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Fat Dude (aka Customer of Size) admonished by SWA staff for proactive extra seat purchase?!?!

Mobius
Explorer C

Hi Folks!  I'm a big guy at 6' tall and 360 pounds... plenty of muscle... lots of fat... and NOT the person you want asking if that middle seat is taken late in the boarding process.

 

I'm also a nice guy that likes to be comfortable, so I take advantage of Southwest's fantastic Customer Of Size program.  This lets me proactively purchase 2 seats and the extra seat is always refunded.  I get to be comfortable and my neighbors are spared the trauma of forced cuddling with a sweaty fat guy.

 

Of course... since SWA is so awesome, they find a way to accommodate fat people (oops... "Customers of Size") that are too inconsiderate to book their seats in advance.  However, this is most likely going to result in someone getting bumped.  Indeed, it even says on the SWA website:

 

Why would a Customer of size purchase a second seat knowing they can get a complimentary second seat at the airport?

Having a second seat purchased in advance allows us to account for the inventory need and greatly helps reduce the likelihood of an oversale situation (having more confirmed Customers waiting to board than seats on the aircraft).  [....]These Customers of size prefer to know they have the number of seats they require, and we wanted to give them that choice.  We will also refund all extra seat purchases, even if the flight oversells. 

 

So... can anyone explain why SWA counter and gate staff have begun to tell me that I should stop purchasing the extra seat in advance?  On 10 of my last 12 flights, I've been told that I'm doing it wrong by purchasing the extra seat in advance.  In response, I explain their own **bleep** policy to them.  However, it would be great if one little corner of my life could contain people that actually care enough to know how to do their job.

 

2 REPLIES 2

Re: Fat Dude (aka Customer of Size) admonished by SWA staff for proactive extra seat purchase?!?!

thelostbag
Explorer C

sorry you were uncomfortable on your flight. I had a bigger person (customer of size) next to me on a flight back in January before the virus and luckily somone no showed so i was able to take the other open middle seat.

Re: Fat Dude (aka Customer of Size) admonished by SWA staff for proactive extra seat purchase?!?!

NicoleAshley
Employee
Employee
Solution

We're so sorry for any frustration, @Mobius! To provide an answer we would need to understand how you have been booking the extra seat. If you're just purchasing a second seat, this can cause issues at boarding like incorrect passenger counts or weight and balance issues. Our Employees are instructed that they should be proactive in looking for extra seats booked incorrectly to avoid these types of issues. If you've been booking following the guidance on Southwest.com, there should not be an issue with the way it’s booked, and I wouldn't be able to know why you've experienced these issues, so you would need to Contact Customer Relations for assistance. I hope that helps! We look forward to our next opportunity to welcome you onboard.

 

Nicole
Community Manager