Rescheduled on Delta

Q: I hope you can shed some light on a recent flight experience I had. I booked a non-stop flight to Tampa, Fla., on Delta Air Lines through Travelocity more than seven months in advance. A week before we were supposed to fly, I checked Delta’s Web site and found out that our flight, Delta 2315, had been pushed forward by 30 minutes. So we arrived at the airport at 5:50 a.m., two hours before we were scheduled to leave.

When we got there, we were told by a rude check-in agent that we were not on flight 2315. Instead we’d been rebooked on an itinerary connecting through Atlanta. Furthermore, our seats, which I had painstakingly reserved – I need to ride in the front because of motion sickness – were now middle seats.

This ticket agent was supremely unhelpful and wouldn’t answer any of my questions. While we were standing in line for security, I happened to notice that flight 2315 still existed and departed at the same time as our current flight to Atlanta.

I went back and asked to see a manager, who explained that because of the events of Sept. 11, our outbound and inbound flights had been canceled, and Delta had moved us to another flight. When the flights for which I was holding a confirmed reservation were reinstated, we were not then switched back. Oh, he said, since we bought our tickets from Travelocity (which had never contacted me) Delta had no responsibility. End of discussion.

I asked the gate agent to put us on standby. He refused. Then I noticed an unoccupied gate agent and asked her to put us on the standby list. She did. But she said we were “kinda low on the list,” and we didn’t make the flight.

Had our initial check-in agent put us on that list, I’m sure we would have been closer to the top of the list. But she didn’t even suggest it. Had the manager on duty been less preoccupied with disavowing Delta’s responsibility, and more concerned with helping the paying, loyal passenger, we might have made it. And a third time, had the initial gate agent put us on the list, our making it might have been a reality.

I wrote to Delta and explained what happened. The answer I got was to defend everything down the line. The airline also “respectfully declined” my request for any compensation. I had suggested that it would be a good-will gesture on the part of Delta to send vouchers for the same route. Now tell me, am I out of line? I pay for a non-stop flight and they change both directions to connecting flights and don’t contact me. Travelocity just wrote back a short email to say I should have been contacted. Is this normal?

– Carol Thompson

A: No it isn’t. Travelocity should have contacted you when Delta rescheduled its flights. Delta’s rudeness is unfortunate but it isn’t primarily responsible for what happened. I believe Travelocity is.

I contacted Travelocity on your behalf and asked them to review your file. It did, and it agreed that your itinerary was improperly handled. According to consumer relations manager Christine Bullock, Delta made schedule changes, including a change of service from non-stop to connecting flights, several months before you were supposed to fly.

“When this occurs, the airline normally sends us a message with these changes,” she says. “Our automated processor then sends you the information via e-mail. Regretfully, it appears that in this instance, this did not occur.” (Bullock didn’t specify whether Delta failed to inform Travelocity or whether Travelocity made a mistake.)

By the way, Travelocity also recommends that you contact your airline 24 to 48 hours before your departure to reconfirm your reservation “due to possible schedule changes.” In other words, you shouldn’t have simply called Delta a week before to check your flight status, but also should have either called Travelocity or Delta and asked it to see if your reservation had been altered.

“Please be assured that the situation you experienced is not typical,” Bullock adds. Travelocity extended its apologies and a credit for $100 off your next air, car or hotel booking with the agency.

Travelocity also noted that there’s no excuse for the poor service you received from Delta, and Bullock said that purchasing your tickets through Travelocity “doesn’t change the fact that you are a Delta Air Lines customer and should have been treated accordingly.” Travelocity sent a strongly-worded letter to Delta, which it copied me on, that detailed your “unfortunate experience” and urged the airline to make a special effort to “make it right.”

I think Travelocity went above and beyond the call of duty to correct your problem and make amends. It did the right thing.

But should Delta offer you a voucher for a new flight? No. If you take a look at your contract of carriage, you’ll note that the airlines’ responsibility is to get you from point “a” to point “b” safely. When you accepted Delta’s rescheduled flight, you waived your right to any refund or additional compensation. If Delta began handing out free tickets every time one of its employees treated a passenger rudely, it would go out of business in no time.

Delta owes you an apology, but nothing more.

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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