by Donald Wood
Last updated: 2:53 PM ET, Fri March 23, 2018
Getting bumped from an overbooked flight can cause major travel headaches, but for one passenger flying with United Airlines, it meant earning a $10,000 travel voucher.
The United passenger, a communications director named Allison Preiss, was on a flight Thursday morning preparing to depart from Washington Dulles International Airport when crew members informed travelers the flight was overbooked.
Preiss said flight attendants offered passengers a $1,000 travel credit, but since no one took the offer, they would be forced to kick the lowest fare passenger off the plane. Unfortunately for Preiss, she was the one removed from the flight.
Instead of giving Preiss a cash refund for the ordeal, United customer service employees awarded her a travel voucher worth up to $10,000. The airline also awarded her two $10 meal vouchers.
"Well, I can say it was the best flight delay ever," Preiss told ABCNews.com.
In response, a United spokesperson released a statement saying it had "issued this voucher per our policy."
The latest instance of a passenger being bumped comes just a month after the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the rate of travelers being pulled off overbooked flights reached the lowest numbers on record in 2017.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
