Advertisement
Canada markets closed
  • S&P/TSX

    22,167.03
    +59.95 (+0.27%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,254.35
    +5.86 (+0.11%)
     
  • DOW

    39,807.37
    +47.29 (+0.12%)
     
  • CAD/USD

    0.7389
    +0.0003 (+0.04%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    83.11
    -0.06 (-0.07%)
     
  • Bitcoin CAD

    93,835.41
    -2,661.91 (-2.76%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,254.80
    +16.40 (+0.73%)
     
  • RUSSELL 2000

    2,124.55
    +10.20 (+0.48%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.2060
    +0.0100 (+0.24%)
     
  • NASDAQ

    16,379.46
    -20.06 (-0.12%)
     
  • VOLATILITY

    13.01
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,369.44
    +201.37 (+0.50%)
     
  • CAD/EUR

    0.6844
    +0.0001 (+0.01%)
     

Airline overbooking: How the cost of your ticket can influence whether you'll be bumped

People walk at the United Airlines terminal at the Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, July 8, 2015. (Reuters)
People walk at the United Airlines terminal at the Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, July 8, 2015. (Reuters)

The recent United Airlines incident-turned-public-relations-nightmare where a passenger was yanked from their seat after refusing to deplane is yet another reality check in a growing disconnect between airlines and their passengers.

“Every airline has some sort of protocol when it comes to having to bump passengers… (a) priority list,” explains Fred Lazar, an aviation analyst, and professor at the Schulich School of Business. “The bottom of the list is going to be people that aren’t members of a loyalty program that have bought the cheapest discount seat and haven’t paid for a seat assignment in advance.”

But the truth is, in today’s unbundled airline industry where passengers are looking for the cheapest fares and then pay extra for things like seat selection, extra leg room or baggage as needed, the hidden cost is they’re not necessarily guaranteed a spot on the plane they paid for.

ADVERTISEMENT

“You bought a spot on the list, however, there’s no assurance you’ll necessarily be boarded on the flight for which you bought the seat either if there’s an overbooking situation (or) operational issues, like they have to downgrade the plane and all of the sudden they’re 20 or 30 seats short of what they booked for the original plane,” he says.

Related:
United: Airline won’t use police to remove passengers
The man who was dragged off the United flight just took the first step toward filing a lawsuit

In the case of United Airlines, the company had to bump passengers to make space for four crew to go to Louisville and operate a flight out of there. When no one volunteered to give up their seat for $800, the airline selected four random passengers. While three deplaned, the fourth of the selected passengers, Dr. David Dao, refused to leave his seat and airport security was brought aboard to forcibly removed him. In the process, Dao was injured and a video of him being dragged, bloodied, through the aisle while other passengers screamed went viral.

“United, like all the major airlines, should’ve known they needed those four seats long before they boarded,” says Lazar. “Airlines have not really invested heavily in trying to anticipate problems and plan for them in advance and, in some cases, in real time.”

In another, albeit less publicized incident, a Whitehorse-area woman was put on standby for a flight that she’d paid regular price for a ticket months earlier. When she inquired, it was explained that since she’d booked her ticket in Air Canada’s Tango class and opted not to pay for a seat selection, a seat was to be assigned at check-in “based on availability.” She ultimately made it onto the flight.

But overbooking is a relatively common practice in the airline industry, says Lazar.

“We’re still living in the past where we believe, oh, I bought a ticket on a plane and I should get exactly the same service and treatment with everyone else, regardless of what anyone else paid for it,” he says. “That stopped a long time ago… you bought a different fare category so you’re entitled to different services. It’s still taking some time for some passengers to accept that.”

This spring, the Federal government is releasing legislation to address airline bumping but in the meantime, WestJet, Air Transat and Air Canada – all members of the National Airlines Council of Canada – abide by Flight Rights Canada, the Government of Canada’s air travel consumer protection initiative. The voluntary commitment states that if a flight is overbooked, the airline will “find the passenger a seat on another flight operated by that airline; buy the passenger a seat on another carrier with whom it has a mutual interline traffic agreement; or refund the unused portion of the passenger’s ticket.”

A common problem

Where the airlines fall short, says Lazar, is identifying how often overbooking occurs.

“When airline employees travel for personal reasons, they always travel standby but they have access to the airline’s inventories so they know which flights they’re likely to get on and which flights they’re not likely to get on – that information is there,” says the aviation analyst.

But what airlines should be doing is opening those metrics up to passengers, especially the ones looking for a deal and paying for the cheap no-frill service.

“Inform those passengers they’re going to be at the bottom of the list – for the flight you book, the probability of overbooking is X per cent,” says Lazar. “Forewarn them in advance and they’ll be able to judge, to say ‘oh, gee, that’s kind of high, is there another flight to my destination with the probability of overbooking is much less. If so, I’ll book that flight.’ “