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[edit] Compensation
Sooner or later, all flyers run into problems with their flights. While many of these are simply par for the course when travelling, problems that are within AA's control may qualify you for compensation in the form of a voucher toward future travel or Customer Service miles credited to your AAdvantage account. In certain cases, usually having to do with canceled flights, passengers may also receive vouchers at the airport for food or hotel accommodations, or reimbursement for alternative land travel arrangements.
[edit] What Problems Merit Compensation?
Not everything merits compensation. Passengers experiencing a 30-minute delay on the tarmac due to thunderstorms over the field should consider themselves lucky. However, in other cases, compensation may be in order.
[edit] Problems that may merit compensation
- Maintenance/mechanical delays
- Crew staffing delays
- Problems with your personal IFE device
- Problems with the operation of your seat (recline, tray table, footrest)
- Delayed or damaged baggage
[edit] Problems that general do not merit compensation
- Weather delays
- Air Traffic Control (ATC) delays
- Customer service complaints
Note that delays can propagate through the system, since aircraft are used for multiple flights per day. So, even if the weather is clear at ORD, thunderstorms at DFW may delay inbound aircraft, resulting in a domino effect. In cases of extreme weather or ATC delays, AA may provide compensation as a gesture of goodwill.
[edit] How Do I Request Compensation?
In some cases, AA may provide compensation proactively, for example, to passengers on heavily delayed flights or when a flight attendant notes a problem with an international business class seat. In other cases, a concise, polite email to AA Customer Relations via AA.com will usually do the trick. Compensation is often given even when not requested explicitly, although this may unfortunately occur in lieu of responding to the specific complaint or comment filed. Anecdotally, those who request compensation on a frequent basis may be tracked by AA and may be refused compensation in the future.
[edit] Examples of Compensation
The following table lists compensation experiences on AA. For a discussion and all of the details, please refer to the Compensation Guide Thread. Many thanks to JGR01 who put the initial spreadsheet together.
| Poster | Post# | Status | Date | Fare Class | Condition | Compensation | Additional Info |
| saunders111 | 332 | GLD | June 25, 2007 | Y | Bags delayed 48 hrs | 10,000 | Neither AA nor I could contact bag delivery service for 36 hrs |
| RatherBeSailing | 331 | EXP/PLT | June 2007 | Y | Delay; Bags | 5,000 each | No crew delay becomes a weather delay, mouse on board, oil and grease on checked luggage which stains pants. |
| Bishop2 | 330 | None | April 2007 | A | Mechanical, service | 25,000 each | Cancellation, next day reroute, no vouchers, crew argument, rude service, cleanliness, 1.5 hour check-in, missing bags, expense with rebooking car and hotel. |
| firespirit | 329 | GLD | May 2007 | T | Mechanical | 15,000 each | Cancelled Flight, 4 hour delay, unsupervised minor |
| RxCapt | 327 | PLT | May 2007 | F (YUP) | Mechanical | 10,000 | Need to stop, change planes, 3 hour delay, poor service.
|
| jww947 | 307 | EXP | May 2007 | J | Delay | 15,000 | |
| CO FF | 304 | PLT | May 2007 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 8,000 | 2.5-hr mechanical delay
|
| spanishflea | 300 | EXP | April 2007 | C (Mileage Upgrade) | Seat | 5,000 | Seat did not recline |
| thierry | 299 | EXP | April 2007 | ? | Mechanical | 9,000 (unsolicited) | 4-hr delay |
| tailwindflyer | 298 | EXP | February 2007 | Y | Bags | 15,000 | 3 delayed bags in a week |
| myfrogger | 292 | PLT | March 2006 | ? | Mechanical | 8,000 (unsolicited) | 5-6-hr delay |
| FlyAAway | 291 | EXP | April 2007 | ? | Mechanical | 8,000 | 5-hr delay |
| MCMAHONSMR | 290 | none | January 2003 | Y | Seating | 3,000 | Booked 30C on 777, reassigned to 39H |
| MCMAHONSMR | 290 | none | March 2005 | Y | Cancellation | 2,500 | Flight cancelled, rebooked on US |
| MCMAHONSMR | 290 | GLD | October 2006 | Y | Waiting | 5,000 | 40-min wait at check-in, 1-hr wait for bags |
| Mrs. beachfan | 289 | GLD | Jan 2007 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 20,000 | 3-hr delay; had option to choose $250 instead |
| beachfan | 289 | PLT | Jan 2007 | Disc Y | Cancellation | 15,000 | Had option to choose $250 instead. |
| RedEye2003 | 288 | PLT | March 2007 | Y | Weather | NONE | Weather cancellation, 4-day delay, $1000 in incidentals |
| papergirl | 287 | GLD | March 2007 | Y | Mech/Weather/Bag Delay | 10,000 | |
| esofina | 275 | ? | March 2007 | Y | Mechanical | 10,000 | Cancelled flight; also got Hotel/Meals/Upgrade.
