Your airline
travel can be fun, economical, and made a lot easier with a little
advance planning. To help consumers learn more about their various
options, rights and responsibilities as an airline passenger, the
Better Business Bureau Consumer Education Foundation has prepared this
BBBTips on Airline Travel.
How to Get the Lowest Air Fare
- You
can search on one or more of the many low-fare Web sites that will
allow you to comparison shop or bid for airfares online. But you should
always be sure to check the airlines' own Web sites. Many airlines will
offer special packages that are simply not offered on any other Web
site, and even better discounts on tickets if you buy them directly
from their Web site. And, there are even some "low-fare" airlines that
will only provide their ticketing services exclusively from their own
Web site. On most airline Web sites, you can also register to receive
weekly e-mail notification of newly announced special discounts on
flights or travel packages.
- Check with several travel agents; not all agents will have access to the same prices.
- Get
your tickets early, since there may be a limited number of lower priced
seats. Many airlines require advance booking of at least two to four
weeks, in order to get the largest discounts. Be sure to check for any
limitations or restrictions that may apply on an advanced booking
should you need to change your plans.
- Consider checking
with the airline to see whether you can lower your airfare by flying on
particular days of the week. The cost differences may be very
significant.
- Determine exactly what the price covers,
particularly when purchasing a travel package. For example, does the
package include taxes, surcharges, airfare, hotel, or mileage charges
for a rental car? Notice whether the ticket you are buying has
particular restrictions that affect its use and the cost, if booking
changes are necessary. For example, is it non-refundable?
- Be
wary of extremely low prices that seem too good to be true and remember
that an advertised price may not always be available or may have
numerous restrictions and limitations that offset the discount.
Ticket Consolidators
Ticket consolidators buy a large number of tickets from airlines at a
reduced rate, which gives them the opportunity to offer these tickets
at a discounted price to consumers. Airline ticket consolidators can be
a source for discounted tickets, at times offering savings over tickets
directly purchased from the airlines. However, as with most bargains,
there are trade offs and risks involved with the discounted price. Many
ads placed by ticket consolidators do not state important information,
such as the limited time period for the offer, limited availability of
seats, restrictions on changing the flight, and cancellation penalties.
In addition, most of the fares that consolidators advertise are not for
familiar airlines and may not be available for the dates or even the
week you wish to travel.
Ticket consolidators generally do not give the same amount of
assistance as travel agents in making your travel arrangements. Ticket
consolidators do not help you plan your trip, do not know the
connecting time between flights and do not tell you the visa
requirements of the country you are visiting. You need to call the
airline for this information. In addition, you should contact the
airline directly to check the status of your reservation before paying
the consolidator for your ticket because the reservation may not
represent a confirmed seat on the flight. Also, be aware that many
consolidators do not accept credit cards or will add a surcharge for
using a credit card.
Travel Agents
Travel agents promote and sell transportation and related services
including travel packages. They can be of assistance in planning your
trip and often have knowledge of the area you wish to visit. However,
the price you pay for your flight may be higher than what you would pay
from a consolidator.
Online Travel Services
Online travel service has recently become a billion dollar industry.
Now consumers can purchase airline tickets by contacting airlines and
travel agents via the Internet or by making bids for airline tickets on
certain Web sites. Be aware that many low priced airline fares
advertised on the Internet are based on your purchase of non-refundable
tickets or tickets with high cancellation or rescheduling fees. As with
all online purchases, no matter how professional looking the Web site,
check the company's reliability with the Better Business Bureau before
doing business with it, and be sure to use a secure browser if you are
providing credit card or other personal information online.
When making online purchases, check the Web site's user agreement,
security statement, and privacy policy to find out how the company uses
and protects the security of your credit card and other personal
information. The site's policy statements should tell you clearly about
whether your information is stored in the company's database, provide
details about whether the information is ever shared with third parties
or used for other purposes, explain how the information is kept secure,
and specify "opt out" policies and instructions. If you do not want the
company to retain or share financial data or other information about
you, you will need to follow the site's procedures to "opt out." It is
suggested that consumers conduct online transactions with Web sites
that do provide such options about information use and that clearly
explain their privacy and security policies.
Unexpected Delays
Airlines do not guarantee their schedule. Bad weather, air traffic
delays and mechanical difficulties are beyond an airline's control.
Nevertheless the airlines do attempt to help stranded passengers when
schedules are not met. If a flight is canceled, an airline will attempt
to place passengers on its next available flight. The airline may also
attempt to place the passenger on another airline when necessary.
Overbooking and "Bumping"
Most airlines overbook their flights to compensate for an estimated
amount of last minute cancellations and "no-shows." If more people show
up for the flight than the number of available seats on the plane, some
passengers, even those with confirmed reservations, will be left
behind. In order to encourage passengers to wait for the next available
flight, the airline will often offer travel credit for use at a later
date, an upgrade to first class on a later flight, and/or food and
lodging while you wait for the next flight. If you do have flexibility
with your travel plans you can find these offers to be valuable. If the
airline does not have any volunteers, the airline resorts to
involuntary "bumping." The U.S. Department of Transportation requires
that the airline give each bumped passenger a written statement
describing the airline's obligations and the passenger's rights in the
case of an oversold flight, in accordance with the U. S. Department of
Transportation.
