A new study reveals which carriers are most likely to deny boarding. From the worst offenders to the most reliable airlines, here's what to know—and what to do if you find yourself bumped.
New Study: This Is the Airline Most Likely to Bump You
Published on Oct. 11, 2024
Picture this: You’ve made it to the airport on time, and just as you’re envisioning a smooth trip to a vacation paradise, you hear the dreaded announcement. “This flight is overbooked.” Ah, the joys of air travel!
You’ve been there. And as a longtime travel journalist who actually just disembarked a plane, I’ve been there. Anyone who travels often has experienced airline annoyances. They’re hard to avoid, but thanks to a new study from Upgraded Points, we know which airlines are most likely to bump passengers. I talked to Upgraded Points Editor-in-Chief Keri Stooksbury and pored over the study to find out which airlines are guilty of regularly denying passengers boarding.
Read on to learn about the worst offender, find out how other airlines stack up and get travel advice that’ll come in handy the next time you’re bumped from a flight.
Get Reader’s Digest’s Read Up newsletter for more travel, tech, books, humor and fun facts all week long.
How did the study determine which airlines regularly bump passengers?
According to Stooksbury, the travel experts at Upgraded Points analyzed quarterly data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, which tracks how often airlines deny passengers boarding due to overbooking. They focused on denied boardings due to oversales from the first quarter of 2023 to the second quarter 2024.
From there, they determined the average number of people (per 10,000 passengers) who were involuntarily denied boarding or voluntarily gave up their seats on 10 major airlines. All that number-crunching narrowed down the airlines most likely to bump you from a flight.
Upgraded Points also conducted a nationwide survey asking Americans about their feelings regarding airline bumps and how much they’d expect to be compensated if they were denied boarding on a flight.
OK, but why do airlines overbook flights in the first place?
Airlines count on some people not showing up for the flight, so they hedge their bets, aiming for full flights. But as every seasoned traveler knows, that bet doesn’t always pay off. The result: Passengers volunteering to take a different flight or the airline denying boarding to passengers who paid for the overbooked flight.
Which airline is the most likely to bump you?
When it comes to involuntarily denying passengers boarding, Frontier Airlines is at the top of the list. If you’ve flown Frontier, you might not be too shocked—there’s always a bit of a gamble with budget airlines, and Frontier is ranked the least reliable airline in America for a reason.
As Stooksbury told me, Frontier bumps over three people for every 10,000 passengers. While that number may not appear large, it’s over 400% more than the second-place carrier.
Which other airlines bump passengers often?
Upgraded Points analyzed data on 10 major U.S. air carriers, then broke the ranking into two lists. The goal: Determine which carriers most often deny boarding involuntarily and which have the most voluntary denied boardings.
These are all of the airlines that made the list:
- Frontier Airlines
- American Airlines Network
- Spirit Airlines
- Southwest Airlines
- JetBlue Airways
- Alaska Airlines Network
- United Airlines Network
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Delta Air Lines Network
- Allegiant Air
The airlines most likely to bump you
These airlines have the most involuntary denied boardings. Here’s how they rank, plus the number of people bumped per 10,000 passengers.
- Frontier Airlines: 3.21
- American Airlines Network: 0.6
- Spirit Airlines: 0.43
- Southwest Airlines: 0.14
- JetBlue Airways: 0.09
The airlines where people most often give up their seats
When airlines are overbooked, they may ask passengers to willingly give up their seats. That’s known in the travel biz as voluntary denied boarding, and if you fly one of these airlines, you’ll encounter it most often.
Here’s how the airlines rank, plus the number of people who volunteer to give up their seats per 10,000 passengers.
- Delta Air Lines Network: 7.49
- Spirit Airlines: 3.88
- Frontier Airlines: 3.27
- Alaska Airlines Network: 3.26
- American Airlines Network: 2.54
Which airline bumps the fewest passengers?
Upgraded Points found that budget airline Allegiant Air bumps the fewest passengers, both voluntarily and involuntarily. The airline ranked last in both categories, bumping zero people (per 10,000 passengers) involuntarily and 0.59 voluntarily.
What are your rights if you’re bumped?
If you get bumped from a flight, you have rights—the Airplane Passengers’ Bill of Rights, to be exact—and it’s best to know them. Stooksbury told me that the U.S. Department of Transportation says passengers who are bumped involuntarily are entitled to compensation based on the price of their ticket, how long the trip is getting delayed and whether the flight is domestic or international. Airlines must give you written details about your compensation right away.
Here’s a quick rundown of what you’re entitled to:
- No delay or less than an hour delay: Sorry, no compensation for you.
- Delayed one to two hours on domestic flights: 200% of your one-way fare, maxing out at $775
- Delayed two or more hours on domestic flights: 400% of your fare, capped at $1,550
- Delayed four or more hours on international flights: 400% of your fare, capped at $1,550
So next time you book a flight, keep in mind that a cheap plane ticket might come with a bit of a risk. But as long as you know your rights, you’ll be ready to handle any travel hiccup that comes your way. Safe travels, and may you always make it to your destination without delay!
About the expert
|
Why trust us
At Reader’s Digest, we’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. We rely on reputable primary sources, including government and professional organizations and academic institutions as well as our writers’ personal experiences where appropriate. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. For this piece on the airlines most likely to bump you, Lisa Niver tapped her experience as a travel journalist to ensure all information is accurate. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Source:
- Upgraded Points: “The Airlines Most Likely to Bump You [2024 Data + Survey]”
- Keri Stooksbury, editor-in-chief of Upgraded Points; email interview, October 2024
