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If you miss your flying, don't stress out. There'south more than i mode to save your vacation or concern trip.

That'south what Laura Coletti discovered when she didn't make her recent flight from South Bend, Ind., back to New York.

"I slept through my alarm and woke upwards in a panic when I realized that my flying was taking off in five minutes," she recalls.

United Airlines' policy seemed unbending. She risked losing her entire return fare if she didn't bear witness up for the flight.

Missed flights may be 1 of the biggest air travel irritants. Depending on where you're headed, anywhere from 2% to 8% of passengers miss their flight. Only at that place are ways to fix the trouble and get to your destination. If you act speedily, know your rights and stay polite, you'll exist on your way.

What to do if you miss your flight

If you think yous're going to miss a flight, telephone call your airline immediately, experts say. The sooner your airline knows that you'll be late, the more options it has to set it. Coletti, who works for a marketing agency in New York, phoned United the minute she woke up and let a representative know that she'd overslept.

"An agent rebooked me for a slightly afterwards flight from Southward Bend to LaGuardia with a cursory stopover in Chicago," she says. "I was back in New York only a few hours after I originally would have been. I have no idea why I wasn't charged for that — I certainly was expecting a toll — only I wasn't, and I was glad about that."

Although airlines often charge y'all for a new ticket if you lot miss a flight, there are of import exceptions. But to find out if y'all authorize, you need to act fast. Calling the airline before your departure can significantly increase your chances of getting rebooked on the adjacent flight at no boosted charge.

How to ready a missed flight

It helps to understand what'south happening backside the scenes. When you miss a flight, it besides puts your airline in a difficult position. Chances are, your seat has flown empty. Rebooking y'all on the next flying means giving y'all a costless ticket. That's why letting the airline know you'll exist belatedly is so important; it allows the carrier to release the seat and perchance resell information technology, offsetting the lost acquirement.

Your reasons for missing a flight matter.

"If you are at the counter, exist polite, explain why yous are belatedly," advises Peter Vlitas, a senior vice president for airline relations at Travel Leaders Group. "Was the airport exit congested? Did it have too long to get to the counter?  Make the case that you lot were tardily equally a part of trying to become to the airport or counter or running to the gate."

Most airlines have an breezy "flat tire" dominion that allows them to volume you on the next available flight if y'all accept a expert reason for getting to the airdrome late, like, say, a flat tire. Those may include a medical emergency, an accident on the manner to the aerodrome or some documentable event beyond your control. Typically, sleeping through your warning doesn't count, but agents have some flexibility in how they can employ the flat tire rule.

Airlines tend to throw the book in your face if you don't have a skilful reason for being late and you tell them after the flight leaves. That'south when you lot normally accept to buy a new ticket. Merely a petty politeness can overcome this obstruction, too. Time and again, travelers say that being nice instead of demanding has gotten them on the next flying at no boosted charge.

What are your rights when you miss a flight?

If you missed a flying because you were late to the airport, y'all don't have whatever real rights. Most airlines will classify yous equally a "no-show" and proceed your money. Annotation that your return flight will as well be canceled automatically. If y'all contact the carrier earlier the flight departs, you may be able to get a fractional ticket credit depending on the kind of ticket you have.

But if y'all miss a connecting flight, you're not out of luck. Nether about domestic airline policies — which are outlined in the contract of carriage on the airline website — if you miss a connection, it will rebook you on the adjacent flying at no charge. If that means staying at the drome overnight, the airline will cover a hotel stay. For example, American Airlines will pay for a hotel if the delay is "within our command or you were diverted to another city, and we don't board to your final destination earlier xi:59 p.thousand. local time," according to its contract.

If y'all miss a connectedness on a flight to Europe, you might be entitled to even more. For certain missed connections European consumer regulations provide upwards to 600 euros, plus rerouting or a flight back to your bespeak of departure at no actress price. "When you lot're on an international flight going to Europe and miss your connectedness because of the delay or counterfoil of the first flight, you have rights," says Thomas Busson, a spokesman for ClaimCompass, a service that helps passengers obtain compensation under EU Regulation 261/2004, the European consumer rule.

But here's the best advice of all: Don't be late. Set an alarm and don't forget to turn upward the book on your phone. Set a calendar reminder with your flight itinerary. And give yourself plenty of time to get to the airport. Airlines such equally United even publish check-in processing times to allow for meliorate planning.

Tips for handling a missed flight

• Know the rules. Keep a copy of your airline's contract of carriage (bachelor from its website) or European union Regulation 261 on your smartphone for quick access. Yous can find a full copy of EU Regulation 261 on the EU website: eur-lex.europa.european union.

• Rent a travel agent. A trusted travel adviser tin aid you schedule your basis transportation to ensure you get to the terminal on time. In-the-know agents tin can also chop-chop observe the next available flight and use their connections to rebook you with a minimum of fuss.

• Recall outside the box. There's more than i way to get to your final destination. When David Nico missed a flight from Washington to Norfolk, Va., he rented a automobile and made the four-hr drive home. Problem solved. Lesson learned? "Consider other travel options if at that place is going to exist a long delay to get to your concluding destination," says Nico, a professional speaker and author.

Christopher Elliott is a consumer advocate. Contact him at chris@elliott.org or visit elliott.org.

Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/advice/2018/03/25/missed-flight-passenger-rights/450366002/

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