During the pandemic, airlines started cutting back on expenses including when they were sticking it to customers. For instance,
- Big airlines other than Delta cut way back on compensation they’d offer when they oversold a flight.
- Airlines increased the length of a schedule change required for fee-free rebooking or refund (while most airlines reverted to pre-pandemic policies, American Airlines has not).
- And American even cut back on its obligations during delays and cancellations.
One American Airlines rules change was that they would no longer reimburse a hotel when a customer got stranded due to a mechanical or crew cancellation or delay. You’d have to wait for a hotel voucher, even if it meant an hour in line, and if they didn’t have a hotel to offer you were simply out of luck.
Cranky Flier defended this change but American’s systems were so poor they were denying customers hotel nights even when they were entitled to them.
In summer 2022, the Department of Transportation strong-armed airlines into covering hotels and meals during delays that are their fault. American already did, but as airlines updated their contracts of carriage to include this the particulars changed. American was on the hook for a room, even if the provider they were using for hotel inventory couldn’t deliver. So they started reimbursing passengers in that scenario.
While American will now reimburse hotel nights under specific circumstances, their conditions for doing so are totally unreasonable. Here’s a message to an Executive Platinum customer:
Since we occasionally need to provide our customers with hotel rooms, we do have approved rates with local hotels in each city. Therefore, when we provide reimbursement for hotel expenses, we do so at that rate. Since you overnighted in Charlotte, we will be able to reimburse for your hotel expense at a maximum rate of $100.00 for your family.
Adding to this, please include your full mailing address in your response as reimbursement checks are sent via the postal service. Also, kindly note that the total reimbursement cost will exclude all taxes and VAT.
As a bulk buyer of rooms they negotiate some fantastic discounts for themselves. They don’t want to reimburse more. But in this case they do not have any negotiated rates available. Indeed, it may be that they don’t have any rooms to offer because they’re willing to spend so little, which is why a customer can get a room while the American Airlines hotel provider can’t – there just aren’t rooms available for a discounted price.
And regardless, American says they won’t pay for taxes on the room. What the..? They must have an in-house lawyer who believes their commitment to cover the room is distinguishable from a commitment to cover room taxes, though you cannot buy one without the other.
I suppose a willingness to reimburse passengers for rooms during controllable overnight delays when they cannot provide one directly is an improvement over the previous policy, but the room cost and tax exclusion in this case are clearly unreasonable and tantamount to not covering the cost of a room as their contract of carriage and customer service commitment require. I’d file a complaint with DOT.
This also underscores, of course, that you do not want to spend the night in the sort of hotel that American Airlines will provide for you when they cancel a flight or delay it overnight and you’re unexpectedly forced to stay in a city away from home. They promise accommodations, but do not make promises about the quality of those accommodations.
@AmericanAir i was mistreated last week on your flight from Atlanta to Dallas and then from Dallas to Phoenix. Here are the videos of my room disgusting hair and stains on the bed in two different rooms pic.twitter.com/MCPyYSFBEw
— Bald William Dent act right heffias (@bougiegentleman) July 5, 2024
The elevators were non functional so we had to use the stairs. The hallway stunk and as you can see there was a big open hole in the ceiling tile. @WyndhamHotels pic.twitter.com/7nr761N2Aw
— Nellz (@Nursenellz) December 19, 2023
@AmericanAir repeatedly delayed our flight until they finally pushed us to the next day. Then, THIS is the hotel they gave us a voucher to stay in. Do you honestly think this is okay? #americanairlines #airlines #Flights pic.twitter.com/PKws6RvwCa
— Laura Mzhickteno (@SimpliLaura) September 27, 2023
If you are in a position to do so, consider taking matters into your own hands even at your potential expense (though there are ways of minimizing the expense). If you rely on the airline for accommodation, you’re likely to wind up somewhere that you really do not want to stay. And it may take a significant amount of time to get even that – taking away from the limited time you may have for rest before returning to the airport for an early flight the next day. So what do you do instead?
- Rely on your credit card coverage. Pay for your ticket with a credit card that offers trip delay coverage, book your own room and save receipts for it, along with ground transportation and meals. IYou’re assured the property you are comfortable staying in. You won’t wait. And you can look farther afield if need be. Sure, airport hotels might well all be booked. But if you aren’t spending an hour in line to get the room is a 20 minute drive away from the airport (also billed to trip delay coverage) so bad?
Some readers might say that ‘you’re obligated to minimize the insurer’s loss, and foregoing a room offered by the airline fails to do that and obviates coverage’. I do not believe you are obligated to take any room, of any quality offered. And I have never seen coverage denied for this when claimed properly.
