Airline Re-Booking Practices Coming Under Fire From Passengers

A Washington Post article highlighted airlines’ issues with rebooking bumped passengers. As examples, a Toronto man found his pet cats flew off to California without him on Air Canada, and Qantas re-booked a 13-month-old girl on one flight and her parents on another.

A little-known clause of the standard ticket contract known as “conditions of carriage” spells out an airline’s responsibilities in the case of delayed or canceled flights, and apparently, the terms favor the carrier over the carry-ee in many cases. For one thing, the paper writes, rules about seating minors under 13 with their parents are considered “guidance,” and rarely generate a fine if the airlines fail to toe the line.

Where it used to be that a group of travelers would all wait for the next flight if one or two members were bumped, that practice is now considered too risky. So, the left-behinds are more likely to fend for themselves and catch up later.

Airline analyst Bryan del Monte told the Post, “The only thing people can do is buy travel insurance. When the airline screws you over, it’s going to be travel insurance that pays for that extra hotel stay and the extra expenses”—unless the insurance company somehow denies the claim.