Airline Ticketholder Rights

As an airline ticket holder you are protected by several laws and conventions that govern international and domestic travel. For your convenience we compiled a list of the most critical airline passenger rights. This is not a complete list and we suggest that you familiarize yourself with other rights and responsibilities you may have, using other sources.

OVERBOOKING AND INVOLUNTARY BUMPING ON U.S. AIRLINES

U.S. airlines are allowed to overbook flights to allow for "no-show" passengers. However, if passengers are involuntarily bumped, airlines are required to do ask for volunteers to give up their seats in exchange for compensation. Most involuntarily bumped passengers are subject to the following minimum compensation schedule:

There is no compensation if alternative transportation gets the passenger to the destination within one hour of the original scheduled arrival.

The equivalent of the passenger's one way fare up to the maximum of US$200 for substitute domestic flights that arrive between one and two hours after the original scheduled arrival time or for substitute international flights that arrive between one and four hours after the original scheduled arrival time.

If the substitute transportation is scheduled to get the passenger to the original destination more than two hours later (four hours internationally), or if the airline does not make any substitute travel arrangements for the passenger, the maximum compensation doubles to US$400.

There are exceptions to these rules. This minimum compensation schedule does not apply to charter flights, to scheduled flights operated with planes that hold 60 or fewer passengers, or to international flights inbound to the United States. If you cannot be accommodated to your satisfaction, you may be eligible to request a refund for the remaining part of the trip, even if the trip were on an otherwise nonrefundable ticket.

DELAYS ON INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS (or domestic portion of an international itinerary)

Two international treaties govern delays of international rights:

• Warsaw Convention
• Montreal Convention

Both conventions in Article 19 use the same language that applies to delays:

“The carrier is liable for damage occasioned by delay in the carriage by air of passengers, baggage or cargo.”

The conventions do not state specific compensation amounts for each type of delay. The Montreal Convention specifies a compensation cap in the delay of passengers that is not to exceed 4,150 special drawing units (approximately US$6,100). However, the maximum delay compensation could reasonably be expected only under very rare circumstances.

Should you experience some of the more common delays, here is what you could reasonably expect from the airline: 

• Delays of up to 4 hrs: request meal and drink vouchers.
• Overnight delays: request hotel and transportation vouchers.
• Baggage delivery delays: check with each airline’s regulations. The Montreal convention limits totally liability to 1,000 special drawing units (approximately US$1,450).
• Other: You have the right to request from the airline that they board you on any other available flight when severe delays are expected for the originally booked itinerary. If other available flights, operated by other airlines, exist and the ticketing airline fails to provide you an alternative you may be entitled to compensation per Article 19 of the Montreal and Warsaw conventions.

DENIAL OF BOARDING DUE TO LATE ARRIVAL AT CHECK-IN

We suggest that you arrive at check-in at least three hours before departure for international flights and two hours before departure for domestic flights. Failure to check-in for a flight within the specified time frame may result in automatic seat cancellation by an airline or in denial of boarding, with the ticket losing all its value.

Please review each applicable airline’s rules in order to verify the policy that governs your specific check-in procedures.

The airline may deny you boarding even if you arrive in time for check-in by claiming that you were late, particularly when the flight is overbooked. Please see the ”Overbooking” section that explains your rights under such circumstances.

DISCLAIMER

Best Travel Store, Inc. makes no warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, arising by law or otherwise, including but not limited to warranties of effectiveness, completeness, accuracy or fitness for a particular purpose, with regard to the aforementioned rights. The legal information provided by Best Travel Store, Inc. is, at best, of a general nature and cannot substitute for the advice of a licensed professional i.e. by a competent authority with specialized knowledge who can apply it to the particular circumstances of your case.