Peter Kassner

Hi, first time poster in this forum, so I apologize if I'm posting in the wrong place/thread.

Tl;dr : Due to a Delta computer error, my itinerary was canceled. Delta agents acknowledged they needed to reinstate my itinerary but only offered me a later departure to a different airport in the same area. How should I go about getting compensation, other than via email?

Yesterday, when I tried to check in for the return leg of a roundtrip LGA-JAX itinerary, Delta's website told me that no reservation under my confirmation number existed.

I spent an hour on the phone with various customer service agents, who determined that the itinerary had been canceled because Delta's reservations system thought I didn't board the first leg of the itinerary. In fact, I had. The agents said I would need to go to the Jacksonville airport to sign an affidavit attesting to the fact that I indeed flew on the first leg of the itinerary. Only then would I be permitted to board the 6:30 departure to JFK, because the 5:20 departure to LGA was oversold. When I got to the airport to check in for the JFK flight, I was not asked to sign an affidavit, and simply given a boarding pass for the JFK flight.

I was never asked if I consented to being put on the JFK-bound flight, nor offered compensation.

I emailed Delta through its website. Should I take other steps?

sethb

If you arrived in time for the 5:20, then you should demand IDB. They admitted it was oversold and denied you boarding. (It would help if you're able to prove you flew the first leg.)

Peter Kassner

I didn't arrive in time to board the earlier flight, because Delta informed me it was bumping me over the phone, many hours before the flights. Could I really be out of luck because I wasn't at the airport when this happened?

sethb

According to the technical rules, yes. But see what happens.

EZEDoesIt

Anyone have any luck getting bumped with a separate 006-ticketed onward flight and having the agent rebook that flight as well? Or is this extremely unlikely due to the time pressures on the agent?

sethb

Do you mean a connecting onward flight? Or do you mean (e.g.) a flight two days later, which gets rebooked because you want to spend two days in the intermediate location and your bumped-to flight is the next day?

EZEDoesIt

A separate ticket for an onward flight, and taking the bump would cause me to miss said flight.

sethb

If they want your seat badly enough, they'll reticket that as well. If they're offering (e.g.) $300 and have other volunteers, they'll take them.

EZEDoesIt

Yeah, that seems reasonable. Typically I'm under the impression that I have the advantage when going home, as I'm "just" going to ATL. In this case, I'm the more difficult passenger.

sethb

Sometimes having only that flight left is an advantage, sometimes (e.g. when that city is hard to get to because all flights are full, but other connecting cities are available) it's a disadvantage.

EZEDoesIt

But us that are hub-based could connect in a million places if we're willing...

mridley2

Today i was scheduled to fly LGA-ATL-CHA departing at 4pm. Earlier in the day flight was not oversold (deltaassist confirmed) and delta was selling the flight with an H fare the couple times I checked.

Later in the day, I notice that delta.com is no longer selling any flights for LGA-ATL for the rest of the day so I re-did the check in process again on delta.com to hopefully get the volunteer bid prompt and add my name to the list. I put in $200 and proceeded to the airport as scheduled.

Terminal D4 gate area was a freaking zoo. Gate agents asks for "several" volunteers. So we line up to volunteer. She quotes $600 to the first volunteer but by the time they get to me (I was #4 volunteer) it was up to $1000 delta voucher or gift card of our choice.

Gate agent took about 10 names and told us all to stand to the side and she would call us if/when she needed us. 30 minutes later everyone has boarded except the volunteers she starts calling off volunteer names one by one (from the bottom of the list) and tells them to board.

Ended up needing 4 volunteers for a flight tonight (through RDU to get to ATL) or tomorrow 6am direct flight. As the Gate agent was processing our compensation through some glitch or mistake (she didn't go into details) we ended up getting $1300 each. I opted for the AMEX gift card. HECK YEAH!!

So rather than getting into CHA tonight at 10:15pm I will arrive almost 12 hours later tomorrow at 10:12am. $100 an hour.. I'll take it!

Note that other flights were oversold in the D4 gate area at the same time. LGA-BVT (offering $1000 each for 3 volunteers) and LGA-MKE (also offering $1000 each). So maybe $1000 is the going rate today at LGA Term D.

Happy Flying! This is by far the highest I have ever seen the volunteer compensation climb. $1000 is crazy right?

sethb

I've seen $1100, but unfortunately I couldn't take it (time constraints on my part). I'd already taken $800 to switch to that flight.

mikeef

There are days that Delta's revenue management system causes me fits, and there are days when it makes me want to kiss Richard Anderson right on the lips.

Was supposed to fly BOS-JFK-LAS with a four hour layover at JFK before boarding flight 2427 to LAS. Called in the night before to SDC to an earlier flight, no problem. I would have to give up seat 2B (and end up in seat not 2B) for a window, but to save a few hours, I could deal. I switched to DL 443, a few hours earlier.

Made it to JFK and got to my gate to board 443 when they announced, you guessed it, they were oversold. Offered $1,000 GC or credit to take a later flight. Naturally, I volunteered.

They put me on the later flight: DL 2427, seat 2B.

Mike

udontknowme

Goaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal!