Lay Over Times/Connection Times in US

[bertair]

What is considered the minimum Lay Over / Connection Times when flying with a US domestic airline to join an International flight from a US departure airport?
I have had a Delayed Flight Insurance Claim rejected due to me not allowing a six hour lay over with my reservations.
My US domestic connecting flight, if on time would have allowed me at least a 5 1/2 hour lay over to connect with a Qantas flight.
However the LAS/SFO flight was a little over 6 hours late in arriving in SFO resulting in me missing my QF flight by minutes
No responsibility was accepted by either Qantas or Alaska Airlines since my reservations were made separately.
The Insurance Company have rejected my claim, stating that they require a minimum lay over time fo 6 hours.

Is a six hour lay over / connection time reasonable ?

Asking Qantas and others seem to suggest that 3 to 4 hours would be normal

 

[equus]

What does the PDS for your insurance policy say? If it only mentions "connections" but the reservations are on separate PNRs then it is not actually a connection, but simply two separate flights. If they are willing to cover more than this, then it would be unusual.

What airlines consider suitable connection times is for actual connections - anything else and you are gambling as you seem to have found out. There are many here who recommend at least overnight if on separate tickets.

 

[bertair]

I did book separate tickets due to being unable to use QF points for the internal US flights.
Also there were no other flights available on that day to make the Qantas evening flight from SFO
I booked directly with Alaska Airlines, the LAS/SFO flight and my forward & return flights were booked on line direct with Qantas, using reward points and cash.
The Insure & GO Policy PDS, disclosed in page 28 of the T&C was that I needed a 6 hour stop over between flights ( I only discovered this when informed that my claim had been dismissed).
I took the policy out after I had made my reservations too by the way.
Since the Alaska flight was six hours late, I missed the gate closure by minutes ( thanks to the lack of transfer between arrival and departure gates, over 1 kilometre apart at SFO) despite requests being made to Alaska and Qantas once I knew the flight was running late, five hours earlier, for a golf cart to meet me on arrival.
I believe it is unreasonable and unconscionable of the insurance company to decline my claim under the circumstances and their 6 hour lay over clause is far too long given IATA suggests three hours is the norm.
You may see it that I was gambling on my flights, but even taking into account, if the flight was on time, a five hour transfer time is quite sufficient under most circumstances I think most people would agree.
Yes, it has been a harsh lesson perhaps, but one that in my opinion I should not have had, given airlines do have a responsibility towards their passengers. The US Transportation Rules have much more protection for passengers then what we have in Australia.
At no time was I offered any alternative flights or a re routing in order to make my connection, despite the airline knowing I need to make the QF flight six hours later.
Neither airline accepts responsibility, each passing the buck back to each other.

 

[Quickstatus]

The Insure & GO Policy PDS, disclosed in page 28 of the T&C was that I needed a 6 hour stop over between flights ( I only discovered this when informed that my claim had been dismissed).

Sorry to hear,

Unfortunately, the insurance PDS wins out. It says 6 hrs. No opinion by other travellers or airlines matter in this case.
i dont see anything unreasonable or unconscionable in the insurer's conduct. They are relying on their PDS which they supplied to you and you would have to acknowledge that you read the T&C before being allowed to purchase the policy.

Airlines quote the minimum time - you can buy connecting flights on ONE ticket with Minimum connection times (officially called MCT) of 1 hour at major airports like SFO or LAX. But these are on the one ticket meaning that if you miss your flight due to some delay, the airline will rebook you at no cost. This may still mean you have to overnight but at their cost.

Neither airline accepts responsibility, each passing the buck back to each other.

Of course. That is the nature of buying 2 separate tickets - you carry the risk.
It is not AS's responsibility because airline tickets do not guarantee on time arrival - they only guarantee to get you from A to B.
It is not QF's responsibility either because you were late

While airlines do not guarantee on time arrival here is what US airlines are committed to do in the event of cancellations or delays
But as your AS flight terminates in SFO, they won't pay for hotel in SFO while you wait for next flight.

A five hour transfer time is quite sufficient under most circumstances I think most people would agree.

Maybe in most circumstances - which implies less than 100%. It is what you do with the other X% - the bit where even a 6hr transit time is inadequate.

......

But in the end how much were you out of pocket and what are you trying to claim? A hotel night or two? QF would have rebooked you at no cost on a later flight.
If your flights were on one ticket and/or QF was delayed and you had to overnight in SFO, you would be entitled to AUD$200 per night for accom and $50 for meals.

 

[equus]

I did book separate tickets due to being unable to use QF points for the internal US flights.
Also there were no other flights available on that day to make the Qantas evening flight from SFO
I booked directly with Alaska Airlines, the LAS/SFO flight and my forward & return flights were booked on line direct with Qantas, using reward points and cash.

In other words, you wanted a cheap option that was not available. It is not that it is impossible to use QF points to get an award to LAS, just that it was not available to you. Airlines (not LCC) that offer other than point to point and protect when the segments are all on one ticket will protect you - and it costs them from time to time. These costs are built into their cost base, and end up reflected in the prices they charge.

If you are not willing to pay the price (in this case, they wouldn't offer and end-to-end on points), then you don't get the protection. There are other ways this could have been achieved - but would still cost. I believe a good (again legacy, not OTA) travel agent can combine award and cash inventory on one ticket - but they are not going to do this for free, so it will cost you again.

airlines do have a responsibility towards their passengers.

Indeed they do, and each airline has responsibility for the passenger as ticketed - but as there was a break in your tickets, no airline had responsibility for that gap - that is down to you.

Unfortunately, the insurance PDS wins out. It says 6 hrs. No opinion by other travellers or airlines matter in this case.
i dont see anything unreasonable or unconscionable in the insurer's conduct. They are relying on their PDS which they supplied to you and you would have to acknowledge that you read the T&C before being allowed to purchase the policy.

Agree. That PDS is actually incredibly generous compared to most policies, as is specifically includes coverage for stopovers. Most policies simply cover connecting flights, don't define that term, and will then fall back to a stopover is not a connecting flight - so unless on the one ticket, out of luck whether the scheduled times were 2 hours or 24 hours apart.

missing a connecting flight where the stopover was originally scheduled on Your itinerary for less than 6 hours.

 

[offshore171]

Definitely a good idea to be laying up a day early if on separate tickets, especially when connecting to an expensive international sector, or even worse, a cruise.

Gives you contingency for this type of scenario.

 

[wandering_fred]

Not USA related....
Is KUL (with its numerous connecting flights with many different airlines) close enough to SIN (with late evening departure the next day) for a safe separate ticket connection. Certainly anywhere in Australia would not be when wandering
Fred

 

[Quickstatus]

Is KUL (with its numerous connecting flights with many different airlines) close enough to SIN (with late evening departure the next day) for a safe separate ticket connection.

Ultimately depends on connection times. But yes there are lots of flights including LCC even Lion air if you are game

If the airport shuts down, you can take one of the multiple buses which takes about 6-8hrs