|
| jittichai | 266 | 03/25/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 8,000 | 4.5 hrs late | |
| 1AAFlyer | 255 | EXP | 03/07/07 | Crew | 10,000 | Fuel issues, 3 hrs late | |
| bettyokom | 253 | GLD | 03/07/07 | Disc Y | Booking | $250 | |
| Max M | 245 | 03/27/07 | Weather | 9,000 | 4.5 hrs late | ||
| CO FF | 244 | PLT | 12/07/06 | Disc Y | Mechanical | -?? | 3 hrs late total |
| CO FF | 244 | PLT | 01/04/07 | Upg J | Mechanical | 9,000 | |
| Clover | 243 | 03/26/07 | Disc Y | Diversion | 5,000 | 3 hrs late total | |
| newyorkgeorge | 240 | Mechanical | 8,000 | ||||
| alamedaguy | 236 | EXP | 12/26/06 | Award | Weather | 5,000 | Downgraded |
| BOSnomad | 235 | PLT | 02/14/07 | Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | |
| Rich W | 234 | PLT | 4,100 | Also Original Routing Credit | |||
| nbevan | 233 | EXP | 01/07/07 | Sticker snafu | 6,000 | ||
| spurg | 231 | none | 12/26/07 | Award | Mechanical | 8,000 | Also miles for downgrade |
| yk | 230 | PLT | 01/07/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | |
| travel214 | 229 | PLT | 02/03/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 6,000 | Nose gear/re-land |
| loudgonzo | 226 | GLD | 01/17/07 | Y | Luggage | 10,000 | |
| leftistblue | 223 | PLT | 01/07/07 | Disc Y | Weather | -?? | Requested 25K, got 0 |
| SquareDanceGuy | 219 | EXP | 08/06/07 | Upg F | Mechanical | 10,000 | Seat/IFE |
| tom911 | 217 | Summer 06 | Ticket snafu | $300 | |||
| ORDPLATAA | 216 | EXP | 01/12/07 | Upg J | Mechanical | 10,000 | Broken seat |
| JGR01 | 215 | EXP | 01/14/07 | Upg J | Weather | Comp hotel | Dallas ice storm |
| SquareDanceGuy | 214 | EXP | 01/02/07 | Upg J | Luggage | 3,000 | |
| ParsleyMay | 213 | PLT | 07/06/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 9,000 | 4 hrs late international |
| Ross0 | 205 | PLT | 01/01/07 | Upg F | Mechanical | 6,000 | |
| Deltahater | 202 | EXP | 12/06/07 | 15,000 | |||
| JDiver | 198 | EXP | 12//06 | KUPP | Weather | -?? | no update |
| travel214 | 195 | PLT | 11/13/06 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | 5 hours late total |
| plancrashlaw | 194 | EXP | 10/19/06 | Upg J | Seat | 20,000 | Also luggage 11 hrs delayed |
| mad_rich | 182 | none | 02/03/07 | Disc Y | Luggage | -?? | 30-hr luggage delay |
| Weenie | 181 | GLD | 09/15/06 | Y | Cleaning | 10,000 | |
| Kneel | 177 | PLT | 01/15/06 | Disc Y | Luggage | 20,000 | Bag 5 days late |
| dcstudent | 174 | none | 12/25/05 | Disc Y | various | -?? | Req $25 fee refund, not done yet |
| DFWFlyer2 | 173 | PLT | 03/29/04 | NonAA flight | checkin | @ | rerouted |
| SquareDanceGuy | 169 | PLT | 01/15/06 | Disc Y | Mechanical | Upgrades returned | IFE inop |
| CorpAcctMgr | 153 | EXP | Summer 04 | Crew Illegal | 15,000 | ||
| uncguy85 | 140 | PLT | 03/05/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 15,000 | |
| JumboJet | 134 | PLT | 11/05/07 | Upg J | 8,000 | IFE broken | |
| ibbzman | 133 | PLT | 12/09/05 | Upg J | Mechanical | 6,000 | |
| LILJ | 132 | PLT | 06/05/07 | Award | Mechanical | 20,000 | |
| 925 | 131 | EXP | 06/18/05 | Op-Up | Mechanical | 5,000 | IFE broken |
| ProTexana | 129 | PLT | 06/05/05 | Op-Up | Mechanical | 5,000 | 2.5 hrs late total |
| mormik | 123 | GLD | 09/24/04 | Disc Y | 1,500 | Fare lower on Expedia | |
| SquareDanceGuy | 123 | EXP | 09/28/04 | Award | Strike | @ | Miles reinstated/$120 check/$150 voucher |
| brp | 121 | EXP | 09/27/04 | Disc Y | Upgrade snafu | $200 | Voucher |
