Passengers find air travel getting bumpier than ever
Latest airline trend: more restrictive booking policies and steeper fines for no-shows.
Most airlines currently require travelers to buy their tickets within 24 hours of booking them, which generally forces travelers to stick to their plans or risk penalties.
“A seat is a perishable item,” executive Leon Kinloch of Continental Airlines told The New York Times. “It’s like a fruit that spoils. The moment the door is closed, that item has perished.”
Airlines argue that they must overbook to make up for passengers who fail to show up in an effort to return to profitability after losing $60 billion in the last decade.
Airlines have software that gives them a definite idea of how many no-shows they expect based on past flight patterns.
Not all airlines practice the art of overbooking, however.
JetBlue Airways offers only one class of service and most of its tickets are not refundable, meaning passengers are more likely to show up. As a result, last year, it had only one oversold seat for 5.1 million passengers.
Who gets bumped?
Business-class travelers and frequent fliers holding elite status are much less likely to get the shove.
The first to go: leisure travelers holding discounted fares.
Online check-in, however, reduces passengers’ chances of being bumped. Most airlines offer that option up to 24 hours before departure and strongly suggest that passengers use it.
Passengers who are involuntarily bumped and rebooked on another flight within two hours after their original domestic flight time (or within four hours for international flights) are entitled to $400 in cash. That is double the compensation offered two years ago, according to Department of Transportation regulations. They are eligible for up to $800 if they are not rerouted by then.
By David Wilkening
David
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