It also helps bringing down prices to consumers because of less empty seats, so you end up benefiting the 99.5% of the time you don’t get bumped. I think the real problem is that they’re not being transparent by keeping your probability of you getting bumped a secret.

They are in effect selling the same product twice to two (or more!) different people. If any other business were to do this, they would find themselves in court on charges of fraud. So why should the airlines be any different?

Airlines shouldnt be allowed to do it, never mind increase in fares. Because customer service would be alot higher, and then their will still be someone who reduces their fare, regardless if it is a airline or anything else, thats business. Your saying that should allow airlines to make profits instead of that poor man above or people to go on holiday on the day they paid for! you right in the head!

Here are some recent interesting posts from the MoneyBlogNetwork and beyond: Blueprint for Financial Prosperity asks why airlines can overbook flights. Consumerism Commentary has had a lunch conversion. AllFinancialMatters details the highs and lows of…

To be a devil’s advocate, let’s assume airlines can *accurately* predict no-shows. If that’s true, they maximize revenue by filling planes (which is societally beneficial too) AND customers can get cheaper rates (supply curves are downward sloping so if they sell more tickets then customers get cheaper prices in theory).

But alas, it appears airlines are not very good at predicting no-shows. There has been a recent upswing in bumpings. Perhaps we’re tired of getting bumped; newer models will probably take this into account.

STILL – even when the airline does need to remove passengers from a flight, they use MOSTLY volunteers. I am one of those folks. It is rare that I absolutely need to be where I am scheduled to go at the time the airline says it will get me there. I know better – when I start planning things too closely – more problems arise. So, I take advantage of the situations. Because I fly in and out of a major vacation-spot airport, I know that there are certain days – and certain times of days that are more likely to be overbooked. I either plan to take these flights (and then try to get “bumped”) or I completely AVOID those flights, and will usually find something cheaper if I fly at a different time.

In the rare instance that a passenger is involuntarily denied boarding (IDB’d – to distinguish from a voluntary “bump”), they are compensated by a formula adopted by all domestic airlines across the board. Depending on the length of time you are delayed, the airline is required to pay you – CASH MONEY, on the spot – to deny boarding, if you are checked in on time and present at the gate when called. There are some people who do not know this, and some airlines will still try to push off a voucher as compensation to people IDB’d. If you are offered a voucher, it ought to be for a lot more than the cash money that they are REQUIRED BY LAW to pay – either way, it will be a lot more than a free hotel room and a meal voucher.

Even as flight loads have increased, there has not been a huge increase in IDBs, across the board, in the airline industry.

Some people count on this and book flights during busy travel periods on purpose, with the expectation that the airlines will ask for volunteers to change their plans for compensation. If you have no pressing needs, that can be the way to go.

But… it sure does hurt when you get bumped when you don’t want to!