JeffLewis2

This all sounds like "voluntary" compensation. I presume it is. "Denied boarding" is usually involuntary (you want to get on, but airline says "no"). There are different rules for each. I believe they are set for the latter, across airlines. Former depends on airline policy, etc.

Just a clarification. Some good examples. UserMark: wow.

JL2

silverpie

In airline lingo, there's "voluntary denied boarding" (there are too few seats for the would-be passengers, so you accept their offer to buy yours back) and "involuntary denied boarding" (they can't get volunteers, so they take it without asking and give you an amount set by law).

EPS

Most memorable VDB - delayed negative ten minutes

August 1998: BWI; UA X/DEN SFO

Asked the gate agent if they needed volunteers. Agent said, "I don't think so, but I'll put you on the list."

Boarding time comes, the agent calls me up, and says, "we don't need your seat, but here's a $25 travel certificate; go ahead and board."

So I board the plane, find my seat, buckle my seat belt, pull Hemispheres out and start reading. About five minutes later, a customer service representative comes down the aisle, stops at my seat, and asks if I'm still interested in volunteering(!). "Uh, OK, sure." I was traveling with my then-girlfriend, who was not extended the same offer.

I got (I think) $200 + a taxi voucher to IAD + a $15 meal voucher. The taxi turned out to be an SUV(!), and halfway there we hit a major thunderstorm.

Got about $12 worth of food at T.G.I. Fridays (it was actually difficult to spend more, given IAD's "street pricing"), and boarded a nonstop to SFO.

Bottom line: arrived at SFO ten minutes earlier than I would have on my original itinerary, and $225 better off.

Viajero Joven

Was she still your girlfriend when you met her at the gate in SFO??



[This message has been edited by Viajero Joven (edited 12-28-2000).]

GG

Oct 99: ATH-ATL-SDF-LEX. ATL-SDF was badly oversold. Delta was offering $350 plus food voucher to give up a seat. My husband and I volunteered, figuring we could get on the non-stop ATL-LEX an hour later, save the stop, and arrive home only 20 minutes later than scheduled. I called our son to update him on our arrival time.

So far, pretty s.o.p., but when I joined my husband at the counter, I heard him asking the agent, "Does it make any difference if the vouchers are both in my name?" My husband showed him that he'd issued both vouchers in my husband's name, none in mine. I said, "Oh it doesn't matter," but the agent insisted on issuing another voucher, in my name, and then said to my husband something like, "Oh heck, why don't you keep them both." We said, "Are you sure?" He was sure. We only asked once. So the final tally was: Extra time in transit, 20 minutes. Total comp $1050, plus $20 for food. No upgrade (but it's only a 45 minute flight). Not a gold medal bump, but I'd say a bronze anyway.

0524

Coming home from the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, 1989, CO involuntarily bumped my wife, two sons and me between LAX-EWR. For a delay of 24 hours, we received one night's accommodation at LAX, three meals, rental car, and vouchers for four round-trips in coach.

jeffreyt

I didn't take it, but they offered $800 on DL 568 last Saturday, then bumped it to $1000, hotel, food, and confirmed flight (but more than 24 hours later on Christmas Eve). At least 3 or 4 took it priort to boarding (the $800 part) and the remaining 4 took it on board. I wanted to get where I was going so I didn't volunteer.

rxziebel

The best I have been able to get is $800 and a free night at the O'Hare Hilton. Do you just ask for the upgrades, or do you have to wait for an offer? Thanks!

EPS

Yes! On another occasion where we were traveling together, the gate agent offered an operational upgrade to one of us. I let her take it, so, as far as I'm concerned, we're even. Well, except for all of my upgrade certificates (and miles) she consumed before earning her own Premier status on United.

Karen2

Best single offer: London to SFO with AA, got $1500, free Meridien Hotel, upgrade next day to business class, meals, etc. Still not finished with the voucher.

Had fun in San Diego once. Some big holiday weekend. Scheduled out about noon to SFO, husband and I got bumped voluntarily three times and came home with $1200 in vouchers off our two $49 fares.

I always ask if the flight is full - like how full??? A lot of luck is involved unless you hunt the holidays down.

College son volunteered UA on a $49 Ontario/San Jose ticket and got a free ticket to Alaska. Calls me, "Mom, I will be late for dinner so should I volunteer??" Are you kidding???

whynotniwot

Two years ago my wife found a $98 round trip from ATL to BOS on UA by way of ORD. She joined me on a business trip. The night before we returned, the Boston area had a huge storm and many flights were canceled. UA was trying to accomadate folks on our 6:30 am flight, so my wife and I accepted $400 dollar vouchers, tickets on flight two hours later and meal passes. We used the vouchers to pay for her ticket to Paris with me the next spring. Bottom line, two RT flights, ATL-BOS and ATL-CDG for $98. Not bad. Only down side was I didn't get SkyMiles for the international UA flight. Kept me from SM that year.

sbrower

Pan Am wrongly denied us boarding on the MIA-LAX flight. (We had the boarding passes for coach, we were waiting (per instruction) for upgrade to first, they gave away our seats by mistake.)

Got flown home on AA using vouchers. Then, got $8,500 cash (it took a little legal work).

ATLGA

UserMark -- that's amazing! I want to know your strategies! The best I've ever done was $1000. Earlier today, DL informed me my flight tomorrow morning to PHL was cancelled. Great deal because I didn't want to get up for the 6:40 a.m. flight anyways; I got because it was a cheap L ticket. Now they upgraded me to F on the 10:40 a.m. flight. And, who knows because of the snow condition in Philly, they may even offer $1000 (just hoping)...not really in a hurry to get to PHL.

Echelon

Does an airline need to offer compensation when a flight is cancelled for weather issues?

JohnnyGlobal

No. But I've found that on UA (where I'm 1K) they will frequently upgrade me (if coach seats are at a premium and they are having to accomodate many other non-top tier flyers) to get me to where I need to go.

I've never received monetary compensation (cash, flight coupons, or otherwise) from weather delays, nor would I expect that.