ErikStratton

Yes, thanks, I understand that. But since UA offered absolutely no options for flying out of the DR after they cancelled all their flights, I assumed that they would at least reimburse me with a ETC for the fare I paid on JB to fly home.

But you know what happens when you assume.........

WineCountryUA

So UA refunded (eventually) via ETC your UA return ticket and you want them to refund the B6 ticket also, so you get a free return trip?

AirbusFan2B

OP has been inconvenienced and had to fight for what UA owes him. With ‘comp’ being on two separate ETCs, is that actually being made whole - can you buy a new ticket with CC + 2XETC? It would be reasonable to expect UA to pay a premium for its ‘mistake’ beyond just making OP whole. All that angst and time should be compensated. For equivalency, maybe make OP whole + $250 as that’s what the airline charges for a customer wanting to change a ticket.

WineCountryUA

as well as 100's of thousands of others travels due to the impact the air travel disruption due to COVID and I don't see other carriers providing compensation. The reality of this situation has been a lot of disruption for a lot of people.

Could the communications been better, yes
Is the OP owed a refund of the UA flight, Yes
Compensation or free return trip for the disruption, no.

Last I heard there were still >10,000 Americans needing repatriation and similiar numbers for many other nationalities.

ErikStratton

All I expected UA to do was cover the difference between the more expensive one way return ticket I had to purchase on Jet Blue and the value of my cancelled United flight.

To me the most disconcerting aspect was the fact that UA cancelled ALL their flights out of EVERY airport in the Dominican Republic without offering ANY guidance or assistance as to how customers should proceed. No emails. No texts. No guidance on their website. Just a red “CANCELLED banner in your flight reservation.

Imstevek

I'm confused by United on this. And surprised re: the stranding. Anyways, the confusion comes where UA social media is touting supporting lifts of people out of Honduras? Why not honor the reservations existing?

QBK

I think this sort of gets to the heart of the matter. Under normal circumstances, I reasonably expect that when something goes wrong with a United reservation, I should indeed be made whole by United. That is, they should ensure that I do not lose out overall -- I should get as much value as I paid for. If they can't give me exactly what I expected (arrival on time, a working seat, wifi, etc), then they compensate me with miles or an ETC or whatever. And I feel this is morally right because United is doing fine overall, so if they screw me, they owe me.

But, to make a colossal understatement, these are not normal times. As a Supreme Court justice said, "The Constitution is not a suicide pact." And neither are social contracts. (Whether legal contracts are, is another question). It's true that the OP was inconvenienced. It's probably not a strong enough word for what the OP experienced! But it's also not a strong enough word for what United is experiencing right now, which I suspect constitutes near-existential terror. The pending government bailout will probably keep US airlines afloat through the summer, but United and the other airlines are literally struggling for their corporate lives right now.

If United was doing fine, I think they ought to make customers whole. But right now, United itself is very far from whole. I'm glad for the OP (and for United) that they ponied up the extra $87 to "refund" the cancelled flight. I'm still very disappointed in United that they failed to reach out and help with rebooking and repatriation -- that was shameful and I'll remember that failure for a long time. But IMO, we are all struggling just to survive at this point, and inconvenience and angst are our daily bread now.

When I look around, I see at least one thing happen every day that was literally unthinkable two months ago. By these standards, it would not be very surprising at all if one of the Big Three airlines just folded completely in 2020. If United folds like Pan Am once did, then our miles and ETCs and million-miler status are so much dust on the wind. So right now, I'm cheering for United to survive. Even if it means I suffer some inconvenience and angst.

(Obviously, this is all just IMO -- I'm not implying anybody else has to agree. Please feel however you feel, and share your perspective!)

mduell

A bunch of people organized for one flight vs some small number of remaining reservations on each day (possibly with non-cooperative governments, as seen some places)