Southwest Airlines Community

@TheMiddleSeat wrote: I'll disagree... someone flying as a free companion should not receive compensation for a cancellation.  The ticket is already free and you can add them to your next flight which you are getting a discount on because of the LUV voucher your received for free.   --TheMiddleSeat   By this logic anyone flying on points shouldn't receive any compensation. Obviously, that's not the case.   True non-revs shouldn't receive compensation as their flight was at no cost to them. This includes those traveling on a guest/buddy pass or a space-available ticket, and others such as employees of other airlines. However, both points fares and companion pass tickets have a cost to them, in that points are earned and have a monetary value, and the companion pass requires significant financial effort to earn.     ... View more

You have to collect the "seat saved" document at the gate desk. If the agent feels you're not a COS they will deny giving it, cancel your 2nd seat and issue a refund.   It does happen. ... View more

@Jmc312901 wrote: I had a credit of over $300 that expired the last week of August. I tried to request either a voucher or extension, any options not to loose too much, but they simply stated nope in the email and a bunch of mumbo.    So, I am assume they aren't working with us anymore? Once they expire, that's it?    Did you request the voucher after the funds had expired? For many years this has been an option with a fee (most currently $100 per fund/person).   There are ongoing changes with Southwest's telephone customer service avenues, so it's possible you just reached an uninformed rep. I'd recommend contacting Customer Relations via social media direct message and make the voucher request.   Good luck.   Contact Customer Relations  ... View more

Likely an error in the dynamic link. FYI: The link in today's message re: the Companion Pass promo causes a "Oops!" error for me. As suggested above: going to the website, logging into your account and registering via Promotions is usually the best way to be sure. ... View more

Unfortunately, I think it's sadly true that "heartless" is an apt description of air carriers' customer service these days. (And is not even limited to this industry.)   Airlines lost huge amounts of money due to the pandemic, and it may be years until they recover, so management has dis-empowered their CS/CR reps in efforts to staunch the bleeding. (Not meant as a justification, just an explanation.) Southwest did offer some covid accommodations earlier in the pandemic, but those ended months ago. It's unfortunate that you received confusing messaging from your inquiries, as that just adds insult to injury. Ongoing changes to Southwest's customer assistance departments may be partly to blame. At this point, I'd assume your funds will expire in October. But I'd also go ahead and try once again, this time sending a snail-mail letter. Explain the situation as briefly as possible, include copies of the replies you've received and make your request clear.   If you haven't heard back within 6 months after the funds expire, you may have one other option at that point. Reach out to Customer Relations and request your expired funds be reissued as a voucher. If granted, you'll be charged a fee of $100 per travel fund/person (deducted from each fund's balance). Depending on the amount of your funds this may or may not be a viable option. The vouchers can be used by anyone and are valid for 6 months from the date of issue. The request must be made within 6 months of the funds' expiration.   Good luck.   Southwest Airlines P.O. Box 36647-1CR Dallas, Texas 75235   Contact Customer Relations  ... View more

That "register now" link in the "Get to tier status 2X faster" email message works fine for me. Note that it's much, much longer than just "t.iluvsouthwest.com" -- and it appears to be specific for each person. You'll want to make sure you're using the full link for it to work. ... View more

@gsking wrote: Rather nebulous comments you made there,  but it sounds like you're complaining that the pilots mentioned wishing the mask mandate on aircraft would be over soon?  Perhaps because it was recently extended from September to January,  and they were being apologetic to you and the other passengers for the inconvenience?    So... you think that's politicizing the debate and it hurt your feelings,  because you'd rather the pilots concur with and reinforce your personal desire for Draconian mask enforcement?   Just so we're on the same page for your grievance.       Their comments were pretty clear to me. And without reading into things with my personal biases and making huge assumptions.   FYI: The mask mandate extension wasn't announced until August 17, well after the flight in question.     ... View more

I personally would also find it unacceptable for a pilot, or any airline employee, to express to passengers their complaints regarding current regulations they are tasked with enforcing.   There are enough morons on planes these days who feel that rules don't apply to them, and some react violently when reminded that they do. The last thing needed now is to have an airline employee add fuel to the fire. ... View more

Yeah, I thought it strange when they added that distinction. 😉 ... View more

Positions are based on the timestamp of the EBCI purchase (with Anytime fares ahead of Wanna Get Away).   EarlyBird Check-In   ... View more