| LAX21 | 120 | GLD | 08/04/07 | Disc Y | Downgrade | 10,000 | |
| HKG_Flyer1 | 119 | GLD | 04/01/94 | Y | Mechanical | @ | Hotel/Taxi/Meals/$250 |
| JAPGUYU | 118 | none | 08/04/07 | Upg J | Downgrade | -?? | Miles back for downgrade |
| jamespvg | 117 | PLT | 03/04/07 | Ticket snafu | -?? | got refund | |
| Spent_All_My_Miles | 116 | PLT | 05/04/07 | 40,000 | 9 various complaints | ||
| iluv2fly | 115 | PLT | 06/10/04 | Upg F | Mechanical | 15,000 | 3 hours late total |
| pitflyer | 113 | GLD | 06/04/07 | Seat assignment | 5,000 | ||
| JohnMD | 112 | EXP | 01/08/04 | Upg F | Spillage | 15,000 | $200 voucher also |
| nkedel | 111 | GLD | 11/03/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | |
| mormik | 109 | GLD | 07/10/04 | Disc Y | Seat | 5,000 | IFE in seat broken |
| dinger | 108 | GLD | 07/10/04 | Disc Y | Weather | -?? | |
| 925 | 106 | PLT | 06/04/07 | Y | Mechanical | 4 stickers | |
| benoit | 104 | PLT | 04/04/07 | Upg J | Mechanical | 20,000 | |
| ajacpril | 103 | EXP | Spring 04 | Various | Seat | 5,000 | 4 of 5 flights had seat issues |
| MazdaMP | 102 | PLT | 05/17/04 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 6,000 | |
| pushback | 98 | PLT | 05/04/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 7,000 | 4 hours late total |
| jwking | 96 | none | 04/04/07 | Award | Mechanical | 10,000 | |
| andrezej | 95 | EXP | 05/11/04 | 75 | possible food poisoning | ||
| Teacher49 | 94 | PLT | 06/01/00 | Weather | $25.00 | voucher back home | |
| lurcher | 93 | PLT | 06/16/04 | Upg J | Seat | 15,000 | 3 pax got |
| Shawn02139 | 92 | PLT | 04/25/04 | Mechanical | 8,000 | 5 hours late total | |
| AAToday | 91 | none | Award | Weather | @ | Hotel/Taxi/Meals/Flight Miles | |
| nstreit | 90 | none | 07/03/07 | Award | Ticket snafu | $175.00 | |
| LLZ | 86 | EXP | 04/04/07 | B | Mechanical | 6,000 | 3 hours late total |
| alamedaguy | 85 | none | 02/08/04 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 7,000 | |
| SquareDanceGuy | 84 | EXP | 01/28/04 | Upg J | Mechanical | 4 stickers | |
| ChanelCinq | 83 | EXP | 01/29/04 | Disc Y | Diversion | 15,000 | |
| trav25 | 82 | 01/01/00 | Medical | 15,000 | Dr on board | ||
| Jilz | 81 | PLT | 01/21/04 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 10,000 | |
| HUB Flyer | 80 | PLT | 01/04/07 | Mechanical | 7,000 | ||
| nyamayo | 79 | PLT | 12/03/07 | Upg F | Mechanical | 10,000 | Seat Tray broken |
| Blumie | 78 | PLT | 08/03/07 | Upg F | Delay | 4,000 | |
| Caractacus | 77 | GLD | 01/25/04 | Disc Y | Crew | 9,000 | |
| Prospero | 76 | none | 01/01/00 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 17,000 | Day Room, 13 hours late total |
| wannabe_plat | 72 | PLT | 10/03/07 | Disc Y | Luggage | @ | $300 voucher |
| Wheezer | 71 | none | 10/19/03 | IDB | @ | $250 voucher/hotel/meals | |
| rbAA | 70 | 10/31/03 | Upg J | Mechanical | 8,000 | p/a inop, light inop, bad food | |
| JumboJet | 69 | PLT | 10/26/03 | Upg J | Wildfires | 4 stickers | |
| Shawn02139 | 66 | friend | Award | Mechanical | 15,000 | 25 hrs late total | |
| KBW | 65 | PLT | 09/16/03 | Upg J | Catering error | 2 stickers | |
| MarshB | 64 | PLT | 09/23/03 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 2,000 | Bumped also on next flight $200 |
| kef0913 | 60 | none | 01/03/02 | Disc Y | Delay/overbooked | -?? | Hotel/$300 voucher |
| MelP | 59 | none | 12/29/02 | Disc Y | Misconnect | -?? | Hotel/Meal vouchers |
