Airlines Change Seats Without Notice And Passengers Are Frustrated

When was the last time you flew on a commercial airline? Have you ever had the experience of checking in? Getting your reserved seat. Number. (By the way, do you prefer window or aisle?) And then when it's time to board the plane. You don't get your preference. 

According to seattletimes.com,
‘Do you have any rights when an airline changes your seat assignment? That’s what Jay Libove wanted to know after he lost his assigned seat on a recent flight from Philadelphia to Barcelona, Spain.
His airline changed his plane — and his seat assignment — twice without telling him.’ 

Apparently, this happens more often than you might imagine. Anytime an airline has to switch planes on a flight, there's no guarantee that you're going to be flying on the same type of plane, which means there's no guarantee that you're going to get your preference of window or aisle. 

In the airline business, they just call it an equipment change. And when that occurs, the most common thing that happens is either. A downgrade in class. We're losing a specific reserved seat. 

You do have some rights. 

In America, if you're bumped down a class, the airline is required to refund you the difference. Between what you purchased and what you're given. In Europe, it's a little more complicated. Airlines are required to refund you anywhere from 30% to 75% of the ticket cost. Depending on the length of the flight. 

If the seat change is just that, a seat change and not a change in class. Then all you're going to be refunded is the reservation fee. 

If you do want to be compensated for. A seat downgrade or a loss of a reserved seat. The main thing is to do it fast. The longer you wait to go to the airline to get a refund, The harder it's going to be to get them to cough Up the money.
Airlines are switching seats more frequently. What are your rights? | The Seattle Times