Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!think!harvard!seismo!lll-crg!lll-lcc!qantel!hplabs!tektronix!lumiere!richl
From: richl@lumiere.UUCP (Rick Lindsley)
Newsgroups: net.consumers
Subject: What is an airline's responsibility?
Message-ID: <1777@lumiere.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 16-Mar-86 04:11:46 EST
Article-I.D.: lumiere.1777
Posted: Sun Mar 16 04:11:46 1986
Date-Received: Tue, 18-Mar-86 07:28:00 EST
Reply-To: richl@lumiere.UUCP (Rick Lindsley)
Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Beaverton, OR.
Lines: 32

I recently had a nasty problem with an airline, but I'm wondering if they
are within their rights or not.

I recently had a flight from San Diego to San Francisco, with a connection
in San Francisco to Portland. The flights were relatively late -- 8pm to
9:15pm and 9:50pm to 11:30 pm.

We took off from San Diego an hour and a half late -- they said that due
to bad weather in San Francisco they were told to not even take off. Once
we got to SF, we still had to circle for about 45 minutes. I asked several
times before we left San Diego as to my connecting flight (which was on
the same airline) and was told that ALL flights into and out of SF were
running about equally late due to the weather.

But lo and behold, when we finally landed in SF, 2 hours and 15 minutes
late, my flight had left (or been cancelled -- nobody seemed to know for
sure).

The airline representatives said that although they would be happy to
re-book me for a flight in the morning at my discounted fare, that their
responsibility ended there. No, they wouldn't pay for my hotel -- they
were only liable if the delay was due to mechanical failure, not
"air-traffic delays".

Motels are INCREDIBLY expensive in SF!! And at 12:30am it's hard to be
choosy. It cost $50 for a room -- and that was a Days Inn! (I'm used
to rooms being $20-$25 when I travel!)

Is this standard policy for (some/most/all) airlines? Would it do any
good to complain? Or does this make perfect sense to everyone but me?

Rick