A woman says she was blocked from getting on a British Airways flight despite having bought a ticket.
Lucy Jones arrived at Heathrow Airport early this morning eager to jet off, only to be told that too many people had been allowed to book a seat on the plane.
The journalist was not allowed on the flight, having been unable to check-in online on Tuesday despite several efforts.
"Absolutely appalling," Lucy wrote of her experience.
"Just got to Heathrow Airport to be told by British Airways, they’ve overbooked our flight and we can’t fly. How do they allow this to happen?!!
Have you been blocked from a flight or had your holiday cancelled unfairly? Email webtravel@reachplc.com
"We tried to check in online several times yesterday and kept getting an error message saying online check in wasn’t available for our flight.
"Honestly my blood pressure is v high right now."
A British Airways spokesperson said: "We do our best to avoid disrupting customer journeys by using historical data to match the number of available seats to the number of customers we expect to travel, but on rare occasions, we get this wrong.
"We apologise to customers who may be affected and will always put things right."
The number of people sharing their own experiences of being blocked from a flight suggests the issue is sadly not a rare one.
"They've been doing that for years," one woman wrote.
"Happened to my mum who got stuck in Istanbul overnight - they only told her once she had got to the airport.
"She was a single woman who had to find accommodation overnight because there were no more flights until the next day."
Another irate traveller added: "They almost always overbook - once it happened to me on a late night flight following a funeral in The Netherlands.
"I had to be on that flight to take an early morning service (I am a vicar) they upgraded me to business class. Praying the same thing happens to you."
Airlines tend to overbook planes in a bid to maximise the amount of money they're making for each flight, to reduce costs for predicted cancellations and no shows.
Sometimes everyone who was booked onto the plane does show up, meaning someone has to make way.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority has published a handy guide for those who find themselves without a chair to sit on.
It covers all flight departing from the UK, arriving in the UK on a UK or EU airline, or arriving in the EU on a UK airline.
Sometimes airlines will ask passengers if they would volunteer to get bumped, in which case it's up to them and the airline to agree compensation.
Often, airlines will make an announcement at the gate offering compensation, which might be cash or vouchers.
If you are bumped without your agreement, you are entitled to compensation, as long as you checked-in for your flight on time.
No matter whether you volunteered or were forced to be bumped, your airline must also let you choose between two options:
Your airline must offer you an alternative flight. It’s up to you whether to fly as soon as possible, or at a later date that suits you. Airlines often refer to this as being ‘rerouted’.
If you want to fly as soon as possible, your airline must also provide care and assistance while you wait for the flight.
This includes food and drink, means of communication, accommodation and transport to the accommodation.
The airline must provide you with these items until it is able to fly you to your destination, no matter how long the delay lasts or what has caused it.
If you don’t want to fly, you can get your money back instead. You’ll get a refund for all parts of the ticket you haven’t used.
For instance, if you have booked a return flight and you are bumped from the outbound leg, you can get the full cost of the return ticket back from your airline.
The level of compensation depends on the length of your flight and the timings of the alternative flight you are offered:
Length of flight |
Length of disruptions |
Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| short-haul flight of under 1,500km (e.g. Glasgow to Amsterdam) | Arrive 2 hours or more later at final destination | £220 |
| short-haul flight of under 1,500km (e.g. Glasgow to Amsterdam) | Arrive less than 2 hours later at final destination | £110 |
| medium-haul flight of 1,500km – 3,500km (e.g. East Midlands to Marrakesh) | Arrive 3 hours or more later at final destination | £350 |
| medium-haul flight of 1,500km – 3,500km (e.g. East Midlands to Marrakesh) | Arrive less than 3 hours later at final destination | £175 |
| long-haul flight of over 3,500km (e.g. London to New York) | Arrive 4 hours or more later at final destination | £520 |
| long-haul flight of over 3,500km (e.g. London to New York) | Arrive less than 4 hours later at final destination | £260 |
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