[texasredbud]

On my last flight with AA I was selected to volunteer to give up my seat. At pre-boarding it was announced that they needed volunteers to give up their seat. No one went for the $150 voucher ( kind of cheap I thought) so several people were selected. I asked why I was selected and I was told that it depended on when the ticket was purchased and weither or not the ticket was non-refundable. So the people who have non-refundable tickets are selected, I would guess, because they cannot go to a different airline and buy a ticket.

I am sure this makes good business sense. But it does not make loyal customers. In the future, I will fly Southwest every chance I get.

[AirlineComplaints.org]

Hi texasredbud and welcome to AAcomplaints.

What was the compensation you received for being "volunteered" off the flight, the $150? If so, that does not sound like much, especially since it is 100% the airlines fault that a flight is overbooked.

Here's some enlightening information about overbooking taken from Wikipedia:

An airline can book more customers onto a plane than can actually be accommodated. This allows them to have a (nearly) full vehicle on most runs, even if some customers miss the trip or cancel at the last minute. If everyone shows up, at least in the case of airlines, the overbooking will cause an oversale. Airlines will ask for volunteers to give away their seats in exchange for a compensation that can include an additional free ticket or an upgrading in a later flight. They can do this and still make more money than if they booked only to the plane's capacity and had it take off with empty seats. Some airlines, like JetBlue, do not overbook as a policy that provides incentive and avoids customer disappointment. A few airline frequent flyer programs actually allow a customer the privilege of flying an already overbooked flight; another customer will be asked to leave. Often only Economy class is overbooked while higher classes are not, allowing the airline to upgrade some passengers to otherwise unused seats.

In the EU, European Commission Regulation 261/2004 sets out harsh compensation requirements for airlines that deny boarding to passengers due to overbooking.

You should write them a letter requesting more compensation. Post a follow-up of your experience so we know how it was handled.

Good luck,
Andres