Skipped Connection

[a1bonita4u]

Hi. I have read through several posts & FAQs, but I haven't found a clear answer & the answer I got from customer service online was also not clear: 

I had a RT flight from BNA-SAV. I completed the nonstop BNA-SAV portion on 11/20. The return flight on 11/24 had a connection in MDW with a 4-hr layover. I decided to stay in MDW instead of continuing on to BNA (I'm #teamcarryon, so no concern there). So, I spoke with an agent at the customer service desk that happened to be directly next to my arrival gate in MDW immediately upon deplaning to let them know, so they wouldn't be looking for me for the next leg. He asked for my last name & destination city & said I was all set & didn't need to do anything else. I later saw that SW emailed me to say that the rest of my trip was canceled b/c I was a No-Show. 

Online customer service mentioned that "no Rapid Rewards Points will be credited to your account for the incomplete ticket" & referred to me as a No-Show. I find this to be odd, since I did speak to an agent & well before the 10-minute cutoff. But, my real concern is to clearly understand what RR points I'm entitled to. Is it BNA-SAV + SAV-MDW? Is it BNA-SAV only? Or, are they saying the entire booking = an incomplete flight, so I WILL NOT earn ANY points for ANY of the completed travel? 

Thanks in advance for the assistance. 

[dfwskier]

You only earn points/flight credits for completed itineraries. You did not complete BNA/SAV so you earned no points. There is no partial earning of points.

And yes, if you skip a connection (even if you tell the airline you are doing so), the airline will cancel your return flight -- not just SW, but every airline.

[a1bonita4u]

Thank you so much for the clarification! I'd never skipped a leg before. Sounds like I'll need to consider doing 2 one-way flights in the future. 

[parpitt1]

This is basically Skiplagging and it is frowned upon by airlines to the point that individuals who regularly do this are often banned from said airline's reward programs. So even though it sounds like your intentions were not to defraud the airline, since you told them you were exiting your flight itinerary "midway," your decision did fit the description of skiplagging.

There are websites that encourage this deceptive practice as way to save money. It is unfortunate that your honesty lost you points. Kudos to you for being honest. If you had the name of the SWA representative you notified of your intentions to leave the flight maybe there might be some recourse?

Safe Travels

[DancingDavidE]

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@parpitt1 wrote:

There are websites that encourage this deceptive practice as way to save money. It is unfortunate that your honesty lost you points. Kudos to you for being honest. If you had the name of the SWA representative you notified of your intentions to leave the flight maybe there might be some recourse?

Safe Travels

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I don't think there would be any difference in the outcome here whether notifying the staff or not in regards to the points - either way the itinerary isn't being completed as booked.

I agree it would be courteous to let the staff know so they aren't potentially holding that aircraft if they think you are in the bathroom or something, but canceling the second leg in that way would technically require a rebooking to the current offering for a SAV-MDW instead of what was actually booked. (And regardless if the effort actually saved money or not although people doing it on purpose are generally trying to save a few bucks.)

If there was really some exceptional circumstance where you said to them that I can't board that flight I'm staying then you should be doing what is necessary for you, knowing the consequences in Rapid Rewards. 

[dfwskier]

Either that or be sure you cancel the return before you miss the connecting flight.

I almost always book 2 one ways instead of a roundtrip

[NewtonHahn]

Thanks for the advice.