It's an all too common occurrence. You arrive at your gate, only to hear the gate agent say that your flight is overbooked and look for volunteers willing to "take the bump."
For most of us, these announcements are annoying. But for those among us with flexible travel plans, overbooked flights can be a great opportunity to earn some flight credits to help offset the cost of your next trip. But many travelers don't realize that they can negotiate overbooked flight compensation.
Here is a guide to maximizing your compensation if you decide to take a bump.
Passenger compensation rights for an overbooked flight
Those that take a bump on an overbooked flight are entitled, under United States law, up to 400% of their one-way fare, up to $1,300. Here's the catch, though. This policy provides guidance on cash compensation, which most airlines won't offer in the case of oversells.
Rather, airlines tend to offer flight vouchers to be used on future travel. And since vouchers are more advantageous to airlines, since they won't actually need to part with any cash, oftentimes, it is possible to negotiate for compensation that exceeds $1,300 in value.
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How to negotiate if you take a bump
Typically, when a flight is overbooked, a gate agent will make an announcement in the gate area asking for volunteers willing to take another flight, either later that day or the next day. During this announcement, they will often mention the compensation you'll be offered, typically between $250 and $1,000 per seat.
If you've decided to take a bump, you should proceed to the gate agent's podium and make your intentions clear.
Here, you'll have an opportunity to negotiate your flight credit amount, by making a counter offer, which may or may not be accepted. If the current offer is $500, for example, you may say something like "I understand that you're offering $500 to volunteers, but I'd be willing to give up my seat for 'x'. If there are other volunteers willing to meet the gate agent's original offer, this won't work, of course, but travelers generally aren't enthusiastic to change their plans at the last minute.
But when there are no other volunteers, volunteering passengers have leverage, particularly in cases when airlines need to reposition other pilots or flight crew for the next day.
Here are five other negotiating tips to maximize your compensation when you're willing to pass up your seat on an overbooked flight:
- Ask about frequent flyer miles
- Ask for additional meal vouchers
1. Ask for frequent flyer miles
Sometimes, airlines will set limits on the value of flight credits offered to passengers in overbookings. That doesn't mean that more compensation is not available, though. Rather, it provides you the opportunity to make other creative requests. One such approch is asking for frequent flyer miles.
Not only does asking for frequent flyer miles provide you additional compensation for your seat, but it is still cheaper for airlines than offering cash to passengers.