ID names required to match exactly?

[lklasing]

I remember reading a couple of months ago that TSA changed the rules for security that the names on tickets have to match EXACTLY the name on IDs - including middle names, initials, etc. I've never made our reservations that way and have never had any trouble, but of course that was before the change was made. Are we going to have trouble on our upcoming September trip with this? Is there any "grandfathering" for people who made their reservations prior to this rule change?

Any insight will be appreciated!

 

[aubriee]

I'm flying Air Tran to WDW Sept 26th and Oct 4th. I just called and had them add my maiden name. My ID has my first name, maiden name, then last name. When I called to see if I might have a problem, the rep said she'd just make the change to make sure I didn't. My driver's license has first, maiden, last name, but my passport has first, middle, last name. The rep told me to make sure my airline ticket matched whichever ID I planned on using for that trip.

Last week I booked airfare for our Dec trip and there was a spot to add a middle/maiden name.

 

[P.I. Squirrel]

I had heard the same thing when I called late last year to make dozens of ressies for my employees. But, this year, when I checked in for my flight, tickets had no middle name, license has middle name. I went through, no questions asked. Maiden name may be a different situation though. It would be best for you to call and correct your name with the airline.

 

[kaytieeldr]

According to what I've read (and been told by JetBlue ), the TSA is "hitting" each airline on a rolling basis over the next few months. Most likely, the airlines will be contacting passengers with existing reservations if the new regulation affects them; in addition, it wouldn't be unreasonable to expect the airlines' websites to provide a space for the middle name in the near future.

In the meantime, future purchase can be made by including the middle name/initial in the First Name field - e.g. "Walter E." or "Walter Elias" instead of just plain "Walter"; then "Disney" in the Last Name field.

 

[DebbieB]

I flew last Saturday, my ID reads Debra A, my SW ticket just read Debra. No problem.

 

[goofy4tink]

If you purchased your tickets before a certain date (and I can't remember what that day was...maybe mid-May??) you were fine. But after that date, the boarding pass was supposed to match your ID. I really don't have an issue with that. The airlines, and TSA, really aren't doing much about it at the moment, but I would be sure to book with your name as shown on your ID from this point on. Some airlines will let you change your reservation to show the proper ID name..but that is up to the individual airline.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

This website posted some misleading Travel News, "TSA cracks down on mismatched tickets, ID's," at http://www.wdwinfo.com/news/Travel_News/TSA_cracks_down_on_mismatched_tickets_ID_s.htm

It appears to be a misinterpretation of the TSA's May 12 press release, "TSA's Secure Flight Enters First Public Phase." Here's the real story from the TSA: http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/2009/0512.shtm

In short:

Beginning May 15, 2009, passengers should specify their middle name or initial (to match their ID) when booking airline flights.

Beginning August 15, 2009, passengers must enter their date of birth and gender when booking airline flights.​

It doesn't apply to passengers who already bought tickets for upcoming flights. It's not a "new TSA crackdown." And it doesn't mean that passengers are now being hassled by the TSA because their middle initials are missing on their boarding passes.

It's preparation for enhanced watch list matching in 2010.

Here's a key paragraph from the press release:

In the near future, small differences between the passenger's ID and the passenger's reservation information, such as the use of a middle initial instead of a full middle name or no middle name/initial at all, will not be an issue for passengers. Over time, passengers should strive to obtain consistency between the name on their government issued ID and the travel information they use for booking flights.​

Most airline websites do not yet offer a field for a middle name when buying tickets online.

A bigger issue is that many people have drivers licenses and passports that do not match exactly. The drivers license might have just a middle initial, while the passport might have a full middle name. So one of these government-issued IDs won't match the ticket, even if the other one does.

 

[kevgraub]

This has been discussed quite a bit on here, but what it boils down to is the fact that the media (possibly with the help of confusing info from the TSA) completely blew the story. No, your ID does not have to exactly match right now. At some point in the future, probably so. Right now, no.

What happened is that on May 15 - the TSA started requiring airlines to collect a person's full name as it appears on their ID. In August, the TSA is also going to start requiring airlines to collect a person's date of birth and gender.

All this adds up to steps toward the TSA taking over the screening for the goverment watch lists. Currently, that is all done by the individual airlines. The TSA is going to take that over and have a centralized screening system. They are collecting this additional information to help eliminate the false positives that come up, and force people into extra screening simply because they have a similar name to someone on the watch list. (See the thread in this forum about the 2 little kids that could not check in online.) By being able to match full names, there should be fewer of these things happen since there are considerably fewer John Edward Does out there than there are just plain John Does.