I think the problem here is understanding the nature of standby. This term and "bumping" are two terms people really mess up. to standby for a flight means there must be NO SEATS available. Zero, nada, zilch, no seats available for that flight. Or as I understand, no seats in the same class of service. And you're taking the chance that if no one shows up, you will get on. There are times checking in, I'd see people argue they wanna go standby and the agent stating there are seats so there is no standby and they have to pay for the earlier flight. Todd, your situation sounds exactly like that. But not being there I don't know what went down so I have to ask: Did you call the night before to ask if the flight was full and if standby was possible. Or did you leave early with your family, thinking you can get out early? You're arguing with the agent about policy, and while the contract does stand (I read it) it may not apply in this situation if seating is available for purchase, which would be why the agent was charging you in the first place.
The best tip I can give, and most frequent flyers follow this: If your flight is later in the day and there's a chance you can get on an earlier flight, call the night before, get a list of the earlier flights and ask if standby is available. That saves you the trouble of having to go to the airport early and possible paying more money than you would want to.
Lastly, please remember that standby doesn't mean you can do it on any flight, it means there are no seats and you will have to wait to get one.
If you're going to persue this as a class action please update us and let us know how it goes.
|