Advice needed

rainbow_carnage

I'm posting this on behalf of my parents.

Back in July, they booked a trip to Barbados via cheapcaribbean.com. It includes flights from NYC with American Airlines and hotel accommodations. AA have just announced that they're moving up the outgoing flight by 40 minutes. That may not sound like a lot, but it's enough that there's now a good chance that they'll miss the flight. It's possible that they will make it, but there's a good chance that they won't.

AA are refusing to do anything about it since they didn't book directly through them. Fair enough. But cheapcarribean.com are equally unhelpful. They said that because my parents didn't book the flight to New York through them, that it's not their problem. They've offered a refund of the price of the trip, minus a $215 penalty, per person. The refund would be in vouchers, which they would have to use within a certain time.

Is there anything they can do about it? This is not the trip that they had originally booked. The original booking had a certain departure time. This has changed. It's not like the plane was delayed due to bad weather. This is a clear change in the official departure time.

Do they have any kinds of rights here? I know it's probably different, since it's a US company.

(And no, they don't have travel insurance. Travel insurance isn't very common in the US, since they don't need the medical coverage.)

Any advice would be most appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

delwynshd

Where are they flying from first to get to New York?

What is the diff in the connection times?

richardw

Why didn't they book through tickets?

What do AA's terms and conditions say about flight time changes?

ferf1223

It's always a risk if you book different elements separately...schedules change, it happens all the time...and 40 minutes is not going to be significant enough to warrant a refund/compensation, I would not have thought...not sure why they booked such a tight connection? But I wouldn't have thought it was either AA or cheapcaribbean.com's problem.

I'm not sure travel insurance would have covered it anyway?

rainbow_carnage

They're coming from Rochester. It's a 40-minute internal flight. They had 70 minutes to catch the connection from an adjacent terminal at JFK. Now they have 30. That's really tight. Security at JFK is painfully slow. I don't think they're going to make it.

Is this sort of thing common? I fly overseas several times a year with different airlines. I've never had an issue with an airline changing the departure time. Often, flights are late. Sometimes they're cancelled. But I've never had a flight changed to an earlier time. How are people supposed to plan?

The AA policy is that if it's less than 90 mins, it's your problem. So, if you've given yourself two hours between flights, and they've reduced it to 35 minutes, it's up to you to sprint to catch the connection.

LittleMrsThrifty

Could they change their flight to NY (you don't say where they live but your comment about travel insurance suggests they're American) so they make the connection?

Bob_the_Saver

Airlines often change flight times especially if you book well in advance. Never leave a short gap unless you are booked right through. I usually have a stop-over anyway- relax it's only travel.

Bananabelly

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

They're coming from Rochester. It's a 40-minute internal flight. They had 70 minutes to catch the connection from an adjacent terminal at JFK. Now they have 30. That's really tight. Security at JFK is painfully slow. I don't think they're going to make it.

Is this sort of thing common? I fly overseas several times a year with different airlines. I've never had an issue with an airline changing the departure time. Often, flights are late. Sometimes they're cancelled. But I've never had a flight changed to an earlier time. How are people supposed to plan?

The AA policy is that if it's less than 90 mins, it's your problem. So, if you've given yourself two hours between flights, and they've reduced it to 35 minutes, it's up to you to sprint to catch the connection.

I don't think 70 minutes would have been enough anyway, especially at JFK and especially without a through ticket. They could drive from Rochester? or catch a bus or train? They take about 7 hours, but it would mean they could make sure they get there on time. Obviously allowing time to get out to JFK. Other option would be to see if they can change the internal flight from Rochester. I would allow at least 2 hours between flights that are not bought on one ticket (as they don't have to accomodate you if something happens to either flight whereas on a through ticket they will).

I have a flight coming up with BA/Qantas that I get an itinerary update for about once a week. I had to comb through the paperwork to fnd a change, but they seem to be adjusting the departure and/or arrival times by about 5 minutes every time. It happens, and at least you have some notice to figure out another way.

ferf1223

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

So, if you've given yourself two hours between flights, and they've reduced it to 35 minutes, it's up to you to sprint to catch the connection.

Not if you've booked a through ticket...then the airline would have to get you on another flight out...that's the key here...if all flights were on the same booking it's a different story.

We fly to the US a few times a year (I'm American) and we have had dramatic schedule changes before, earlier and later...we've had our original flight cancelled months in advance and been shifted onto a flight leaving 3 hours later. Annoying, but really no problem as we hadn't booked a connection that day...personally, I wouldn't book a second flight on a second ticket the same day...but I'm the most paranoid of paranoid people when it comes to missing connections.

rainbow_carnage

Wow. I must've been very lucky in the past. My travel experiences have been nothing like yours.

My parents fly from ROC to JFK on a regular basis. When I lived in the States, I did, too. 70 minutes is usually plenty of time to catch a connection, unless you have to go to a terminal on the other side of the airport, or if you've checked luggage. You take the first Jet Blue flight of the morning. Unless there's a huge snowstorm, it's almost never late. It's a commuter flight that's full of people in suits. The one time I can remember missing that connection in the past decade is when I took an evening flight in January and got stuck in a blizzard.

I get that you should probably leave a bit of extra time between flights, but honestly, it's almost never a problem. If there was an earlier flight, my parents would have booked it. But there isn't. They will have to buy new flights the night before and stay in a hotel overnight. (Btw, they would have booked a through ticket, but that wasn't an option. They bought a package holiday leaving from NYC. They don't live in NYC, so they have to make their own way there.)

Maybe I live in a whole different world from you guys, but I book two (or more) flights on the same day on a regular basis. I try to leave a couple hours in between, but that's not always an option. When you book a flight that requires a stopover, the airlines often give you less than an hour to change planes. If you miss your connection, they will try to get you on another flight, but that's not always an acceptable option. I often fly to see specific shows. If I have to take a flight six hours later, I might as well not go at all.

If you're booked to fly at a specific time and that time changes, you should be entitled to a full refund. It's only fair. If I book to see an evening performance of a play and the theatre decides to change it to a matin!e, no one would object to me wanting a refund. You booked one thing, you're getting something different. And, god forbid, you decide to change the time you want to fly. At best, the airline would charge £80-150 to put you on a different flight. At worst, you'd have to buy a whole new ticket. But when the airline decides to make a change, the passengers just have to go along with it as if it's no big deal?

richardw

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

If you're booked to fly at a specific time

BUT do the Airlines' terms and conditions say that time is subject to change?