compensation for airline bumps can be thousands of dollars - by Mike

Compensation For Airline Bumps

Compensation for airline bumps can be thousands of dollars in your pocket. Make sure you contact an attorney before taking a settlement from the airlines if you are unsure about your rights. No limits have been set by the government on how much a passenger can be compensated for delayed, canceled or bumped flights.

Getting bumped from a plane is not the same as a flight being canceled. Getting bumped or denied boarding means your airline overbooked, and more passengers showed up than they had seats for. So the airline chose to pull you aside and not let you fly, even though your ticket is in hand, you are at the gate on time and your luggage is most likely already on the plane and going without you!

Should you be mad? -Yes, fuming mad. And plan to get even. A lot can be at stake if you can't get on a plane that day. If you bought a skiing package, chances are it can not be canceled. So you are out that money. You may have bought skis and clothes especially for the trip. You won't be needing them. You have taken time off from work, you can't get that back. What you need to do is add up the real cost to you: money, time, inconvenience and suffering.

Can airlines overbook? -Yes! Our federal government allows airlines to overbook. The idea is you will take the next flight and get a bag of peanuts for your trouble. The airlines are counting on you not saying anything. I think because it happens all the time, we are suppose to be ok with it. The less we complain, the more the airlines will overbook. At the time of writing this, the only airline that has a policy of not overbooking is JetBlue. You can see the stats for yourself at Department Of Transportation. At JetBlue you fly when you get to the gate on time. If JetBlue ever denies you boarding they give you $1,000, no questions asked.

Force Majeure is a catch-all phrase used by the airlines to include acts of God, the weather, government regulation, safety concerns, work slowdowns, strikes, labor-related disputes, and terrorism, wars, security, shortage of labor or fuel - a catch-all phrase for everything that could happen. However, if you are going to win compensation for airline bumps you should realize these issues are not clearly defined.

For instances, if airlines claim you got dumped due to bad weather, they are misleading you. The only weather airlines won't fly in is hurricanes. Mechanical breakdowns are supposed to be offset with other planes standing by; stopgaps and backups are in place. Airlines need extreme reasons to cancel your flight; it's built into their system. See what I mean, everything is arguable. And you will learn, the burden of proof is on the airline, not you. Keep your sight on your compensation for your airline bump.

But overbooking and getting bumped is clearly bad management. Recently a passenger won $3,000 from Continental Airlines for his trouble of getting bumped. His name was Thatcher Stone, and he was an aviation attorney himself. He took Continental Airlines to Small Claims Court and won big.

I think Attorney Thatcher Stone had a good chance in small claims court, better than most. Because usually airlines come to small claims and take the position that you can not sue them because the Federal government allows airlines to bump and overbook. And judges are too easily persuaded by the airlines that the plaintiff, you, should be suing the Federal government, not the airlines. So many cases are not even heard.

If your tally up your losses and they are high, think about hiring an attorney for your time, loss and suffering. It could make you feel a lot better. There is "help for canceled flights" and help for delayed flights you can get. If you just want to blow out a little steam and be heard, use an "online form" to complain to the U.S. Department of Transportation. I hope you win big in the compensation for airline bumps.