By now, most people have probably read about United Airline’s recent incident with denying boarding to a passenger and removing him by force.
The passenger is supposedly a doctor who needs to get home on Monday, though his profession doesn’t really matter to me. The story is simple from the customer’s perspective. He needs to get somewhere, and he didn’t want to give up the seat he paid for.
There are two sides of every story.
United has their side too, and much of it is in the fine prints. United has every right to deny boarding to passengers as they so desired. At least that much is clear.
I certainly can see both sides of the coin, though I think United mishandled and manhandled the situation, and propelled a minor operational issue into the national headlines. There are some particulars of this incident:
1. The passenger boarded already. Does it make a difference?
United’s mistake #1: United has the right to deny boarding before boarding and even after a passenger has boarded. However, they must know that it is easier to get people to give up their seats prior to boarding than after everyone has settled in. Why couldn’t they figure out how many seats they still need prior to boarding?
2. They couldn’t get enough volunteers.
United’s mistake #2: If they couldn’t get enough volunteers, increase the compensation payout.
Believe me, some people will eventually take up well-compensated offers for the inconvenience. Otherwise, you should expect some resistance as people paid for their seats and deservedly expect a seat on the flight.
3. How security forcibly dragged the passenger off the plane.
I don’t want to link to the video, but the passenger was a paying customer and not someone who has committed any wrong-doing. Even if he is to be involuntarily removed from the flight, they shouldn’t drag him off that way. Yes, United can enforce the rules of carriage, but it was horribly unfriendly to a paying customer who had every right to expect a seat on that flight.
My Take as a Customer
- If I book a hotel, I expect a hotel room when I arrive.
- If I book a flight, I expect a seat on that flight.
Yes, it is possible that circumstances could result in oversold seats or rooms. I get that unexpected things happen.
Still, as a customer, I expect that I would be compensated fairly for the inconvenience or be provided other acceptable solutions. I expect the company to be apologetic about the inconvenience. If the incident is clearly causing distress to the passenger, the staff should recognize the signs and look for ways to de-escalate the situation. This could be in the form of increasing compensation to get other volunteers or coming up with agreeable solutions with the passenger. Maybe guaranteed first flight back on Monday?
Instead, United decided to kick customer service out the window.
I think how this situation was handled is a major disgrace. United: I am incredibly disappointed in how you handled this matter and the way you treated your customer.
You should know better.
This is exactly, why I refuse to fly American airlines, since they allow their employees (and private security forces) to act like on power trips. This would never happen with a European Airline or on a European airport.
I also doubt that United handled this incident accoeding to the law. First the IDB rules regulate DINIED BOARDING, this was a refusal of transportation, which is something totally different and I doubt, the carrier contract allow United to refuse transportation of a boarded passenger due to their own miscalculations. I also doubt, the passenger has been given a WRITTEN explanation of the rules and the algorythms as required by DOT rules. So as I understand the US court decisions, this passenger has good chances sueing United as well as the security.
This might have been avoided approximately easy by offering cash compensation to volunteers instead of crappy vouchers (I think, vouchers are not according to the rules, either…) …
Regardless of the situation, it is WRONG to beat up a passenger to the point he has concussion. Check the video of his condition AFTER the dragging:
https://streamable.com/8n3iq
What’s the eligible compensation for INVOLUNTARY/denied boarding? 200%- up to XX% for the one-way fare paid? I would think that that amount would be higher than the travel certificates issued for voluntary customers. So they don’t get enough volunteers and the plans then selects people that have to get off…you will still be compensated well for the inconvenience.
There is some guidance according to the US Department of Transportation here (see ‘Involuntary Bumping’) : https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/fly-rights. How much a passenger gets compensated is largely dependent on “the price of their ticket and the length of the delay”. It seemed that $1350 may be the maximum compensation + original ticket.
Let’s put it this way: I once sat next to someone on an international flight who was on her way to her mother’s funeral. I have a sneaking suspicion that she would not volunteer to be bumped off a flight. People have their reasons why they need to be somewhere, and some inconveniences can’t be measured in terms of money. But, for passengers who are not in a hurry and who could use some extra money, they might be more likely to volunteer if the price is right. In this case, my understanding is that United offered up to $800 and then proceeded with IDB.
All that said, the underlying issue still exists. Instead of DE-escalating the situation when a passenger is clearly under duress, United handled it by calling security and “dragging” a paying passenger off a flight. That is just terrible.