United Airlines glitch

[NYDisneyKid]

Not sure if this was talked about on here yet but yesterday (Thursday) United Airlines had a glitch and for about 15 minutes tickets were sold for $5 and $10.

http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2013/09/united_airlines_sells_5_to_10.html

 

[goofyfigment]

And I missed it so bummed

 

[My2Qtz0205]

I missed it, too. Our flights to/from Vegas/DC for two people will cost us $1400. Imagine me telling my husband I was able to get them for $40 round trip!

 

[goofyfigment]

I missed it, too. Our flights to/from Vegas/DC for two people will cost us $1400. Imagine me telling my husband I was able to get them for $40 round trip!

The one Lady they interviewed got 2 round trip from Houston to Honolulu for 15 bucks. I'm never that lucky

 

[mkymouse40]

I'm not that lucky either. Plus, I know if I saw that fare, I wouldn't book it because I would over-think it until it disappeared! I just heard on the news that people got them for free also! I know I would have hesitated on that one too long knowing for sure something was wrong with that.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Hard to believe, but UA is going to honor the tickets which were booked at the wrong prices. When this same thing has happened in the past, the tickets have often been canceled by the airline.

 

[NYDisneyKid]

Wouldnt it be nice (hey thats a song) if Disney had a glitch and their ticket prices and resort prices were like the prices of opening day in 1971 ºOº

 

[jsilvers]

Hard to believe, but UA is going to honor the tickets which were booked at the wrong prices. When this same thing has happened in the past, the tickets have often been canceled by the airline.

Not hard to believe at all. Since 2012, the U.S. Department of Transportation has warned airlines that it expects "glitch" tickets to be honored, so United didn't really have a choice:

Does the prohibition on post-purchase price increases in section 399.88(a) apply in the situation where a carrier mistakenly offers an airfare due to a computer problem or human error and a consumer purchases the ticket at that fare before the carrier is able to fix the mistake?

Section 399.88(a) states that it is an unfair and deceptive practice for any seller of scheduled air transportation within, to, or from the United States, or of a tour or tour component that includes scheduled air transportation within, to, or from the United States, to increase the price of that air transportation to a consumer after the air transportation has been purchased by the consumer, except in the case of a government-imposed tax or fee and only if the passenger is advised of a possible increase before purchasing a ticket. A purchase occurs when the full amount agreed upon has been paid by the consumer. Therefore, if a consumer purchases a fare and that consumer receives confirmation (such as a confirmation email and/or the purchase appears on their credit card statement or online account summary) of their purchase, then the seller of air transportation cannot increase the price of that air transportation to that consumer, even when the fare is a “mistake.”​

See http://www.dot.gov/sites/dot.dev/files/docs/EAPP_2_FAQ.pdf#page=45.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

It's hard for me to believe. This isn't the first time this has happened and mistake fares have not always been honored in the past.

The regulation you quoted is irrelevant. If the tickets weren't going to be honored, UA would have simply canceled them, which is what happened in the past. No fare increase involved.

 

[jsilvers]

It's hard for me to believe. This isn't the first time this has happened and mistake fares have not always been honored in the past.

And the rules have changed, as noted in my prior post.

The regulation you quoted is irrelevant. If the tickets weren't going to be honored, UA would have simply canceled them, which is what happened in the past. No fare increase involved.

If you had read the link provided in my prior post, you would have seen that canceling "glitch" tickets is not an option:

A contract of carriage provision that reserves the right to cancel such ticketed purchases or reserves the right to raise the fare cannot legalize the practice described above. The Enforcement Office would consider any contract of carriage provision that attempts to relieve a carrier of the prohibition against post-purchase price increase to be an unfair and deceptive practice in violation of 49 U.S.C. § 41712.​

 

[Lewisc]

Wouldnt it be nice (hey thats a song) if Disney had a glitch and their ticket prices and resort prices were like the prices of opening day in 1971 ºOº

Disney chose not to honor rates during the last couple of "glitches". One "glitch" was obvious. Guests were being charged tax only for suites at BWI. The other time guests were given FL resident rates, by mistake. Disney didn't even honor most of those reservations.

Posters are right. Most business can cancel "glitch" rates. It's much harder for airlines to do that.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Canceling glitch tickets is an option and has been done. If you chose not to believe this, that's okay!

 

[DebbieB]

I heard once that if the price was obviously a glitch (they were actually free, the only charge was the taxes) that they did not have to honor it.

 

[jsilvers]

I heard once that if the price was obviously a glitch (they were actually free, the only charge was the taxes) that they did not have to honor it.

As has been noted, that used to be the case, but DOT has made clear that is no longer an excuse. If the DOT's 2012 FAQ isn't enough to make it clear that "glitch" fares must be honored, a Google search returns numerous articles since then, such as http://www.theflightdeal.com/2012/08/10/honoring-mistake-fares/.

 

[jrsharp21]

My wife actually got in on the UA gitch. I have to go to California in a couple of weeks and my ticket was 7.50 each way.

I told her she should have gotten tickets for our WDW trip and she had completely forgot.

 

[Lewisc]

I heard once that if the price was obviously a glitch (they were actually free, the only charge was the taxes) that they did not have to honor it.

That is generally true. A poster has already offered offered quotes, and links, to applicable rules documenting airline "glitch" fares are an exception to the general rule.

Your point?