| ajacpril | 56 | PLT | 09/08/03 | Upg F | Mechanical | 6,000 | |
| 777Brit | 55 | EXP | 05/30/03 | Upg J | Misconnect | 15,000 | $80 meal vouchers/hotel/upgrade |
| 777Brit | 55 | EXP | 10/06/03 | Upg J | Flight service | 15,000 | Bad service, IFE broken |
| ESpen36 | 51 | PLT | 06/03/07 | Upg J | Crew illegal | 9,000 | 5.5 hrs late total |
| Pickles | 50 | none | 02/03/07 | Upg J | Mechanical | 15,000 | |
| Pickles | 50 | PLT | 06/03/07 | Disc Y | checkin | -?? | ReRoute with Upgrade |
| psychocadet | 45 | none | 05/31/03 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | IFE broken 2 flights |
| Gemini573 | 43 | PLT | 06/05/03 | Y | Mechanical | 20,000 | International, p/a system inop |
| rbAA | 38 | PLT | 12/01/03 | Upg J | Mechanical | @ | $200 voucher also |
| DFW AA | 37 | EXP | 05/06/03 | First | Weather | 6,000 | |
| dyobmit | 36 | none | 08/02/07 | Disc Y | Missconnect | @ | $10 meal voucher/Hotel |
| Bradford | 35 | PLT | 04/03/07 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 7,000 | |
| Jseiple | 34 | GLD | 03/03/07 | Mechanical | @ | Comp Upgrade | |
| Jseiple | 34 | GLD | 03/03/07 | Diversion | 12,000 | 3K addl with complimentary letter | |
| saint | 30 | PLT | DEC 02 | J | Luggage | $697 | |
| azmmza | 28 | EXP | JAN 03 | J | Mechanical | $250 voucher | Unsolicited |
| sk3 | 27 | none | NOV 02 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 7,000 | Emailed CS that pressurization probs caused ear pain |
| sk3 | 27 | PLT | APR 03 | Disc Y | Mechanical | 5,000 | |
| LighingGuy | 24 | PLT | JAN 03 | Y | Mechanical | None | Received only an apology |
| chrism | 19 | EXP | FEB 2003 | Disc Y | Ground hold | 15,000 & $20 meal voucher | Miles unsolicited, emailed suggestion only re: missed connx |
| PlatAAagain | 18 | PLT/GLD | OCT 2001 | Mileage Upg | Mechanical | 9,000 | Unsolicited |
| inlanikai | 16 | GLD | 1993 (approx.) | Disc Y | Mechanical | Food at airport for 60-70 pax | Unsolicited, no dinner served after takeoff, FA took initiative |
| inlanikai | 16 | EXP/none | Spring 03 | F award | Seat Assignment | 10,000 to EXP, plus $1000 to each of 4 pax | Unsolicited (did complain to GA/EXP desk that seats were not correctly reassigned after equip change) |
| ExpoTrac | 15 | PLT | NOV 02 | Upg J (miles) | IFE | 10,000 returned | Requested |
| ExpoTrac | 15 | PLT | MAR 03 | Y | Mechanical | 8,000 | Unsolicited, only sent letter to compliment crew |
| bhxnick | 14 | PLT/GLD/none | Various | Disc Y | Weather | $50 voucher/hotel | Unsolicited, delay caused missed intl connx |
| bhxnick | 14 | PLT/GLD/none | AUG 99 | Disc Y | Seat assignment | $150 vouchers | Written complaint, each of 7 pax received a voucher |
| Pakse | 10 | PLT | FEB 02 | J | Mechanical & Weather | 10,000 | Unsolicited |
| Pakse | 10 | PLT | APR 02 | J | Missed connection | $20 food voucher | Unsolicited |
| Pakse | 10 | PLT | SEP 02 | YUP | Seat assignment | $100 | Unsolicited |
| Pakse | 10 | EXP | FEB 03 | F | Broken seats | 10,000 | Complained to AA |
| CharlesMD | 1 | none | FEB 02 | Disc Y | Mechanical | $200 | Written request, offered $200 voucher or 5K miles or 4 500-mile ugs |
| CharlesMD | 1 | GLD | NOV 02 | J | Mechanical | 10,000 | Written request followed by phone call |
| CharlesMD | 1 | PLT | MAR 03 | Disc Y | Food poisoning | 2,000 | Unsolicited, emailed only to notify of possible catering problem |
| CharlesMD | 1 | PLT | MAR 03 | Disc Y | Luggage | 2,500 | Requested compensation via phone |
