economyplusfan

On today’s DEN-KOA 752 nonstop UA processed 4 upgrades into the first class cabin some time around T-20. Cabin became oversold and asked for volunteers at checkin. I had a paid ticket in first and declined. UA called me on the way to the airport and asked if I would take compensation to downgrade. They also called my travel companion who was also in first. We declined. Gate agent downgraded 2 award ticket pax back into coach prior to boarding (my travel companion being one). In speaking with people in first I learned that at least 2 of the upgrades that remained in first were 1K who had paid for a coach ticket (don’t know if they applied an upgrade instrument). The one guy said he was perfectly happy in coach, but accepted the upgrade and did not wish to be compensated to go back to coach. Is this usual practice for UA to bump award ticket pax out of first so that 1Ks can get upgraded?

escapefromphl

Definitely not, seems like they accepted the downgrade offer so was more of a voluntary downgrade.

economyplusfan

No. My travel companion did not volunteer and was moved back to coach involuntarily. The other pax was a 3.5 million mile flyer whose wife (also on an award ticket) is beside me crying because they are on their way to HA for a wedding anniversary and her husband is sitting by himself back in row 26. He was so mad at being downgraded that he threatened the GA and they had to call a supervisor to calm him down.

bocastephen

Totally unacceptable - please write this in and demand appropriate downgrade compensation along with additional compensation for the inappropriate downgrade.

prometa

Delete

escapefromphl

What is downgrade comp for a 3300 mile dowgrade? Hopefully asking award ticket holders to downgrade is not a new thing driven by some policy change, It certainly never used to be.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/35572173-post770.html

economyplusfan

When called by UA on our way to the airport, my travel companion was “offered” a refund of the 135k award miles she used to purchase the first class seat and then a withdrawal of 25k award miles for the resultant coach class seat that she would be downgraded to in a voluntary downgrade. She refused. Will be interesting to see what happens now that she was involuntarily downgraded. Still, UA upgrading 4 pax into an already full first class cabin is where the problem all started. In my mind, the upgrades should have been revoked. I spoke with the GA about this while he was in the process of downgrading my travel companion and he said he had to “go by the book,” which meant downgrading award ticket pax first. He said he could not revoke the waitlist upgrades.

escapefromphl

So no actual incentive or comp was offered? If so that’s kind of ridiculous.

economyplusfan

The gate agent made an announcement that first was oversold, and that he would offer compensation for voluntary downgrades. No-one came forward so we can’t know what that compensation would have been. But certainly UA’s first attempt at getting volunteers was feeble.

WineCountryUA

for "GG OVS DOWNGRADE" / "FRONT CBN OVERSALE" for 3,300 mile segment should be $750 and the award mileage premium for first class returned

Believe fare then status determines priority. A non-status pax on an award fare will be at the top of the downgrade list.

jsloan

Thankfully — no offense to your downgraded companion — UA does not agree.

Once you’re in the cabin, it shouldn’t matter how you got there.

Well, since there are no CPUs on that route, I think it’s fair to assume they used an upgrade instrument.

economyplusfan

Interesting. Downgraded pax were Silver on an award fare and then 1K (via million miler companion status, I believe) on an award fare. Those 1Ks who paid for coach and got upgraded on instruments were allowed to stay. What’s the tie breaker after status and fare? I have to believe there were other 1Ks in first on award fares based on my conversation with the FA, and so I wonder how they selected the specific 1K that they downgraded.

RobOnLI

This is obviously a complete UA screw up. The "computer" now runs all upgrades so at T-30 all the agent does is hit a button and the list is processed in the correct order and usually putting people in seats they don't want (I digress to another time for that point). So when the GA hit the button the computer thought there were four seats available in the cabin, not two. So how did that happen? Were two not checked in on time and suddenly showed up? Were two seats in-op?

UA had many ways to make this right. Seeking volunteers was the first try and UA did that. Downgrading the last two from the upgrade list was the next correct approach and they could have called those two up to the podium, explain the technical 'glitch', offered a small voucher and a return of their upgrade instrument and re-seated them in coach. That obviously didn't happen.

The next thing is GG OVS DOWNGRADE as WineCountryUA mentioned above. Downgrading by fare class and status means award tickets go first then coach fare class paid using upgrade instruments then J fare paid. Within all of those it would go non-member, silver, gold, plat, 1K, GS. I'm a bit surprised there was nobody lower than a silver on an award ticket in the cabin but I guess that helps prove how many elites are flying these days

Those who were downgraded are due comp and will have to call United to get it. $750 is a start but I'd be demanding the mileage back from what was paid to the normal one-way coach mileage. If I were the 1K who got separated from his wife and put in the back (E-) then I'd be asking for a lot more.

Sounds like OP and their traveling companion made it to Hawaii safely, maybe just not comfortably. Sorry for the frustration OP and let us know what comp your companion winds up getting.

-RM

economyplusfan

Thank you RM. As to how it happened, I got this text message from UA at T-20:

”We had to change the aircraft type or seating configuration for your November 10 flight to Kona (KOA). Because of the switch, your seat is no longer assigned, but we'll have a new seat for you before departure.”

My travel companion received no such message, and still had her seat in first. That is when I noticed via flight status that 3 upgrades had cleared, one into my seat. I called UA immediately upon getting this message and after 5 minutes of investigation they said they had no idea why I got that message but that seat assignments were blocked and she could do nothing about getting me a seat. Ticketing at check in also said the gate had complete control over seating and we just had to go down to the gate and take our chances. While we were at the gate waiting to get this all sorted out the GA cleared the 4th upgrade into the already oversold cabin (cleared the wife of a 1K who got upgraded and who were both first in line at the podium when the GA arrived), then downgraded the two award ticket pax. Only once those two were downgraded did I get a seat. There was in the end no new plane or seat configuration.

We are indeed here safely in HA, and it really is no big deal. It is just frustrating when at T-24 you both have seats together in first after spending what for me is a lot of miles, are looking forward to your trip, and shortly after that all of this happens.

For some added irony, the upgraded wife of the 1K got seated beside the wife of the 1K who got downgraded. They got into an argument over the upgraded woman stealing the other woman’s husband’s seat and the FA had to separate them. I gave up my seat and went to sit beside the disgruntled wife.

IAH-OIL-TRASH

Which one?