The bags will eventually be taken in by Southwest bag agents. If they're not taken by someone else. Aside from this not being how the system is supposed to work, it's generally a bad idea, and not without risk.   What I've done in the past is leave my bags with the bellman at the most convenient hotel. You don't have to be staying there, but you should tip decently.  ... View more

Biden warned against trying to rush out an unfinished vaccine ahead of the Nov. 3 election.   “Let me be clear: I trust vaccines, I trust scientists, but I don’t trust Donald Trump,” Biden said. “At this moment, the American people can’t either.”       ... View more

Did the voucher come by email? If so, that should contain the expiration date.   People have been reporting better phone hold times in the last week. Good luck! ... View more

@NOLA1206 wrote: Hi, just wondering if anyone can help? I have an expiring luv voucher, but keep getting an error code when trying to access with voucher # and code. The notice is telling me to call, but there's no way I'm going to wait on hold for 3 hours. Any suggestions?   Thanks, Flo   First, verify that the voucher hasn't yet expired and still has funds available? You can check that here.   Then, keep in mind that your flight has to be completed before the expiration date of the voucher.   Make sure you're entering the voucher in the right place:     If this all checks out as correct, you'll unfortunately have no choice but to contact Customer Relations.   Contact Customer Relations  ... View more

@bwallet wrote: @chgoflyer I'm guessing that Southwest automatically rebooked them on another flight. They didn't stick around to talk to an agent. I'm guessing that Southwest rebooked them and then marked them as no shows.   That's possible. If so, they should have received a no-show email notification, and their return trip would have been forfeited (if booked as a r/t).   If they were rebooked, Southwest knows they didn't fly, and by providing proof they flew on an alternate airline (if requested) they should be able to clarify the situation. ... View more

That's not Southwest, that's United.   United Airlines says its U.S. employees must get vaccinated — or risk being fired   Frontier and Hawaiian will also require all employees to be vaccinated, but stop short of saying (for now) that those who choose not to will be fired. ... View more

Whether it was weather or mechanical, if the flight was cancelled by Southwest and they did not rebook you on another flight, you are due a full refund, per the Southwest Contract of Carriage. (pdf)   The funds from your flight should now be held under the confirmation number. You can check that here.   If you think you can use those funds prior to their expiration, you are all set. Just apply them to your new booking.   I however would recommend you insist on a refund. Contact Customer Relations (it might be best at this point to call in, expect a possible long hold time).   Contact Customer Relations  ... View more

I just shudder to think where we'd be as a country if people thought so much about only themselves and so little about the greater good during the early half of the last century. Citizens made huge personal sacrifices back then, all for the sake of fighting global enemies. Now we're just asking that they get a freaking shot, but no, that's just too much to expect.   <smh> ... View more

Of course they will, they have something to say about everything. 😉   I suspect Southwest's lawyers are well versed in the various contracts, and exactly what they can do and what they can not.       ... View more

@noyb wrote: Dawn - With all due respect, many people strongly disagree with  your position on vaccines.  A company absolutely should not require it's workforce to be vaccinated. Let me assure you, as more companies institute these policies,  Southwest will in fact NOT lose any business.  Lets just agree to disagree here - I'll enjoy flying Southwest and you enjoy your United flight!   So, actually, fyi support for vaccine mandates in the US is very high. It's only a problem because some people have politicized the issue, primarily in order to rile up their followers and keep them angry at "the other side." The vast majority of US citizens support vaccine mandates.   No vaccination? Americans back tough rules and mask mandates to protect the common good   An overwhelming 72%-28% of those surveyed by USA TODAY and Ipsos called mask mandates "a matter of health and safety," not an infringement on personal liberty. By 61%-39%, they endorsed requiring vaccinations except for those with a medical or religious exemption.   By more than 2-1, 70%-30%, Americans agreed that people have the right to choose not to get the vaccine but that they then don't have the right to be around the vaccinated. There was significant support for businesses, employers, colleges, restaurants, airlines and others to bar those who hadn't gotten the shot.     The sad truth is that Southwest is already losing business, due to fears (irrational perhaps) from the latest delta surge. Travel destinations are no longer looking attractive, and some such as Hawaii are literally asking people not to come. Businesses are again reducing their employee's travel. Bookings were actually picking up, but now they're down so much that Southwest issued a revised revenue statement.   Southwest Airlines warns that delta Covid variant is hurting bookings, lowers outlook   Southwest is second airline in less than a week to warn about the impact of the delta Covid variant on bookings. Frontier Airlines issued a similar warning late last week. Weaker bookings and higher cancellations will weigh on results this month, Southwest said.   As I've said before, that it's very unlikely Southwest will ever have a vaccine mandate, because politics. Any mandate would put them afoul of Texas governor Greg Abbott. They've currently been using employee incentives to help raise vaccination rates, I suspect they'll move to disincentives at some point, along the lines of what Delta just announced.   The US should be doing everything it can to raise vaccination rates. We will never get out of this pandemic until the virus stops spreading (and mutating), and people stop dying. ... View more

