Why missing one flight can set off a costly travel domino effect

Longer lines and fuller flights. Surveys show travel is up this holiday season. So you really do want to get to the airport early. And we have another reason to prepare to be punctual: a possible airline penalty. 

Arthur Ruda and his wife Lorie Nathan of Novato recently toured Italy and Croatia on a trip that lasted about two weeks. 

He described each of their destinations as, “a fabulous place with great wines.”

In addition to learning about new reds and whites, Arthur and Lorie got an airline education that cost them hundreds of dollars. 

“We were in kind of a pickle,” Arthur recalled. 

The couple booked flights on Lufthansa, and their trip home had them going from Milan to Frankfurt to San Francisco. The day of their flight, they learned -- the hard way -- that Milan has two airports an hour apart. 

“On the way, we realized we were going to the wrong airport, so we had to rush over to the correct airport,” Arthur said. 

But Arthur and Lorie missed their flight. That set off a costly domino effect. First, Lufthansa made the couple pay for a new ticket from Milan to Frankfurt -- at sky-high last-minute rates. 

“They charged us an extra $460 a ticket -- each,” Arthur said. 

Arthur was miffed. 

“We got there on time. We didn’t miss our flight,” he said of the flight from Frankfurt. 

“We were on the original seats we had to get back home,” he added. 

Same flight, but a new charge. What was going on? 

“It’s the airline that is dictating everything,” explained Pamela Irwin, a travel advisor with Mansour Travel in Beverly Hills who also serves as the Director-at-Large on the American Society of Travel Advisor’s board of directors. 

Irwin helped us understand the 47 pages of Lufthansa conditions and 24 pages of jargon-laden fare rules we reviewed for the couple’s flights. 

Irwin said Arthur and Lorie should have called Lufthansa and told them they were running late. 

“You have to advise the airline ahead of time. Otherwise, you’re a ‘no-show,’” Irwin noted.

And when you’re a “no-show” -- even one minute past your departure time -- many airlines cancel the value of your missed flight. For example, Lufthansa’s terms say: “We have the right to cancel your booking if you fail to arrive at the boarding gate in time.”

That’s what cost the couple $460 each in Milan, they had to buy new tickets to Frankfurt. 

So what about the extra money that Lufthansa demanded in Frankfurt? That was another $277 each. It was basically a re-pricing penalty -- buried in the fine print of the fare rules -- because the couple did not fly their flights in order. Irwin said that is a common catch of most airline tickets. 

“If you change any portion of it, you have to change the whole ticket, and it re-prices it, when you change one part, it re-prices the entire ticket,” she said. 

Arthur and Lorie admit their one mistake. But they felt Lufthansa pinched them twice. 

“We were really unhappy about it. We thought they could have been a little bit more hospitable,” Arthur said. 

So, Arthur and Lorie contacted us. We contacted Lufthansa. It did not reply to our request for comment. But, Lufthansa did send Arthur and his wife partial refunds that totaled to $217. In an email to Arthur, Lufthansa called it a “gesture of goodwill.”

“I really appreciated the help,” Arthur noted. 

“I’m thankful they gave something. But I find it odd,” he added.

As for you: heed the warning from Lorie and Arthur’s case. Any time you’re cutting it close with a flight, call your airline or travel agent. And, do it before your flight, because one minute after might be too late. 

“It’s a lesson to learn that perhaps we could have handled it better if we had at the last minute called them and said ‘we’re gonna be late,’” Arthur acknowledged.

Don’t go fumbling for phone numbers on your next trip. Before you leave, save your airline and travel agent’s phone numbers into your phone -- for easy access. Download your airline’s app and save the web address for their chat option in case you can’t get through by calling. 

Have a consumer complaint? Let us know, so we can help.