Mar 27, 2019, 4:29 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Economy only, not First (Business) -- even for GS
Premier priority travel services
Premier priority travel services
Access to most sold-out flights: Premier members may receive confirmed reservations - even when a flight is sold out - when purchasing certain full-fare tickets. Premier 1K® members may take advantage of this benefit when purchasing an unrestricted Y or B class ticket at least 90 minutes prior to departure. This benefit also applies to Premier Platinum members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 120 minutes prior to departure, and Premier Gold and Premier Silver members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 24 hours prior to departure.
Please contact the Premier Priority Desk or call the United Customer Contact Center at 1-800-UNITED-1 (1-800-864-8331) to reserve and purchase your flight.
Please contact the Premier Priority Desk or call the United Customer Contact Center at 1-800-UNITED-1 (1-800-864-8331) to reserve and purchase your flight.
"Access to most sold-out flights" (Economy only)
Sep 23, 2017, 12:36 pm
#91
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 4,216
If it's oversold by something like 8 or more, they cannot force another.
Sep 23, 2017, 2:08 pm
#92
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,404
There's a waitlist of unconfirmed pax on full Y for UA747 that's something like 15 long according to last reports.
In general, yes 1Ks can force-overbook a flight but not that one
In general, yes 1Ks can force-overbook a flight but not that one
Sep 23, 2017, 2:52 pm
#93
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: DEN
Programs: UA MM Plat; AA MM Gold; HHonors Diamond
Posts: 15,866
Sep 23, 2017, 6:02 pm
#94
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,014
1) First is deliberately selling more tickets than seats, and
2) Waitlisting, which would be passengers beyond the those already potentially overbooked
1K status helps at times with the first, but apparently doesn't buy anything more than regular status with the second?
So I'm guessing the benefit for 1K is to have UA stretch their normal overbooking limit if a 1K asks to be on the flight. Eventually UA says (for a particular flight) no more, not even 1ks?
Last edited by IAH-OIL-TRASH; Sep 23, 2017 at 6:08 pm
Jul 16, 2018, 1:54 am
#95
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Ventura
Programs: Gov't Travel Aficionado, UA Plat
Posts: 288
So I'm trying to book the Palau to Guam flight on Monday August 13th. They run this flight once daily except Sun. From Friday 10 Aug to Wednesday 15 Aug there is no availability online (except for a J on Friday, too soon for me). I've confirmed a few of these flights with a United phone agent, Monday 107/106, Tuesday 106/106, Wednesday 108/106. The first agent I spoke to said that she had one seat on the Monday flight and two on the Wednesday flight (despite nothing showing online). I'm traveling with a companion so I needed two seats and wanted to work out a plan with them before booking. I've called back four more times the following day and no one can seem to get me a confirmed seat, despite me describing the "sold out flight availability situation". One told me that they didn't have access to anything more that what I could see online. One went to their supervisor and confirmed that they couldn't book me on any of those flights (Mon-Wed).
Is this a legitimate they can't book me or are these agents just not trained on how to do it and I need to keep calling until I get the results I desire? Should I be talking to the premier desk or milageplus or some department other than reservations?
Funny thing is, the Thursday flight is only half full, after almost a week of booked beyond capacity.
Is this a legitimate they can't book me or are these agents just not trained on how to do it and I need to keep calling until I get the results I desire? Should I be talking to the premier desk or milageplus or some department other than reservations?
Funny thing is, the Thursday flight is only half full, after almost a week of booked beyond capacity.
Jul 16, 2018, 7:37 am
#96
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Ventura
Programs: Gov't Travel Aficionado, UA Plat
Posts: 288
Solved!
Definitely a HUCA situation. Finally got to an agent who had been there 20 years, hadn't dealt with this situation before but was certainly interested in finding out how instead of just telling me no. After 10 minutes of research she told me that it was a core index "Buy Y"(as it has been referred to previously in this thread), she called the "lead agent" who was able to book that Monday flight (not ticket, I still have to pay later, but I have a reservation which expires midnight tomorrow). On top of that, she was able to do the same for my traveling companion whom I only has his name. Additionally she said she would bring it up in her next staff/employee meeting to try and get others familiar with/aware of the procedure. Overall a shining example of how amazing the UA phone agents can be. I don't say this often, but she really makes me wish I had been offered to take the phone survey.
