FlyingUnderTheRadar

The real problem is that all of the airlines have increased their fees to incrediably ridiculous amounts. It used to be $75 for redepositing miles after canceling a ticket. Fees are now $250 for changing a ticket used to be $100.

I do not mind reasonable fees for a service but at this point the airlines basically have the ball in their court. At some point they will push it too far and could find themselves being regulated again.

majorwibi

Welcome back to FT...

Actually just an FYI but almost all of DL employees dont like the fees nor do they like collecting them. Imagine the abuse that a frontline employee gets because they have to charge someone for a checked bag when that person didnt read all the rules prior to purchasing the tickets. I've seen GAs brought to tears because the person who didnt like the fees read them the riot act.

Quit lumping all DL employees into the same bin when it comes to the airline. There are about 30 (my estimate) people who actually make the decisions that drive DL and none of them post of FT (including JeffBob who does the hit and run but doesnt post frequently enough to count IMHO).

We all get that you dont like where DL is going but you are never going to get some of the folks on FT to see your point of view if all you do is bash those that work for DL. By bashing the frontline employees you are directly bashing my wife and some of her good friends...

GMill

Delta and the other legacy carriers would probably like nothing better. Regulation just raises the barrier to newcomers who want to enter the market.

Regulation hurts consumers. They end up with less low cost options.

doug93063

I like the fees. It helps keep people from gaming the system, booking award travel and constantly changing it, which screws with the travel calendar for everybody else.

ExNonRev

The volume of outrage regarding escalating fees is understandable but let's balance the outrage with reality, advance booking fares havn't been this cheap for years, and the increase in fees are inpart responsible for this. Airline revenue folks are obviously factoring in new revenue sources generated from bag fees and increased change fees into the overall pricing model.

Legacy carriers are benefiting from the decrease in pricing transparency, but the environment is not without it's pluses as we move to a more pay as you go model. The plus side being lower fares, especially for the saavy travelor.

Regulation, do consumers really want that? Does the general public need a return to infation adjusted fares of the 70's?

Spiff

Don't cancel now. Your trip isn't for 2 months. During that time, a schedule change or cancellation or weather event could give you an opportunity to redeposit or cancel for free.

Also, DL might be more willing to deal if your flight becomes oversold.

Cancel at 15 min prior to departure if you're going to have to pay $200 to redeposit. Don't give up so easily.

craz

tonypct

+1! ^

It never ceases to amaze me how the consistent whiners and moaners refuse to accept any accountability.

tonypct

The problem here is that many of the usual will state that a policy is consumer-unfriendly whenever they disagree with it, or the result of that policy is not in their favor. Kind of disingenuous, IMHO.

Bottom line is, if its in the "contract", then you have to abide by the policy. Whether its with an airline, a cell phone provider, a cable TV company, etc etc.

But I applaud you for taking personal responsibility and saying that you will vote with your wallet. Good for you! And I mean that sincerely, with no sarcasm. You seem to get it. That you do have a choice. Please don't become one of those posters who complain consistently about Delta, and yet continue to fly Delta. They have zero credibility.

GrizShel

And I take offense to your taking offense to folks complaining. I am sick and tired of those who say we don't have a right to criticize Delta Airlines and think that anyone who is critical is inferior to the poster (if you didn't think so you wouldn't repeatedly use such derisive language in addressing those who complain).

And of course, while most are playing this game now, it is not true that all airlines are. And furthermore, in my view, Delta/NW's rules are now the absolute worst of any US airline - if you add on all of the fees now applied as of this year and the fact that even Plats have to pay many of them.

tonypct

Give me a break. Of course you have a right to criticize Delta. We all do. Posters also have a right to post opposing views to supporters and detractors of Delta. Wait a minute. Let me clairfy. We have the privilege to post here; not the right.

If you view Delta's rules as now the worst of any airline, then you have the option of flying US, United, AA, WN, CO, etc etc.

Back on topic, if I were the OP, I would certainly do whatever I can to try to get those fees waived. But if Delta decided to hold me to the terms and conditions of their contract, then so be it. But I don't blame the OP for trying to get those fees waived.

GrizShel

I didn't game the system. I hardly ever changed an award ticket even when changes were free on NW. But I needed more flexibility this year and the free changes were one of the benefits i was looking forward to when I qualified for Plat elite last December. And then of course, Deltified NW welcomed me as a new Platinum elite by taking away most of these benefits that I had spent all last year qualifying for, including changing the rules for award tickets I had already booked before they announced these changes.

Beckles

In the case of cancelling a ticket 10 weeks out the fee does seem simply punitive with no relation to the cost incurred to cancel the ticket. If the trip were just one day away it would be different, DL would have little opportunity to resell the ticket in general.

Too bad you didn't just book tickets on WN in the first place.

jetta2.0t

Incredibly, it is spelled out quite clearly. Delta certainly fulfilled it's end of the bargain by providing this information. The burden of actually READING it and then deciding whether to use them is on the passenger.

http://www.delta.com/skymiles/use_mi...fees/index.jsp

MikeMpls

Fees are Delta's #1 business. They can't turn a profit by selling a product good enough to warrant paying a fair price for.

Yes, WN is sweet. We recently made the transition in the other direction for DL/NW to mostly WN for domestic. Since 1 Jan. I've recovered $771 by refaring existing WN itins; that's an annualized rate of $3,000, which is hardly chump change when all your travel is personal and there's no employer to soak for the expenses.

And being able to cancel outright when your plans change is a godsend. Mostly recently I had to cancel a bunch of WN outbounds & rebook (O horribile dictu!) on Delta to attend a roundup of some of my DL friends in Atlanta.

Yes, WN spoils you. Unfortunately, it going to take a major cataclysmic event to break the Deltas of the industry of their habits. Meanwhile, WN continues to thrive.

Rots of ruck. DL & Amex are in bed with each other. Amex has made 2 $1B purchases of SkyMiles, the most recent one occurring after a $3.4B bailout by the U.S. taxpayers. Like it or not, we're all paying to keep these two dinosaurs limping along.

There's also Air Tran, which even turned a profit this last quarter in contrast to Delta's $794M of red ink.

Sweet, isn't it. But there's also also a very different side to the DL forum than those who label the Delta critics "haters", etc. They're just a small part of the forum. Note above I referenced the small roundup of Delta friends. Yes, there are real people in here, real friends to have fun with, not just those who hand out advice like "Deal with it" or "Fly another airline." Check out the upcoming Greasy Spoon DO in the Community Buzz! forum three weeks from now. Past events have included an annual PBI/FFL gathering (now probably relocating to somewhere in TN) and a CVG DO that included a behind the scenes view of Delta operations.