A couple of days ago, I wrote this story: Delta Air Lines’ summer meltdown is exactly why you need to do these 8 things when you travel. My last point deserves its own separate article because it’s an especially important tip if you collect miles and points when you travel … which I hope you do! RELATED: The best airline miles credit cards
If your flight ever gets severely delayed or inconvenienced, then make sure you ask politely for some bonus miles. I usually wait a week or two to see if the airline will do this of their own accord.
I was surprised that my family and I weren’t given any bonus miles from American Airlines (AA) when we flew LAX to Honolulu in April and had a six-hour delay, which involved boarding three planes; the first two problems were mechanical and I captured the pilot saying that although mechanics say the plane is good to go, “I’m not really feeling it.” Watch the video below:
I was quite surprised that AA didn’t just deposit points into every passenger’s account, regardless of status because it was a huge hassle, cost everyone a day of their vacation and dinner with friends and family.
I was even more surprised that as a top level member of their loyalty program (Executive Platinum), I got neither an apology nor an acknowledgment of the ordeal. I eventually emailed American and they gifted me 10,000 miles for being an EP member but it shouldn’t have taken me reaching out to them for that to happen.
I asked about my wife and kids and AA gave them 7,500 bonus miles each but again, only because I asked. That’s why it’s important to be proactive, polite and keep receipts of your boarding pass or ticket number. Also, don’t wait too long.
All airlines have different policies and contact methods so do some research. In my case, I used American’s online customer relations form, which can be found here.
Regarding Delta Air Lines, which just resolved their epic summer meltdown, they just shared that they plan on giving those who were stuck 12,500 miles, which is not very much for the delays most of these travelers experienced. Some of them are still stuck.
KEEP READING
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–How to get a full bottle of water through airport security
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