Bumped!

Have you ever tried to deliberately get bumped from your airline flight? Well, I have. I heard about this practice several years ago, and put it to good use. It's not as easy as it used to be, but let me tell you about it.

Airlines deliberately oversell the seats to compensate for people who don't show up, and sometimes end up with more passengers than seats. You can take advantage if this happens in your situation, to earn free travel vouchers, and possibly a hotel room and food vouchers.

The best way to set yourself up for the possibility of getting bumped (and rewarded) is to buy your tickets for a busy time. It's good to make sure there are later flights available that day, unless it's not a problem for you to stay overnight. Then, arrive early at your gate. As soon as they open the gate, approach the desk and tell them that you volunteer to be bumped if needed. If they think that's a possibility, they'll put your name on a list, and call you to the desk before they make a public announcement. The reward is different for each airlines, and it also depends on the value of the flight you are booked on. The best scenario is that they give you a travel voucher for a free flight later, plus confirm you have a seat on a later flight. Sometimes there is negotiation room to get a first class upgrade on the later flight. Always be polite.

I suggest that if you're going to try this, put everything you might need for an overnight stay in your carry-on luggage. There are no guarantees that it will work for you, but if it does, it's really a sweet deal.

When I first heard about this, my husband and I and our two youngest sons were on our way to Disney World. We got bumped and arrived only a couple of hours later than planned, with 4 free round-trip tickets to anywhere in the US, Canada, or Caribbean. Plus they gave us a food voucher to feed the whole family at TGIFridays in the airport. We took those free tickets and got bumped again, to the point that we flew for 2 years on free tickets. Once my son and I got bumped twice on a trip to San Diego, for 4 free tickets. We still got there the same day.

I wish I could get on a roll like that again! It's not worked for me for quite a while, but then I'm not traveling by air as often as I used to. Remember that the airlines will not do this for flights that have been delayed because of weather problems (and sometimes they call it weather problems when it's really not). Also, free tickets don't earn airline points. At any rate, it's worth a try, so come prepared, and roll the dice!