- Request a distressed passenger rate. If you don’t have credit card trip delay coverage, and you can’t find a good rate on your own that you’re willing to pay, one alternative to the long line may be the baggage office. Ask there about distressed passenger rates for hotels. If the line is long at your airline’s baggage office, or it isn’t staffed, be friendly and ask at another airline’s baggage office.
- Use points. Airline hotels often are great deals on points, with reward costs based on a hotel’s average daily rate which tends to be brought down by large airline contracts for housing crew. A few thousand points from your stash can get you a far better night’s sleep, more quickly, than relying on the airline.
Airlines may give you a free room when you’re faced with a controllable overnight delay. But you get what you pay for – you probably don’t want to sleep in the room they’re going to give you. There are exceptions, but it can be very much worth venturing off on your own rather than rolling the dice on free.
I was once stuck in Kansas City- (didn’t know anyone there) after the plane landed there when my destination’s airport closed due to thunderstorms and lightning. after trying to board after the airport reopened, we were taken off the plane again because it closed again- waited in line over an hour because I let a quadriplegic young man go before me- didn’t regret that choice in any way. the hotel they gave me was horrendous- was afraid there were bugs – couldn’t sleep and I should have taken photos- learned my lesson- will never take these hotel rooms- we should all report them so they will clean them up and make them more habitable. no one looking for a luxury suite- just clean, bug free and with a comfortable mattress- sheesh-
Ask an airline for a free third rate room , end up with a free third rate room . That’s on the pax .
Pay for a first-tier room , then get a first-tier room . That’s also on the pax .
The operative words are “free” and “pay for” .
If you go to NYC , do you stay in a Bowery fleabag ? Or do you stay at the Waldorf ?
$100. What decade is that room rate from. Those hotels are more suitable for homeless people who live in cardboard boxes that is an upgrade to them. As for credit card reimbursement. It has been 4 months and I am still arguing with Citibank to get reimbursed
AA is being stupid here. They think by having this new policy they are going to save some money, but they are just calling for government regulation to be imposed to protect stranded passengers. That will end up costing them a lot more than just being reasonable.
100% solid advice, but be aware of your cc coverage trip delay rules. AA Citi Exec tells you in the big print you’re covered for reasonable expenses after a 4-hr delay. But in the small print it’s actually limited to a 4-hr delay on the originating leg. Find yourself overnighting due to a missed connection following a 3 1/2-hr first flight delay? No coverage from Citi.
Given the places AA (and sometimes other carriers) frequently send distressed passengers, I’d just find my own place for the night. That’s why I always use a credit card for trips and buy travel insurance. Nothing against travel agents, but I always book directly with the carrier, too. File under “Dodging a bullet.”
How wild it is to expect private companies to sort stuff like this out themselves – with almost zero government regulation requiring them to manage their own issues in smooth and reasonable ways for their customers.
Of course these companies will look to screw as many over as possible.
American capitalism in a nutshell. And people accept this – even defend it. Zero consumer protection. Just wild.
This situation happened to my elderly parents-in-law a few weeks ago on AA: flight from ORD-JAC was on a rolling delay for hours, until they finally gave in and moved it to the next morning. They told all passengers to check their emails for hotel vouchers, and my in-laws didn’t receive anything. When they approached an agent, they were told they live too close to ORD to qualify. They live 90 minutes from ORD, by this time it was nighttime with an early morning flight the next day. Agents couldn’t be bothered and told them to pound sand. No way were we going to let our in-laws drive late at night from ORD, wake up a few hours later and drive back. We booked and paid for their hotel room. Aside from adding to the commentary about how piss-poor AA’s policy and CS is, does the fact that they live 90 mins from ORD release them from any liability or are they free to strand senior citizens late at night and tell them to hit the road (literally)? Or is this DOT-able?
Just get your own room. Are people really so poor or cheap they can afford to travel but not to book a room? I would never wait in line or grovel for one – I just book what I want and pay for it. End of discussion
“As a bulk buyer of rooms they negotiate some fantastic discounts for themselves. They don’t want to reimburse more. But in this case they do not have any negotiated rates available. Indeed, it may be that they don’t have any rooms to offer because they’re willing to spend so little, which is why a customer can get a room while the American Airlines hotel provider can’t – there just aren’t rooms available for a discounted price.”
AA is technically not a bulk buyer of anything. For crew rooms, the carrier and the hotel have zero contact with each other. All interactions/negotiations/payments are handled by 3rd party agencies. Obviously, when some type of cancellation occurs, those rates are not available/extended to the public the same as a “distressed passenger” rate which is something that hasn’t existed in a widespread capacity, domestically, in decades.
A customer can get a room because they are going to pay whatever the prevailing rate is. The carrier very much will not the same as they pay basically what they want for crew rooms. You either meet their at times ludicrous list of demands that they want to pay nothing for or else they are more than happy to take their business elsewhere.