Lost or Damaged Luggage
Many times passengers arrive on time, but their luggage does not. In
most cases, the luggage catches up with the passenger, often within a
few hours. However, if a traveler's bags are lost or damaged on a
domestic flight, the airline will compensate the passenger up to a
maximum of $2,500 for documented claims. On international flights, they
will pay approximately $9 per pound. When your luggage and its contents
are worth more than the liability limit, you should consider purchasing
"excess valuation," coverage if available, from the airline when you
check in. Excess valuation is not insurance, but it will increase the
carrier's potential liability if your luggage is lost or damaged. Most
airlines exclude from coverage jewelry, antiques, computer equipment,
and similar items of excess value or rarity. Keep in mind that when an
item is lost or damaged, the airline considers the depreciated value of
the item and not its replacement cost. Also, if luggage arrives
damaged, the airline may opt for repair instead of replacement.
E-Tickets
Electronic airline tickets, known as e-tickets, are increasingly
offered by many airlines as an alternative to traditional paper
tickets. Airlines prefer e-tickets because it saves them money by
eliminating the handling costs associated with paper tickets. Consumers
like e-tickets mainly because they do not have to worry about losing or
forgetting their tickets or wonder if their tickets will arrive on time
through the mail.
With an e-ticket, instead of receiving a paper ticket in the mail, you
get a reservation confirmation number (also called a record locator
number) for your reservation. Even with e-tickets, there may be some
paper involved; many airlines and travel agents send out a paper
itinerary to confirm your reservation, and if you buy your ticket on
the Internet you usually get an e-mail confirmation message that you
can print out for your records.
At the airport, you just give your name and/or your confirmation
number, an appropriate photo ID and the credit card with which you
purchased the ticket to get your boarding pass. If you have no luggage
to check, you can do this directly at the departure gate. With some
airlines and airports, all you may need to do is swipe your credit card
and respond to a series of prompts at an electronic kiosk (for example,
whether you packed your luggage personally) to get your boarding pass.
Even when using e-tickets, it is highly recommended to call the airline
directly in advance to confirm your seat, and check in at the gate well
in advance of departure time in order to protect yourself against
"bumping."
Lost Tickets
If you do opt for a paper ticket, losing it does not necessarily mean
that you have lost the money you spent for the ticket. Many airlines
will require that you purchase another ticket, and if they see that the
lost ticket is not utilized within a specified amount of time, they
will then send you a refund.
A Traveler's Checklist
When examining travel advertisements and brochures, pay particular attention to the following:
-
Small print and asterisks: Make sure to consider the requirements
listed when considering the value of the offer. For instance, a firm
may advertise an extremely low hotel rate but require an extended stay
to achieve that rate. The offer may not include extra charges such as
port fees or other service charges, while other ads include these fees.
- Availability: Make sure the offer is available for the time you are considering.
- Features:
If the advertisement describes nearby attractions, this does not
necessarily mean that these attractions will be included in the travel
program for the advertised price. Carefully check what each package
includes.
- Method of Payment: Pay with a credit card whenever possible.
Need Consumer help?
The more research you put into planning your trip, the more likely it
is that the trip will meet your expectations. But sometimes problems
occur even with the best thought out trip. When this happens, it is
important to get hold of the organizations that can help. They include:
-
The travel agent who booked the trip for you. If your problem is
specifically with the airline, then a complaint directed to customer
relation's personnel of the airline itself would usually resolve the
difficulties.
- The Better Business Bureau in your community can be located through the BBB systems main Web site located at www.bbb.org.
- If
you used a credit card to pay for the service, your credit card issuer
may be able to assist you in resolving your complaint. Credit card
companies will try to help even if you have already paid the bill for
the services.
- The American Society of Travel Agents
(ASTA). This organization will mediate complaints against member travel
companies. To see if an organization is a member, contact:
American Society of Travel Agents
1101 King Street, Suite 200
Alexandria, VA 22314.
You can also contact ASTA by telephone at 703-739-2782 or by accessing its Web site at www.astanet.com.
- The
Aviation Consumer Protection Division (ACPD) of the US Department of
Transportation operates a complaint handling system for consumers who
experience air travel service problems. Complaints filed with the ACPD
are reviewed and acknowledged and, when appropriate, forwarded to an
airline official for further consideration. Written complaints can be
sent to the:
Aviation Consumer Protection Division
U.S. Department of Transportation
400 7th Street, SW
Room 4107, C-75
Washington, DC 20590.
You can also contact the ACPD 24 hours a day by telephone at 202-366-2220, or by e-mail at airconsumer@ost.dot.gov.
