=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SFGate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/c/a/2008/02/28/DDOOV0TIF.= DTL --------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, February 28, 2008 (SF Chronicle) Taking the sting out of getting bumped Ed Perkins, Tribune Media Services "I'm sorry, you can't get on your flight; it's overbooked, and we can't find enough volunteers to give up their seats." That's some of the worst news you can hear at an airport. Officially, this situation is called "denied boarding," but most everyone calls it "bumping." And, this past year, the domestic airlines earned the dubious distinction of scoring the highest bumping rate in 11 years. Here are eight things you need to know about bumping: 1. Overbooking is here to stay. Lots of travelers no-show for reserved flights, for a variety of reasons. To compensate, airlines sell more reservations than their planes have seats. 2. Bumping is comparatively rare. Airlines are generally pretty accurate in predicting no-shows, but when they miss, somebody doesn't get to go. Last year, about 1 traveler out of every 1,000 was bumped. 3. Most bumped travelers stay behind voluntarily. Last year, Airlines lured 9 out of 10 overbooked travelers off their flights by offering vouchers, free future trips or other rewards. 4. The real problem is involuntary bumping. And 1 bumping out of every 10 was involuntary last year. But involuntary bumping rates vary among individual U.S. airlines. -- In general, regional airlines bump more than larger ones: Of the five highest bumping rates, four were at regional lines, and the two worst (Comair and Atlantic Southeast) bumped three to four times the national percentage. -- Among the big lines, JetBlue, AirTran, Hawaiian and Aloha hardly bump= ed at all. United, Alaska, American, Northwest and Frontier bumped fewer than the national average. -- But Delta bumped more than double the national average and Continental bumped slightly more. -- United, Alaska, American, and Northwest were more successful than others at getting volunteers; they got 19 out of 20 overbooked travelers to get off voluntarily. 5. History may be a pretty good guide to future performance: 2007 figures showed about the same pattern as those for 2006. 6. Volunteering is getting riskier. When airlines started routine overbooking, getting bumped was no big deal. Load factors in the 60s meant travelers who volunteered to get off could find replacement seats easily, often on a flight only an hour or two later. Now, with load factors in the 70s and 80s, finding those replacement seats could take days, not just hours. 7. Current government-mandated compensation for involuntary bumping is grossly inadequate. Federal rules now say that if an airline can't get you to your destination on a flight scheduled to arrive within an hour of your original schedule, it owes you cash in the amount of the value of your ticket, with a maximum of $200. The compensation doubles for scheduled arrival more than two hours late (four hours for international flights). These requirements do not apply to planes holding 60 or fewer passengers - maybe one of the reasons the regional airlines bump more than the bigger ones. The Department of Transportation is considering doubling the compensatio= n, and it couldn't come soon enough. The Europeans have already enacted much stronger consumer protections, and it's high time we did, too. 8. Don't volunteer to be bumped unless you get an acceptable deal. If possible, get a firm future seat commitment before you accept any vouchers or free trips. And watch the fine print on any voucher or free trip an airline offers: Make sure it's valid long enough that you can really use it, and make sure there aren't any undue restrictions on its use. More Travel Today: Under Covers checks into the Tickle Pink Inn in Carmel Highlands. 96 Hours Sunday: Soaking in the snow monkeys of Japan and a golf getaway in Carmel Valley. Travel Explore tropical topics at SFGate.com/mexico and SFGate.com/hawaii. E-mail syndicated author Ed Perkins at eperkins@xxxxxxxxx For previous columns or to comment online, go to sfgate.com/travel. =A9 Tribune Media Services ------------------------------------------------------------------= ---- Copyright 2008 SF Chronicle <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".