An angry consumer mentioned to Action News she was denied a refund after getting bumped from an overbooked Frontier flight. An incident that shines an even brighter spotlight on Frontier as the airline most complained about in 2023, according to federal aviation officials.
Erin Woltjen who hailed from Douglassville in the Berks County, described a recent incident at the airport when she was attempting to board a Frontier flight from to Atlanta from Philadelphia. She said after her boarding pass was scanned, she was told the plane had been oversold, and she, among a few other passengers, was denied entry.
Woltjen said passengers like her were entitled to 400 percent compensation for the massive disruption to their travel plans. She was told she would get a mail regarding the compensation, which never came. To make matters worse, when Woltjen managed to reach someone at Frontier, the airline incorrectly claimed she didn’t show up for the Frontier flight.
Frustrated by her situation, Woltjen reached out to the Troubleshooters. She said she felt Frontier owed her the 400 percent compensation in cash, not airline miles, for her trouble.
Read Also: How to Change Name on Frontier Airlines?
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, “if bumped passengers request cash or a check, this is exactly what the airlines are supposed to offer.” Also, “Airlines are required to seek volunteers willing to give up their seats for compensation before bumping passengers involuntarily,” according to the DOT, which Woltjen says Frontier did not do.
After Troubleshooters got involved, Frontier agreed to provide Woltjen with the 400 percent cash compensation but would not refund the cost of the second ticket she bought from another airline to get her to Atlanta.
Frontier responded that it already provided the required compensation for the matter and apologized for inadvertently marking Woltjen as a no-show.
The incident also pointed out Frontier’s bad history regarding this issue. According to DOT’s latest data, Frontier bumped more than 10,000 passengers involuntarily in the past year. In contrast, during the same period, Delta Airlines had only three involuntary bumped passengers.