Delta Offered Family $24,000 In Travel Vouchers, Then Reneged And Cancelled The Flight

A family of three was traveling Delta from Oakland to Salt Lake City on an overbooked flight. The gate agent offered them $8,000 apiece – $24,000 in total – to take another flight. They felt like they’d won the lottery. But then Delta reneged on the offer. The family didn’t get the vouchers, and they didn’t get to take the flight.

The flight was canceled because of a missing crew member. Since nobody was going to be accommodated, they didn't need the family's seats. Delta didn't have to pay denied boarding compensation even if the flight was canceled.

A Bay Area tourist was offered $24,000 worth of vouchers from Delta Airlines to give up his family’s seats on an overbooked flight. But he says the airline took back the offer made after an alleged staffing mishap.

“I understand that flights cancel and things happen,” said David Reeves, a Nashville native visiting San Francisco for the holidays. “But don’t dangle the carrot and pull it back.”

The family was on their way to Nashville. His family said he was ruining Christmas by taking the vouchers. He said that they could wait a day for $8,000 a seat.

They made it for Christmas despite not getting the voucher and not making it on Christmas Eve. The day after Christmas, Delta gave a flight. They picked up a flight at the Monterey airport. Delta paid for a night's hotel and rental car expenses.

Imagine being so close to $24,000 in travel vouchers that you don't get the flight or the money. Even though you get hosed by the airline, you don't get the future travel they offer.

Several airlines changed their policies about paying denied boarding compensation after the David Dao incident. A woman was given $4000 in travel credit by Delta for going to the Notre Dame game. She continued to make it.

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In the spring of this year, American Airlines began soliciting volunteers to be bumped off oversold flights, asking what the lowest amount each would take in travel vouchers in exchange for traveling on another flight. Keeping denied boarding compensation amounts secret is a step further.

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Airlines are going to new lengths to avoid involuntarily denying boarding to passengers, by selling more tickets than there are seats, and not having enough volunteers to take a later flight for compensation when more passengers than expected show up. Airlines are overbooking. People are paying.

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