They say ‘actions speak louder than words’ but they also say ‘put your money where your mouth is’, which is exactly what United Airlines is doing to improve its public image after that ‘dragging’ incident‘.
In case you missed it, United made headlines earlier this month when a video of a passenger being ripped from his seat and pulled off a plane, went viral.
The carrier received mass backlash from the public, particularly because the man’s removal was to make room for airline staff.
People on board were offered compensation for the incident and United Chief Executive, Oscar Munoz, apologised twice (granted the second time was more in line with the definition of an apology than the first).
There was also a promise to review procedures in overbooked situations and introduce changes where possible.
The first of those policy changes was made less than two weeks ago, when the airline said flight crew will be required to notify passengers of any flight changes one hour before departure.
Today United has issued another round of policy changes, which could see travellers make major dollars just by agreeing to change their flight time in overbooked situations.
In addition to committing to ‘limited use of law enforcement’ and ensuring passengers aren’t disrupted once they’re seated on the plane, United has increased its customer compensation incentives for voluntary denied boarding to up to $10,000.
Would anyone turn down a flight change for $10,000?
Other policy changes include establishing a customer solutions team to provide Agents with creative solutions such as using nearby airport, other airlines or ground transportation to get customer their final destination; providing employees with additional annual training; and creating an automated system for soliciting volunteers to change travel plans.
There’s also plans to empower employees to resolve customer service issues in the moment; reduce the amount of overbooking; and eliminate the red tape on permanently lost bags by adopting a “no questions asked” policy on lost luggage (in these instances, United will pay a customer $1,500 for the value of the bag and its contents).
“Earlier this month, we disappointed our customers and ourselves when a passenger was forcibly removed from one of our planes,” United said in an online statement.
“We can never say we are sorry enough for what occurred, but we also know meaningful actions will speak louder than words.
“We committed to take action as a result of this incident, and today marks the first step in changing how we fly, serve and respect our customers.”
United Airlines