CX - Forced Downgrade J to PE

[cosi]

A friend just related her experience of being downgraded.

Being Japaneses, she is extremely polite (hence did not challenge the CX ground staff) and has no airline status.

Had a confirmed J class ticket PER-HKG-NRT-HKG-PER which was purchased at the beginning of the year and cost around $5,600-00

Returning home, she had boarding passes for both sectors in J class for the NRT-HKG sector and the HKG-PER sector.

Even though the first flight was delayed, ground staff were waiting at the gate in HK, because there were quite a few passengers transferring to the Perth flight, which was also delayed.

Several of the passengers were called out by name and told of a change of seat with no reason and handed a new boarding pass and an envelope with compensation.

My fiend was given a PE seat and HK$16,500-00 (about AUD$2,650-00).

She was relaxed because it was the final sector and a daytime/evening flight, but is nervous about this happening for a second time when she does the same trip at next year.

Once couple were extremely annoyed because they had been downgraded from PE to Y.

Can a passenger reject a downgrade?

 

[juddles]

So she got about half the total trip cost paid in cash as compo? And "only" suffered a downgrade on one leg to PE? That is fantastic!! Which airline?? CX??

 

[snabbu]

Looks like it was CX.

Half the fare refunded for one leg out of 4 downgraded to PE, I'd take that every day of the week.

 

[FL360]

seems like a good deal.... just wondering if work paid for the original J ticket, is the "$ compensation" to me, or to the employer ?

 

[Pushka]

I think that is pretty good. Being downgraded J to Y would be the pits though.

We were in USA when the A380 Qantas plane blew the engine. We had flown on that plane a few days earlier. There was major scrambling of people trying to get home from the USA with one plane out of service. We were lucky but the A380 to Mel was just cancelled. No one cared where they were placed as there were warnings of a weeks delay getting home.

 

[get me outta here]

This is basically an ethics question I suspect. It could be gotten away with because how would the employer know? But, would that be unethical, would the person in receipt of the cash be, or feel compromised?

I think the answer is clear. The outfit paying the fare owns the refund.

seems like a good deal.... just wondering if work paid for the original J ticket, is the "$ compensation" to me, or to the employer ?

 

[travs]

This is basically an ethics question I suspect. It could be gotten away with because how would the employer know? But, would that be unethical, would the person in receipt of the cash be, or feel compromised?

I think the answer is clear. The outfit paying the fare owns the refund.

Meh. By logic here, I assume you're ok with the company getting the FF miles and the individual not getting those either?

Personally, I believe the individual gets this, not the company. If my b*tt is in the seat, I get the miles and any compensation.

 

[love_the_life]

Whilst I would have accepted the $$ compensation, I think the OP's friend is rightly nervous about the same thing happening in future. The questions are 'can they do this?' and 'do you have to take the downgrade?'. I would have thought that CX had the same restrictions as QF (but only a search of their site will find the T & Cs) where the displaced passenger is able to be flown in their booked class on the next available flight. I can't really give an answer - suggest trawling through the CX site or reading the documentation attached to the ticket as I have a feeling it may be there.

Sorry - only had denied boarding on the ticket I think

 

[get me outta here]

I think you have confused my ethics answer with my having said what I would do should I be handed an envelope full of cash..

Meh. By logic here, I assume you're ok with the company getting the FF miles and the individual not getting those either?

Personally, I believe the individual gets this, not the company. If my b*tt is in the seat, I get the miles and any compensation.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

A friend just related her experience of being downgraded.

Being Japaneses, she is extremely polite (hence did not challenge the CX ground staff) and has no airline status.

Had a confirmed J class ticket PER-HKG-NRT-HKG-PER which was purchased at the beginning of the year and cost around $5,600-00

Returning home, she had boarding passes for both sectors in J class for the NRT-HKG sector and the HKG-PER sector.

Even though the first flight was delayed, ground staff were waiting at the gate in HK, because there were quite a few passengers transferring to the Perth flight, which was also delayed.

Several of the passengers were called out by name and told of a change of seat with no reason and handed a new boarding pass and an envelope with compensation.

My fiend was given a PE seat and HK$16,500-00 (about AUD$2,650-00).

She was relaxed because it was the final sector and a daytime/evening flight, but is nervous about this happening for a second time when she does the same trip at next year.

Once couple were extremely annoyed because they had been downgraded from PE to Y.

Can a passenger reject a downgrade?

A passenger can reject a downgrade and travel on a later flight.

However - CX is always extremely generous with downgrade compensation where this happens on the day of departure - as you friend saw. This is half the ticket price back for a single leg downgrade.

If this was Qantas, she would have been given just a couple of hundred dollars.

Your friend has nothing to worry about - downgrades are extremely rare on long haul flights. They happen more frequently intra-asia for F class pax where a two-class plane is substituted.

 

[JohnK]

Looks like it was CX.

Half the fare refunded for one leg out of 4 downgraded to PE, I'd take that every day of the week.

That is a great result and I would also take it any day of the week. On Qantas she would have had to pay for the privilege to downgrade.

 

[moa999]

I would also add if she is doing that trip in J regularly, then she should have status pretty quickly in the right program,
which normally helps

 

[ReLoad]

Don't forget she she ask and get ORC!

 

[JohnK]

seems like a good deal.... just wondering if work paid for the original J ticket, is the "$ compensation" to me, or to the employer ?

The compensation would go to me. Work does not need to know. Work screws me around enough already.

Oh and I can sleep at night no problem.

 

[muppet]

The compensation would go to me. Work does not need to know. Work screws me around enough already.

Oh and I can sleep at night no problem.

Agreed JohnK. No moral dilemma here.

From the definition:

compensation
kɒmpɛnˈseɪʃ(ə)n/
noun
1.
something, typically money, awarded to someone in recognition of loss, suffering, or injury.

What loss, injury or suffering has the business experienced? None. Only the traveller has. It was not a "refund" but compensation.

Back on topic. I think the compensation is appropropriate. But given the OP was not asked it was forced I still think it's wrong. Not everyone wants money they want what was paid for.

 

[kamchatsky]

What a great compensation! I would definitely take it if CX offered to me. But they didn't ;p

I have never been downgraded by CX ever, and given that CX fork out so much money to downgrade to PE, it would be a rare occurance.

 

[FL360]

yes, I agree.

if the amount is described as "partial refund of the fare" -> then whoever pays for the fare, in this example the employer, should get it.

but if this is compensation, for your personal suffering (J to PE because you have a bad back and you know J is lie flat so you booked for it) , then the passenger should be entitled to it.

Imagine the crew dropped the F bomb to you, and the airline compensate you with $2,000 cash, are you going to give it back to the employer who paid for the fare ?

 

[Aussie_flyer]

Whilst it is 1 out of 4 sectors it is still the longest sector so the compensation whilst sufficient doesn't seem that great to me

 

[Buzzard]

The compensation seems more than adequate to me. I'd be happy with it, would help pay for the next trip.

 

[travs]

I'd take it in half a heart beat