Traveler's Aide: When airline rules change after booking
— -- Question: In July 2008, I redeemed US Airways frequent-flier miles for tickets for my daughter on a family trip to Hawaii. Knowing that I might need to change the travel dates, I inquired about the process for doing so. I was advised that changes to the dates would be free as long as the routing was the same and all travel was completed within one year of ticketing.
In October, I called back to make a date change on my daughter's ticket. Apparently, however, US Airways had changed its policy in the several months since I had ticketed the reservation. Under the new policy, all changes are $150.
In the meantime, I had used Dividend Miles to book another four tickets to Hawaii, and need to change those too. That change will cost another $600. We're not normally "date changers," but we had booked a stay at a hotel under renovation, and its reopening date was pushed back twice due to construction delays.
US Airways acknowledges the old policy and that I was advised of that policy at the time of original ticketing. Its position, though, is that the new policy applies and not the policy I was promised when I made my original booking. I believe this is unfair, and that US Airways should honor the rules that were in place when I obtained my tickets. Numerous requests for reconsideration have gone unanswered. Can you help?
— Jordan Silber, San Francisco
Answer:Cash-strapped airlines have been increasingly turning to so-called ancillary revenue to generate income. These lucrative add-ons include fees for checked bags, charges for better seats, convenience fees for telephone bookings and so on.
In June 2008, US Airways announced another round of policy changes, including cost-cutting moves and money-making fees. Dividend Miles members shouldered some of the duty, facing new fees for issuing award tickets ($25-$50) and for all award ticket changes ($150-$250) after August 6, 2008.
The new date-change fee ensnared Silber, who booked his daughter's ticket before the fee implementation date, but the rest of the tickets after it. His daughter's original ticket was issued under the old rules, which allowed date changes, but not routing changes, without a fee.