@gsking wrote: This is interesting.   They managed since November just testing people.   Now,  they started letting in vaccinated people without getting tested.   And now cases are spiking so badly they don't want people to come anymore.    And yet so many people here are frothing at the mouth that if flight attendants don't get vaccinated,  the world will end.    Do you people understand how naive and illogical you look?    So, obviously, you're conflating things that have no connection. And exaggerating what others are saying. And again you're making illogical conclusions.   Hawaii's current covid crisis is primarily among unvaccinated residents. It's estimated that only 1%-2% is caused by tourism. Letting vaccinated tourists in did not lead to the increase in covid cases.   Unfortunately, Hawaii is under a lot of stress right now, from multiple directions. The state is struggling with staffing issues (as is happening in many places). Maui has freshwater shortage issues. Tourists are causing problems with major roadways. There are supply chain issues affecting places like restaurants and bars. And most importantly, the covid surge triggered by delta + unvaccinated is causing ICUs to fill up.   The governor has asked tourists to postpone trips as a way of reducing some of that stress.   When people suggest that Southwest mandate vaccination for employees (admittedly not all people, some are misguided), it's as an effort to reduce the spread of delta. It isn't about me worrying that a flight attendant will infect me. Southwest's employees represent a large number of various positions, flight attendants only represent a small portion. Mandated vaccination would reduce potential delta spread. And right now, the US should be doing everything it can to reduce the spread if we're ever truly going to get back to "normal."   I'll note, as I've said before, that it's very unlikely Southwest will ever have a vaccine mandate, because politics. Any mandate would put them afoul of Texas governor Greg Abbott. They've currently been using employee incentives to help raise vaccination rates, I suspect they'll move to disincentives at some point, along the lines of what Delta just announced. ... View more

BuT WhAt AbOUt Teh ImmiGrAnTs!!!!!!   EXPLAINER: How do border policies affect US infection rates?   But public health experts say arriving migrants are not driving the rising infections in the U.S. The main culprits are people who refuse to get vaccinated. Furthermore, migrants who are allowed to enter are generally tested for COVID-19 and given hotel rooms to quarantine if they test positive, though federal authorities have not made data available about such cases.   ARE MIGRANTS WHO ARE NOT EXPELLED TESTED FOR COVID-19? Generally, yes. CBP, the agency that first takes migrants into custody, says they are given masks and referred to local health care providers for testing and treatment if they have symptoms.   From there, testing protocols can vary depending on which federal agency is involved. Most single adults and some families are transferred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, where they all take COVID-19 tests.   The key factors behind the recent spike in COVID-19 cases are people in U.S. communities who are unvaccinated and are not following guidance from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the highly contagious delta variant, according to public health experts.     ... View more

Delta Will Charge Unvaccinated Employees $200 a Month to Cover “Financial Risk”   Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the fee is designed to “address the financial risk” the unvaccinated force the company to endure. The average hospital stay for COVID-19 patients has cost Delta $40,000, he explained. ... View more

Not even in the slightest.   I personally commend Southwest for helping out with the humanitarian effort. ... View more

Unvaccinated Covid Patients Cost U.S. Health System Billions — And They’re Not The Ones Paying For It   Unvaccinated adults hospitalized with Covid-19 cost the American health system at least $2.3 billion in June and July this year, according to research by the Kaiser Family Foundation, most of which will be borne by society as a whole and not by  the unvaccinated patients.   ... View more

Luckily, it appears that the vast majority of Americans do have a basic understanding of the social contract.   That 20% though... they're the ones messing everything up.     No vaccination? Americans back tough rules and mask mandates to protect the common good   An overwhelming 72%-28% of those surveyed by USA TODAY and Ipsos called mask mandates "a matter of health and safety," not an infringement on personal liberty. By 61%-39%, they endorsed requiring vaccinations except for those with a medical or religious exemption.   By more than 2-1, 70%-30%, Americans agreed that people have the right to choose not to get the vaccine but that they then don't have the right to be around the vaccinated. There was significant support for businesses, employers, colleges, restaurants, airlines and others to bar those who hadn't gotten the shot.         ... View more