The most hated word among flyers: overbooking. What it is, what protections you have, and how you can gain from it
'Overbooking' is one of those words no one wants to hear when flying. It happens when the airline sells more [...]
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'Overbooking' Is one of those words no one wants to hear when flying. It happens When the airline sells more seats than it has on board an aircraft, or in one of the aircraft's cabins.
It is about, in the vast majority of cases, Of a policy deliberately adopted by airlines. That is, of an intentional thing, To hedge against cancellations or no-shows, thereby profiting both on the first and second case penalties (except for those very few fares that allow the trip to be waived at no additional cost), and on the extra tickets sold. And it is completely legal.
In the case of some carriers, such as the American Delta, Is even made explicit in the travel contract that passengers can (should) read when making a reservation.
The only ways to avoid ending up among the 'passengers too many' are Check in immediately after booking, if this is possible (usually with low-cost airlines, while premium airlines allow it only 48 or 24 hours before the flight departs) or Take advantage of one of the privileges that certain frequent flyer loyalty card statuses provide (a company does not include 'Gold', 'Platinum', 'Executive' or whatever among its overbooked passengers).
In all other cases, the European Union has provided specific protections, For those who are left stranded: first, monetary compensation of 250 euros for air routes less than or equal to 1,500 kilometers, 400 euros for intra-Community routes greater than 1,500 euros and all other routes between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometers, 600 euros for all other routes.
In addition to this, the 'stranded' can choose between ticket refund and an alternative flight, as soon as possible, to their final destination or an alternative flight at a later date of their liking.
Monetary compensation may be reduced by 50% (and, therefore, at 125, 200 and 300 euros) if the passenger has boarded an alternative flight that will enable him or her to reach the final destination with an arrival time that does not exceed, respectively, by 2 hours that initially planned on a route of less than or equal to 1,500 kilometers, by 3 hours that on an intra-community route of more than 1,500 kilometers or extra-community routes between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometers, and by 4 hours that initially planned on all other routes.
Finally, the airline is required to provide assistance, that is, to Provide the passenger with meals and drinks free of charge in relation to the duration of the wait; in case it becomes necessary One or more overnight stays, hotel accommodation and related transportation; two telephone calls or two messages via telex, fax or e-mail.
There are also cases where not all overbooking comes with a silver lining. For example, it is possible that To an overbooked passenger in economy class the company recognizes the change to the higher class in which there is availability of seats (where there is in Premium Economy or Business, very rarely in First) on that same flight or on a later flight. Or voluntarily offers very rich monetary compensation.
This is especially the case outside Europe, where there is no specific legal protection for travelers. Such as In the United States, where the practice of overbooking is widespread.
Over the past few months, we have seen a video circulating on YouTube in which one of the flight attendants aboard a Delta Airlines Boston-Rome flight, was announcing a sort of 'auction' among the passengers already seated on board, going so far as to offer $2,000 to anyone who got up and got off the plane, leaving the seat for others. More often, however, this kind of bargaining takes place at the gate a few minutes before boarding begins.
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