels or I would have found a hotel and done so. Would you please provide a voucher in the amount of $2xx as compensation for this poor experience." A request for 200-250 would likely be granted without a second thought.

howtofreetravel

If there is one thing delta is good at is reimbursement

FlyBitcoin

Don't forget about the Minute Suites. There are two airside in ATL if you just want a quiet place to nap instead of wasting time riding to and from a hotel.

Also, if they are out of vouchers, I'd opt for convenience and choose one of the 3 "Gateway" Marriott properties that are one stop away on the rental car train and fight for reimbursement later.

rucksack

I've also found that Delta is great about reimbursing expenses. I was stuck overnight in DTW due to a missed connection to an int'l flight that was weather related and the frontline staff was hesitant to issue a voucher. I booked a hotel in downtown Detroit and made a night of it, and complained to Delta after the fact. I got a personal call offering me bonus miles as a goodwill gesture and a check for the hotel cost. Delta didn't even make me submit a receipt for the hotel. Really outstanding customer service despite the frontline staff not being very helpful.

(For the record, I heard a Red Coat tell the agent who was assisting me that it's customary for Delta to offer hotel accommodations for disruptions to international itineraries even if the cause of the disruption is weather.)

howtofreetravel

I even had delta give me reimbursement for weather delays (minor 50 dollars). I have to contact them first due to the insurance being secondary.

sard

Thanks for the replies everyone.
I should ask for money instead of miles? I thought that Delta gives Delta money (money that can only be spent with delta) rather than cash.

Thanks

rucksack

Delta only pays cash for out of pocket expenses. You could get reimbursed for the cost of your meals while delayed, but since you don't have any hotel expenses, unfortunately you can't get compensated (in cash, at least) for your night in the airport. You can get miles or a Delta voucher, though, as a goodwill gesture. Miles are the default, but I've had customer service reps offer me a choice before.

Often1

This is not a "compensation" but rather a "reimbursement" issue. If DL was unable to offer a room voucher and its preferred properties were full as well, just get something reasonable and submit that with a brief explanation.

I would also presume that your travel insurance covers this as well.

rucksack

It's a compensation issue now because the OP didn't, in fact, have any reimbursable hotel expenses. Sure, had the OP booked a hotel room, it would be a reimbursement issue.