Can’t pay airline fees? Go to jail
If you can’t pay airline fees, there can be drastic penalties. You might even have to stay overnight. Or for eight nights, as one poor traveler did in a widely publicized incident.
The victim: Teri Weissinger.
She says she only wanted a “fresh start” when spending her last dollars on an airline ticket to take her from San Francisco to Idaho, where she was planning to start a new life, news accounts say.
“Unfortunately, Weissinger didn't account for the added expense of baggage fees and when she couldn't pay the $60 US Airways required to transport her two checked bags, it set off a chain of events that led to her being trapped in the airport for eight days,” says Smarter Travel.
ABC reports that she spent the time wandering the airport. She admits to being depressed at being trapped, ala the movie “The Terminal,” a 2004 film starring Tom Hanks, where an immigrant finds himself stranded at JFK airport
She was finally sprung from transit-hub purgatory by the "Airport Church of Christ," whose parishioners paid her baggage and rebooking fees and allowed her to continue on her way to Idaho.
“I was relieved because I hadn’t had a shower in eight days,” she told MailOnline. “It was exhausting. I didn’t have much money and I was buying packets of trail mix. It was like going on a camping trip without any camping equipment.”
A US Airways spokesman said:
“We have apologized to Ms Weissinger for her experience, but unfortunately are unable to offer a refund. When you purchase a non-refundable ticket, you accept the terms and conditions. If a passenger cannot travel with their bags, they need to make other arrangements.”
There are many objections to the ever-escalating fees so Bankrate came up with some of “most outrageous.” Here’s a half dozen and how to avoid them.
- Booking by phone. To avoid, obviously, go online.
- Spirit Airlines is among those who charge fees to print boarding passes. Do it at home.
- Luggage fees are everywhere. The exceptions include most elite members of frequent traveler clubs. Join or leave the stuff at home.
- Seat selection fees. Costs can be upwards of $6. Take your chances.
- Priority boarding charges. Costs can be up to $39 each way. “If you don't pay this extra charge, you'll have to hope you can grab a seat with sufficient space after the airline loads everyone else,” says Bankrate.
- A pillow. US Airways charges $7 for a “Power-Nap Sack.” Figure out a way to take a nap without one.
By David Wilkening
David
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