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United Airlines - United Creates Safety Issue Letting Kids Sit Alone
Complaint
Review by emobabe75 on 2012-07-26
Rating: 
WASHINGTON DC -- We recently traveled on United Airlines and they expected my three-year old son to sit alone. We booked the flight 8 months ahead and paid extra to upgrade and secure seats together, but at the last minute they cancelled our flight and booked us on an overbooked flight. While you might think people will willing switch seats, that's not always the case. We had to beg people to switch so my three-year old wouldn't be forced to sit alone, get scared and cry so hard he would throw up on people... NOT so family friendly. The ticket agent just kept saying, "sorry, there is nothing we can do".
Comments:
Posted by onlooker on 2012-07-26:
That was unfortunate - I have been on both sides of that issue: needing to sit with a child, not getting to sit with a child, giving up my seat, and not giving up my seat.
Airlines have made actual seat location an added cost, and the last minute / emergency change of seat - there is no benefit provided, I actually lose if I give up my extra leg room etc., makes last minute change really hard to accommodate.
The safety issue is minimal on a place of 80 persons. But it is HUGE to the parents involved.
If such an accommodation included upgrade to better seats and not a switch out to a last minute, middle, non-reclining seat next to the bathroom, perhaps the airlines and families would not have the problem.
Airlines have made actual seat location an added cost, and the last minute / emergency change of seat - there is no benefit provided, I actually lose if I give up my extra leg room etc., makes last minute change really hard to accommodate.
The safety issue is minimal on a place of 80 persons. But it is HUGE to the parents involved.
If such an accommodation included upgrade to better seats and not a switch out to a last minute, middle, non-reclining seat next to the bathroom, perhaps the airlines and families would not have the problem.
Posted by trmn8r on 2012-07-26:
The way this played out is unfortunate, but I believe it was handled appropriately by the employees. They can't force people to move, but passengers can offer. Often there will be someone willing to do so. If the people right around the seat won't, I suppose you would have to call out "if there are two people next to each other travelling alone, would you be willing to switch with our two seats?" The passengers are to blame here too - if we would all try, we can get along.
Posted by CowboyFan on 2012-07-26:
Obviously the three year did not sit by himself, so there was no safety issue. As TRMN8r said, the employees were correct in not forcing people to move, but it is hard to imagine that no one in a plane would not agree to change seats-I would to avoid sitting next to an unattended three year old. This is especially true, if one asks people farther back on the plane, since many people are there who would like to sit further up front.
Posted by Ben There on 2012-07-26:
Families and other travelers on cancelled flights have to pick the lesser of two evils... Get booked on the next flight available and risk not sitting next to each other, or wait around till there is a emptier flight where everyone can be booked in seats together.
Question to the public... If you were traveling with kids and your flight was cancelled, would you rather take the flight leaving in an hour that does not have seats together (with the chance to beg on board), or wait say 6 hours for the next one that does?
Question to the public... If you were traveling with kids and your flight was cancelled, would you rather take the flight leaving in an hour that does not have seats together (with the chance to beg on board), or wait say 6 hours for the next one that does?
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