Many of you read this column as members of JoeSentMe, one of the great travel newsletters for frequent travelers. This week another contributor to the site, Will Allen, writes about the success he had in canceling a long planned trip to Europe due to an unexpected health issue. He canceled over a half-dozen hotels, an Airbnb, several rail tickets, airline tickets, and a cruise, yet was only out of pocket for $540, much less than the cost of trip insurance. He was very lucky.
This past week my brother-in-law, Bob, was not so lucky when his travel plans were disrupted through no fault of his own. He had made plans to join me and another twenty relatives from around the country for a family reunion in Bozeman, Montana, a destination we selected five months ago. We selected Bozeman because it’s an attractive vacation area accessible to relatives from around the country.
Bob decided to leave several days earlier and fly to Jackson Hole from his home in Rochester, NY and spend a few days at Yellowstone and then drive on to Bozeman. But the evening before his early morning departure, American Airlines canceled his flight without warning or explanation. When he called them, they were unable to provide any alternative flights for days.
He looked for other flights, but the few he found were prohibitively expensive or fully booked. He had also reserved hotels in Jackson Hole and Yellowstone that were cancelable up to three days in advance, but his flight cancelation occurred within that window, so he was out $800, unable to persuade the hotels to issue a refund.
He ended up flying several days later directly to Bozeman for our reunion and rented a car there. But because it was a last minute rental, he paid $1200 for 6 days. This compares to $450 I paid, because I had reserved months earlier. So, American Airline’s cancelation cost him $1550 in canceled hotels and the penalty for the last minute car rental.
With planes flying at near capacity, especially during vacation season, this is something that happens more frequently, subjecting travelers to uncertainties about whether their plans might suddenly be disrupted and be out thousands of dollars. There really isn’t a good solution. Bob could have taken travel insurance, but it would not have covered his rental car penalties.
What else can we do? Check a flight’s on-time record before booking and find the most reliable options. If connecting to another flight, try to start out on the first flight of the day, which usually is at the airport the evening before. Opt for at least 1-1/2 to two hours between connecting flights, not the hour that most airlines use. We can no longer depend on the airlines to get us where we want to go or cover unexpected costs when they screw up. They could care less. It’s up to us to plan carefully and fend for ourselves.
What is needed is a Dept. of Transportation requirement for airlines to pay passengers $1000 if they fail to get their customer to their destination within 24 hours of the original reservation, and an additional $1000 for each day’s delay. Exceptions could be made for weather delays, but not for anything under an airline’s control such as crew scheduling or maintenance.