What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

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schnitzel2k3
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What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by schnitzel2k3 »

Copied from Independent article...

'Lufthansa is cracking down on the practice of travellers using “throwaway” tickets to circumvent high fares. The German national airline is suing a passenger for the difference between the fare paid and the amount due for the journey actually made.

The case sheds light on this and other forms of “tariff abuse” by passengers – and the risks that travellers take.

A passenger bought a business-class return ticket from Oslo via Frankfurt to Seattle for around £600. He flew Oslo-Frankfurt-Seattle-Frankfurt but failed to board the final leg back to the Norwegian capital. Lufthansa calculated that he should have paid around four times as much for the itinerary he actually flew.

The airline is not relentlessly pursuing an individual passenger, but rather seeking to establish in law what is a long-established contract term and to dissuade other travellers from using the same trick.

At the heart of the issue is the fact that the fare from A to B is often higher than the fare A to B to C. So in a test booking I made, Air France would sell me a ticket from Moscow to Paris to Heathrow for only £72, but were I going only from Moscow to Paris then the fare was three times higher. Some Paris-bound travellers will buy a ticket to London and fly with hand-luggage only to save £145 on the flight, with no intention of going beyond Charles de Gaulle airport.....'

It goes on from there with the authors opinion.

What's the real issue with fare hopping?

What irks me, particularly in Canada, is this same issue with seat pricing. As a consumer if you sell me a product at X dollars and I pay X dollars, it is within my discretion how I wish to use it. Granted, ghosting at the gate is a little frustrating for staff, but then they usually have a lineup of 20 standbys who are happy to get that seat.

Hopefully Luftie and others fail to create a precedent on this matter.

Are the airlines truly experiencing a hardship when this happens? Or is it boards and cfo's looking at capitalizing on every dollar and cent?

S.
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goingnowherefast
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by goingnowherefast »

I see it as one less passenger on an oversold flight that doesn't get mad at the airline and post bad PR on social media. I think it's pretty common for passengers to "ghost" a flight. Connection too tight, stuck in customs/security, couldn't get the lunch bill fast enough, stubborn "stool". Airline CSAs are relatively used to it, and just put a standby on the flight.

The only possible problem could be 2nd or 5th freedoms, but I doubt the airline would be liable for ghosting passengers. Plus, that doesn't appear to be the case here either.

I think it's just airline execs getting horny over a couple extra dollars.
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rookiepilot
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by rookiepilot »

Suing a customer.

That's as ridiculous as Swiss chalet suing me when I order the festive special and decide not to eat the dessert.

See my "winning career" post. What a fun industry. :roll:
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by MarkyMark90 »

It just proves how stupid some CFO are, and how much some companies are gambling by lowballing some segment in hope to get you to buy some extras (bags, food, dutyfree).

They lost that bet this time, too bad.
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MarkyMark90
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger

Post by MarkyMark90 »

rookiepilot wrote: Tue Feb 12, 2019 11:28 am That's as ridiculous as Swiss chalet suing me when I order the festive special and decide not to eat the dessert
They were hoping to sell you an extra glass of milk...
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by digits_ »

And they are suing a business class passenger. Wtf? :shock:
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Re: What's the real issue with dumping connections as a passenger...

Post by ant_321 »

If airlines didn’t have such bizarre ticket pricing schemes people wouldn’t have to do this. My airline deadhead us on other carriers quite often. Several times I’ve been booked on a return ticket that I didn’t use because it was cheaper than buying a 1 way ticket.
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