Number of passengers being bumped from overbooked flights feared to go up

The chances of air passengers in the United States being bumped from an overbooked flight are likely to increase in the autumn of 2008 as more and more airlines are trimming down services in their efforts to get rid of unprofitable flights and inefficient planes.

In other words, there will be lesser number of empty seats than there are at present.

However, airlines are required to give larger compensation – twice the amount of money they used to pay out – to passengers bumped from a flight. For those passengers who are good at bargaining, the airlines will have to shell out even bigger amounts.

According to figures released by the United States the Department of Transportation, about 343,000 passengers out of 282 million passengers were denied seats on planes in the first 6 months of 2008. And, most of those people volunteered to relinquish their seats in return for some kind of compensation, like a voucher for a free flight.

However, the United States the Department of Transportation’s statistics also reveal that nearly 1.16 of every 10,000 passengers “had their seats taken away outright because of overbooking.”

Says a report in The New York Times: “Back when most tickets were refundable or easy to change, and the airlines offered multiple daily flights to many cities, carriers used to routinely overbook about 15% of their seats. Passengers who missed their plane could simply catch a later flight.”

Things have changed since: Rules are tighter now, with the result that passengers with non-refundable tickets can only expect a credit for an unused ticket, often minus a heavy fee, if they change their flight. This means that passengers now have more incentive not to miss the flight.

The survey by the US Department of Transportation, however, shows that airlines still do overbook. These airlines, remarks the report in the New York Times, apparently consider bumping as a necessary part of doing business, especially in view of excessive prices of aviation turbine fuel. “Overbooking, after all, helps ensure flights are as full as possible, a priority for the financially troubled carriers,” the report says.

This strategy of airlines, can also rebound on the airlines themselves, according to Tim Winship, an editor with SmarterTravel.com, a website that offers travel advice. “The practice,” Winship explains, “is bad for them, it’s bad for morale, and you end up with a potential riot on your hands among people who have to be compensated.”

Despite the higher compensation that airlines pay passengers for bumping, many passengers find the practice disagreeable.

Bumping had become a serious problem for Delta Air Lines in the summer of 2007, when 3.3 passengers out of every 10,000 passengers had to be bumped – which was more than double the airline industry average.

Delta Air Lines, based and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States, has since started using new technology to track differences, in a better manner, in no-show patterns based on time, day and season. The new method has helped the carrier cut its involuntary bumping in half, according to the company.

Continental Airlines, based in Houston, Texas, the United States, has said it is introducing a new feature on its website and at airport kiosks that allows passengers to check in automatically within 24 hours of their return flight. The move is intended to spare passengers the trouble of going online to check in the day before their return flight.

In the United States, passengers are now entitled to get up to $400 if they are involuntarily bumped and re-booked on another flight within 2 hours after their original domestic flight time and within 4 hours for international flight. Passengers are eligible for up to $800 in cash if they are not re-routed by then. The final amount depends on the length of the flight and the price paid for the ticket.

In Europe, the rules are stricter than those in the US. The compensation for bumping in Europe ranges from 125 euros (about $185) to 600 euros (about $888) depending on the length of the flight and the amount of time the passenger will be delayed.

The European rules stipulate that compensation must be paid immediately in cash, or with a voucher if the passenger accepts it. Besides, the airline must offer a choice of a refund, a return flight to the passenger’s departure city or an alternative flight. Volunteers also get compensation, which they negotiate with the airline concerned.