What the Airlines Don’t Tell You

What the Airlines Don’t Tell You
Five scary secrets

When we buy an airplane ticket from Point A to Point B, we usually get there without incident. Aside from a few delays, the odd cancellation, or the occasional lost bag, airlines generally do what they say what they’re going to do.

Still, one airline industry expert believes that most fliers have no idea how vulnerable we all are to the whims of these multibillion-dollar airlines, and how much power they have over us.
You have no idea how much power airlines have over you.
Here are five scary secrets that travelers may not know about airlines:

1. You signed a contract with the airline, whether you know it or not
When you buy an airline ticket, you’re effectively signing a contract. When you buy a ticket, you’re technically agreeing to the airline’s contract of carriage and since each airline drafts its own contract, it shouldn’t surprise you that it’s heavily tilted in the airline’s favor.

The airlines pretty much write the contracts that you agree to and we passengers treat them just like we treat cellphone contracts: We don’t read them. And that’s where most of the bizarre stuff is buried.”

2. The airlines don’t really have to take you anywhere
What’s printed on your boarding pass may not really reflect where you end up and when.
Your ticket is not a contract, and the arrival times and destinations printed on it aren’t binding. The airlines say in their contract of carriage that they have no duty to honor their posted schedule, which means you can’t complain that they’re 9 hours late — they have no duty to take you where the ticket says you’re going.

Look closely at the contracts of carriage and you’ll see the airlines give themselves one big out that allows them to opt out of taking you where you want to go, when you want to go. The main airlines all have language in their contracts that, with slight variation, mimics the following: “Times shown in timetables or elsewhere are not guaranteed and form no part of this contract. Schedules are subject to change without notice.” They also say the airline “may alter or omit the stopping places shown on the ticket in case of necessity.” Guess who gets to define “necessity” (hint: it’s not you).

It’s obvious the airlines include such language to protect themselves from overly litigious passengers who would almost certainly try to sue over a weather-related cancellation or a flight that was diverted to another city due to a medical emergency or security scare. We acknowledge that airlines aren’t seeking carte blanche to fly passengers wherever they want to on a whim. “we not saying the airlines routinely take people who are planning to fly to Paris and dump them in London,”. “But they claim the right to do it. And people should know that the ticket gives them virtually no protection.”

3. Tickets are no longer exchangeable
The days of airlines cooperating to help you out may be coming to an end.
There was a time when, if your flight was cancelled and the gate agent was feeling charitable, your airline would rebook you on another airline’s flight at no additional charge. That practice was called interlining, and it’s fast becoming a relic of air travel.

We remember the good old days: “When there was a cancellation, Airline would say, ‘Sorry, we had to cancel our flight. But I see in the computer that another airline is flying in an hour, so we’re gonna get you on that flight.’ Now, their answer is, ‘Sorry, Tickets are no longer exchangeable among airlines.’

The lower-priced budget airlines never had interlining agreements.

4. Good luck taking the airlines to court
Have a problem with the airlines? You may have to take them to court.
During any sort of customer service dispute, consumers often relish saying, “I’ll see you in court!” But if your dispute is with a major airline, you can expect the airline to say, “Good luck with that.”

Airlines do not respond your claim and you have to turn to experienced professionals within the European Transport Law to get fair compensation for any inconvenience during air transport, as provided by international conventions and European regulations;

It could be useful using web site like www.flycare.eu
Flycare’s purpose to Judicially and extrajudicially assist travellers who were denied what they were owed by the airlines.

5. Even if your carry-on bag is “regulation” doesn’t mean it’s getting on an airplane
Your carry-on may not get on the plane, even if it’s the right size.
You slavishly measured your carry-on bag. You placed it in the little measuring bin in the terminal. But then you get to the gate and the flight attendant says, “Sorry, but you can’t bring that aboard” — even though that same bag has been carried aboard dozens of previous flights.

Turns out, following all the carry-on rules doesn’t mean your carry-on is getting on. None of their published rules about carry-on bags can be enforced by you.

Go back to the contracts of carriage. Most airlines include the size limits for carry-on bags in their contracts. But then they include a clause like this: “The airline reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion to determine the suitability and place of storage of any items to be carried in the cabin of the aircraft.” Note the use of the phrase “sole and absolute discretion.” In short, that means the airline employees make the final call as to which bags get on board the aircraft.

It’s a frequent complaint. Business travelers explain, ‘This carry-on’s been with me for 25 years. It fits in the sizer. It meets the rules the airline publishes.’ And the flight attendant or gate agent says, ‘I don’t want this bag in the cabin.’ And if you don’t check it, not only do they have the right to deny you passage, they will claim you’re interfering with the flight and call a cop and have you arrested.”

So how do you deal with these shocking realities of air travel? There isn’t much you can do. Arguing is often pointless, especially if you get the wrong employee. “If they’re in a bad mood, they will call a cop and you will be arrested,”. “Don’t be an airline lawyer.” Instead, it’s best to do what the airline crew tells you to do and take up the matter with the airline after the flight.

Again, chances are you’re going to fly and everything’s going to go according to plan — yours and the airline’s. We should add that most of the airline workers we encounter are extremely nice and helpful people. But in dealing with the airlines, it’s always good to know where you stand.

And the reality is, just as when you’re flying in an airplane, you’re not standing on solid ground.

Published by Flycare

Author: Staff
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