Definitely a HUCA situation. Finally got to an agent who had been there 20 years, hadn't dealt with this situation before but was certainly interested in finding out how instead of just telling me no. After 10 minutes of research she told me that it was a core index "Buy Y"(as it has been referred to previously in this thread), she called the "lead agent" who was able to book that Monday flight (not ticket, I still have to pay later, but I have a reservation which expires midnight tomorrow). On top of that, she was able to do the same for my traveling companion whom I only has his name. Additionally she said she would bring it up in her next staff/employee meeting to try and get others familiar with/aware of the procedure. Overall a shining example of how amazing the UA phone agents can be. I don't say this often, but she really makes me wish I had been offered to take the phone survey.
Mar 27, 2019, 2:54 pm
#97
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 575
GS Y availability guarantee?
I want to buy a Y ticket for a flight on Sunday but it's sold out. Isn't there some sort of availability guarantee? I can't seem to find it on their website or search on united or google.
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Mar 27, 2019 at 4:24 pm Reason: moved to exisiting thread
Mar 27, 2019, 3:18 pm
#98
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist, Virtuoso Travel Agent, Commercial Pilot
Posts: 2,117
Yes, you have guaranteed availability in economy for the price of a full-fare economy ticket (B or Y booking class). You will have to call in order to make the booking. United CAN set certain flights to disallow even GS over-sales, but it's pretty rare (I've only run into it once).
(It's a published benefit for GS and 1K, so it's not really an "exception".)
(It's a published benefit for GS and 1K, so it's not really an "exception".)
Mar 27, 2019, 4:26 pm
#99
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,821
Access to most sold-out flights: Premier members may receive confirmed reservations - even when a flight is sold out - when purchasing certain full-fare tickets. Premier 1K® members may take advantage of this benefit when purchasing an unrestricted Y or B class ticket at least 90 minutes prior to departure. This benefit also applies to Premier Platinum members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 120 minutes prior to departure, and Premier Gold and Premier Silver members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 24 hours prior to departure.
Mar 28, 2019, 8:14 am
#100
Join Date: Apr 2016
Programs: UA 1K 1MM, AA Gold, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 695
Yes, you have guaranteed availability in economy for the price of a full-fare economy ticket (B or Y booking class). You will have to call in order to make the booking. United CAN set certain flights to disallow even GS over-sales, but it's pretty rare (I've only run into it once).
(It's a published benefit for GS and 1K, so it's not really an "exception".)
(It's a published benefit for GS and 1K, so it's not really an "exception".)
Mar 28, 2019, 8:46 am
#101
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Ventura
Programs: Gov't Travel Aficionado, UA Plat
Posts: 288
I've had to use this perk about three times in the past year. Most recently for a flight I took last week and booked a week or so before that. Some agents are better at it than others but I've had good luck by directly telling the agent that I want to "execute a core index buy Y for X flight on X date," rather than "I heard somewhere that I could buy a ticket for a sold out flight and I want to do that."
Mar 28, 2019, 9:35 am
#102
Join Date: May 2006
Location: New York, London, Sydney
Programs: United GS/2MM, DL*P, VS*G, AA*EXP, Avis CHM, Hertz Platinum, Sixt*D, HH*D, HGP*P, Starwood*P
Posts: 9,847
Feb 12, 2022, 2:43 pm
#104
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,821
Assuming it is not already oversold and is UA operated, UA will oversell Y for some elites
Access to most sold-out flights: Premier members may receive confirmed reservations - even when a flight is sold out - when purchasing certain full-fare tickets. Premier 1K® members may take advantage of this benefit when purchasing an unrestricted Y or B class ticket at least 90 minutes prior to departure. This benefit also applies to Premier Platinum members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 120 minutes prior to departure, and Premier Gold and Premier Silver members when purchasing an unrestricted Y class ticket at least 24 hours prior to departure.
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Feb 13, 2022 at 10:30 am Reason: clean up after move