SOLD OUT FLIGHT

[nthudso]

If I volunteer to give up  my seat on a sold out flight, do i have to be at the counter in order to get compensated on the next available flight?

[franktravel · Accepted solution]

Hi 

On the day of the flight while waiting to board the gate agent would announce that they are in a over sold situation and are asking for volunteers and offering compensation.  This would be a first come first serve, and you would go out on the next available flight.

[permal]

I like to read more about the sold out flight compensation.

[DancingDavidE]

Go to Southwest.com and down at the bottom will be a link to "Contract of Carriage"

[chgoflyer · Accepted solution]

Note that the Contract of Carriage details compensation in the case of Involuntary Denied Boarding, due to an oversell situation. Southwest no longer overbooks flights, so the odds of being denied boarding due to oversell are low. (Even when a flight appears to be "sold out" online, as their systems account for no-shows and other variables.)

With regards to voluntary bumping (the situation the OP references), there is no required compensation. The passenger receives whatever is offered (or negotiated) by the gate agent when a volunteer is sought.

This can include travel vouchers (most often), cash compensation (rarely), and hotel or other accommodations, plus rebooking on a later flight. This varies greatly based on criteria like how many volunteers are needed, and the timeframe for the next available flight (the next flight, much later that day, the following day, etc.).

If volunteering for a bump, be sure you understand exactly what you'll receive, and make sure you have it in writing before leaving the gate area. 😉