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Midwest Airlines charges passengers fare difference on flights it canceled

August 8, 2008

Desperate airlines do desperate things.

For example, Midwest Airlines, which is downsizing itself out of existence, has apparently decided to bend one of the most basic rules of modern airline travel.

Normally, when a flight is canceled, an airline offers two choices: either a full refund or a flight of its choosing. Midwest’s contract of carriage (PDF) seems to suggest it would do the same.

So does its customer commitment, which states:

If due to lack of space on the aircraft or flight cancellation, the passenger is prevented from using the ticket, or a portion of the ticket, during the period of validity applicable to an excursion or special fare, the ticket will remain valid until space to the destination can be provided on the first alternative transportation.

In other words, Midwest will take care of you.

But don’t tell that to Monica Smith. Last March, she booked a ticket from Muskegon, Mich., to Denver for the end of September.

On July 21, Midwest announced they were ceasing service in Muskegon as of September 8. They e-mailed me with a phone number to call for requesting a refund or rescheduling.

When I contacted Midwest I asked to be rescheduled from the next nearest airport, which is only 40 miles away. They had available seats and were very accommodating until the reservations clerk went to finalize the change and informed me she could only make the switch if I paid an additional $106 per ticket for the fare difference.

In other words, Smith was willing to drive 40 miles out of her way to accommodate Midwest’s new schedule. But now the airline wanted more money? That’s just wrong. So Smith asked to speak with a supervisor.

I was told that upper management had made the decision to charge any passengers wishing to reschedule their flights. The supervisor told me she agreed with me 100% that it was unfair and urged me to write to the airline.

That’s what Smith did. Here’s the answer she received from the airline.

In the past, Midwest has accommodated passengers on discontinued flights without additional cost. Regrettably, the extent of the most recent schedule changes are significant enough that we can no longer afford to absorb the cost involved.

Smith isn’t buying it. After all, she bought the tickets in good faith for a trip that was planned months ago. “I find it absolutely outrageous they can get away with this and still advertise themselves as the ‘best care in the air’,” she told me.

I agree. But I think Smith and others affected by the Midwest pullback need to contact the Transportation Department to let it know that the airline isn’t following its own contract of carriage — certainly not the contract under which they purchased their original tickets.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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19 comments

  • http://feistync.wordpress.com feisty tourist

    that’s INSANE!

  • Shane

    I see the next phase of this. They switch the flight numbers the day before and tell everyone there flight was canceled and they now have to pay the much higher rate for day before purchases.

  • Aimee

    And where one airline goes, the rest aren’t far behind…….

  • http://www.brandlogic.com Emerson

    First Jet Blue pillows and now Midwest too. Who’s left? Virgin America?

  • Mike

    This might be one for small claim’s court.

  • Cindy

    I have to agree with Mike on this one!

  • Bonnie

    I disagree with everyone. Since they cxld service to the city, they should just refund her money and she can reschedule on another airline.Did she request a refund?

  • http://www.ffocus.org bruce king

    I agree. Small claims court. They are violating their own contract.

  • Carver Farrow

    Bonnie

    I respectfully disagree with your comment. Let me see if I understand your point. Ms. Smith has to honor the ticket. Unless its a non-refundable ticket, she has to be at the airport and the time and date of the ticket otherwise she either forfeits the ticket or has to pay a change fee, plus the difference in fare. Midwest on the other hand can unilaterally cancel the contract without consequence beyond refunding the money. That hardly seems right.

    Equally important, the reason why people purchase tickets in advance is to lock in a price. A refund hardly make Ms. Smith whole. Can you imagine if the cancellation occured one day before departure. Ms. Smith might be looking at purchasing a walk-up fare which would most likely be substantially higher than the original ticket.

    Again, Midwest needs to find someway to accomodate Ms. Smith. Their position in this matter is ludicrous.

  • jennifer

    Let’s see, Bonnie, Monica was advised that Midwest cancelled service to the city to which she contracted to travel and told her to call and request a refund OR reschedule. Monica called and instead of requesting a refund (which ends with Midwest receiving no money), she simply requested she be flown to another city Midwest still services. Midwest would still receive the fare Monica already paid. But no! Midwest demands she pay more in direct contradiction of its contract.

    Midwest is the mental midget here. Instead of making a simple accommodation, they’re going to be hit with demands for huge amounts of refunds. Does that really make sense to you?