Do not rely on Citi for anything they say they “offer”. I was hurt in an accident overseas and was unconscious then flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital. When I contacted Citi for reimbursement they said I needed to get pre authorization before my helicopter ride. Seriously? When I told them I was incapable they said someone I was with should have called. I was with people including my wife and they had no idea what was in my wallet let alone Citi’s non existent benefit. I call B.S. on just about anything they allegedly promise. I really would love to sue the bastards but for what I don’t know. Fortunately my health coverage handled the expense. Please, if anyone who works for Citi credit cards reads this, I feel sorry for you to work for such a disingenuous company. Same for AA.
Earlier this summer I missed a domestic connection at IAD after my flight from Europe was late due to a mechanical problem. I was stuck there until the next morning. I grabbed a room at Hilton for $150, had a plate of nachos and two beers at the bar before going to bed. I sent the bill to UA and politely asked that they consider covering the cost. Not only did they do that, but they gave me a $200 voucher for future travel. Very nice on their part!
As someone else said, just deal with it yourself. I got reimbursed this time. If not, so be it. I learned long ago that taking matters into your own hands often produces happier results.
So Citi card holders should pay for your screw up and you want Citi to pay for your helicopter ride just because? You really expect free helicopter rides? Oh look I have a credit card let me call for a submarine ride then a balloon ride.
My question is, why does these people report the hotels to the state fire Marshal’s office or the regulator of the hotels in this area? You know, Ohio. It’s the state fire Marshall’s stain ceiling. Dial and disdain ceilings are a big. No, no, the same as dirty beds.
XP
This happened to me. They were out of vouchers, and I had to get last-minute hotel in Miami after midnight due to their “avoidable delay” while my kids were melting down. They have reimbursed me for $300 of $500 in expenses, and I have filed more than 5 DOT complaints now … That just get shuffled back to AA, which tells me basically to shove off. They have a monopoly on many routes at my home airport. Not sure what the purpose of the transportation dashboard is if they’re just going to flout it and the government won’t help you either.
I am surprised that nothing was mentioned about meal vouchers. The AA issues a $12 one, which buys you exactly one candy bar at CLT. You have to stand in line 3+ hours to get it. The AA has become the worst airline in America. They schedule way too many flights and not enough staff. Customer service is non existent, they are understaffed everywhere – flights, ground crews, airport staff. Stay away from them as much as you can.
Not sure what is worse: the airline saying it’s providing a hotel room at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in NYC for tonight, or an IRROPs-hit customer booking themselves a room for tonight at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC.
“Alert” seems to have failed to adjust for the fact that the Waldorf Astoria hotel in NYC has been closed for quite some time and is still closed for run-of-the-mill Hilton Diamond members wanting to stay there.
I would welcome a US version of EC 261/2004 consumer protection law for travelers but add to it graduated punitive damages for airlines to pay to consumers when the airlines fail to live up to timely delivery of whatever monetary amounts or protections were applicable for the situation but not provided in a very timely manner.
Simplest solution: don’t fly AA until they get a hold on reality. They have cut more than the competition. Fly the competition.
Air travel is changing. Why should an airline be your mommy and give you a hotel for weather cancellations? If you go to the shops and they don’t have what you want, do you expect compensation? When airlines were regulated they gave hotels and reimbursed. They’re deregulated now, and it’s a competitive market. If you can’t afford to travel with all of its possible flaws, cancellations, delays, then don’t travel. Back in the day there were no such things as basic economy ticket for $50; why would an airline give someone who spent $50 on a ticket to miami a hotel worth more than that?
Pappa Pete may try and change things but there is only so much he can do and I guarantee you it will be worse for passengers if he does. Like you pay taxes on rooms, tranportation, etc.
There is one simple solution to all of American’s – and every airline operating in the USA – unfairness in offering hotels and vouchers for delays: let us sue them in court like any other business. We consider it normal that airlines have been lifted to a place of royalty so that they can’t be sued in normal courts for almost anything. The airlines therefore operate on a noblesse oblige basis because they are uniquely unaccountable in the economy. Fix this and let people sue when they feel wronged, so that a judge can decide an airline’s legal obligation to it’s passenger rather than the airline.
Almost missed my AA flight in CLT this past weekend and it was the last flight out for the night to JAX. CLT is a shitshow and they never have enough gates available, so when a plane at the gate is delayed which at CLT is almost always, its a disaster.
Even though I made my plane by the skin of my teeth, AA sent me a text with a voucher. I am so glad I made my flight because the hotels they were offering up were 1 star places; Microtel, Mainstay, etc. In the past I have been stuck in ATL flying Delta and they put me in a nice Hilton.
I only started to fly AA because CLT was easier and faster to get around than ATL, but really starting to consider switching back to Delta. CLT is bursting at its seams and dont think there is any relief coming anytime soon.