  • Joe

    Wow.
    This is beyond comprehension. The airline is confused beyond belief. The person didn’t want to “reschedule” for their own gain, but was forced to reschedule then charged for it? I remember when I booked Song from Boston to Vegas (Now delta). Our return flight was cancelled but automatically rebooked (from direct LAS to Bos) to LAS to ATL and then BOS. It was in the same time frame (overnight flights) so it wasn’t a big deal.

    Goodbye Midwest if this is your solution to the problem you created.

  • jaxon

    So sad, when Midwest had such a good reputation. But I guess, when we hate all the airlines, they might as well jump on board.

  • William Hope

    Does the phrase “bait and switch” apply here? I mean, there are some non-parallel features to the scenario from a classic b&s, but it seems a close relative to the tactic. Is it really their ambition to be ranked with used-car salesmen?

  • Monica Smith

    For the latest update on Midwest excuses, here’s a quote from an e-mail sent to me from customer service. Apparently by rescheduling, I “opted for a change of destination”. No, I opted for a change of origin as they ceased service from my original point of origin. At any rate they claim this means they had to refund the money from the original ticket and apply it toward the new ticket at the current price! Travelers beware. According to an official at my local airport, this practice is previously unheard of and the other airlines are watching this very closely. If Midwest can get away with this and survive, others are sure to follow.

  • Kirby Holden

    I had two tickets to LAX purchased in March for a Dec flight on Midwest they called last week to inform me that flight had moved to a smaller plane and I no longer had seats. They showed a flight that would have worked going through Milwaukee but would not rebook and would only refund ticket. New tickets to LAX are now $700. Basically they sold the plane out with cheap tickets can no longer afford to fly it due to fuel cost so they cancel or go to a smaller plane. I have booked 11 flights past summer on Midwest. I am now back to SW again. They changed one of my flights but gave enough warning it does not cost as much. I am thinking any good attorney should take this on as a class action lawsuit. I know one other person who had 9 tickets to Floriday refunded at last minute.

  • Mike

    Actually it’s not true that they are not reaccommodating anyone.

    We had 4 sets of tickets for travel on Midwest — two purchased directly from Midwest Airlines & two through Travelocity. Midwest Airlines rebooked the two Travelocity itins on Northwest.

    Midwest Airlines is screwing the little people who dealt directly with Midwest Airlines. They won’t dare cross a large agency like Travelocity for fear of losing a large chunk of future business.

  • http://midwestsucks.blogspot.com Mike

    Forgot to include the web site.

  • Jim

    Call me screwed too.

    In April of 2008, I booked travel for my wife and me in Novermber 2008. I chose Midwest largely because of their 4-across seating (presumably Signature Seating) in the entire aircraft.

    In September, they reconfigured the seating, putting 5-across Saver Seating in the back half of the aircraft. But all of the already-booked-and-paid-for passengers were crammed into the smaller seats, and Midwest wanted to charge more money to get back to the mostly empty wider seats that they’d arlready purchased.

    Someone mentioned bait and switch, which is a practice of advertising a product that doesn’t really exist in order to get the customer in the door to purchase a more expensive product. But my situation is more blatent and more wrong than bait and switch. I had already purchased my product. Then they replaced it with a cheaper product, and demanded more money to get back my original product.

    The ticketing agent said nothing could be done. Customer Service said not even the president of the company can override this rule. My complaint to the Better Business Bureau is in process.

  • http://www.clarkecomputer.com Charles Clarke

    I think the DOT should address this by requiring in the Contract of Carriage a minimum of:
    If a carrier cancels a flight, then the passenger has the option to change their flight to another flight on that carrier or any other carrier for the same class of service. The carrier has to refund the customer 10% of the price as liquidated damages, unless the change was due to an act of god. The passenger also has the option to use their 110% of purchase price to buy a ticket on the original carrier in any class AT THE LOWEST PRICE that ticket class on that flight has been offered since the passenger purchased the ticket. Unless the cancellation was for an act of god, the passenger gets a refund for any difference. Yes, including any 1 minute sales on fares. The passenger also has the option to choose a refund at the 110% level.

    If a carrier changes a flight time by more than 1 hour or enough to violate an airport’s minimum connect times for the passenger’s flights, then the passenger has the same rights as above without the added 10%.

    The basic idea is to hold the airlines responsible for their end of the contract – transportation from X to Y (or Z to Y in Monica’s case) and give the customer the choice of remedy in the case of breach.

    I’m sure the airlines would complain that they would lose (more) money this way or have to raise prices for everyone. That just says to me that they are currently horrible at doing their job.

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