

When Airlines Screw Up Your Flight, AirHelp (YC W14) Gets You Paid - nicomichaelsen
http://techcrunch.com/2014/03/05/when-airlines-screw-up-your-flight-airhelp-gets-you-paid/
We just announced our YC participation and we are now officially live in the US.
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lightcatcher
I just tried to use the service to get some money from a cancelled flight from
Houston to Los Angeles that I had in January.

Here's some feedback/questions about the service:

\- When I filled in the flight, I selected "cancelled". When I got to the
final claim filing step, it asked how many hours my arrival was delayed, with
the highest tier being 4+ hours. This was confusing to me and made me double
check that I selected cancelled and not delayed. If the text said here "how
much did your flight cancellation delay your arrival?" or something similar,
the process would have been much clearer.

\- After completing the claim filing, I got a message that I wasn't eligible
for compensation. The first two sentences talked about why I wasn't eligible
due to not being on a flight between EU countries. The end of the paragraph
said that reimbursements aren't given for flights cancelled due to weather,
safety, strikes, etc. I would be far less confused by the service if a simple
answer was given here instead (don't mention the EU stuff if you're trying to
reimburse Americans, and hopefully just put a single statement like "Sorry,
you are not eligible for reimbursement because your flight was cancelled due
to weather".

Another question related not so much to the website but just the reimbursement
service. For the particular IAH->LAX trip I was hoping to get reimbursed for,
I had a Saturday flight delayed then cancelled, then got reschedule to Sunday
morning, which got cancelled, and then got rescheduled to Monday (which
actually went through). Could I attempt to get reimbursed for both
cancellations or just one?

~~~
ozi
The only circumstance you're eligible for compensation on a domestic, US
flight is if you are bumped off the plane due to over booking.

0 to 1 hour arrival delay = No compensation.

1 to 4 hour arrival delay = 200% of one-way fare (but no more than $650).

Over 4 hours arrival delay = 400% of one-way fare (but no more than $1,300).

~~~
_archon_
Do you have a source for this?

~~~
gamblor956
[http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/rules/part%20250.pdf](http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/rules/part%20250.pdf)

14 CFR 250.

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sarah2079
This is a great idea. I once had a (US domestic) flight cancelled at the last
minute because there weren't enough people on it, and all the airline offered
to do was put me in a hotel overnight and pay for my meals while I waited for
another flight that was about 20 hours later.

In the end I managed to weasel my way onto a different flight to a nearby
airport, and I still have no idea what I should have asked for if I had
actually had to wait that long. I was pretty outraged that they didn't offer
me any other compensation for all the time I would have lost because they
chose to cancel an underbooked flight.

~~~
bjelkeman-again
My wife and I had our flight from Europe to Japan cancelled a few summers ago.
The put us another flight via Bangkok. Added 8 hours to our journey. That
became a really long trip.

Eventually we got the EU paperwork and filled it in meticulously. And to our
surprise €600 each arrived within a few weeks.

As soon as the use of these type of apps become the norm the flight prices
will probably go up a bit to compensate. Or maybe the airlines will be less
cavalier about cancelling flights.

~~~
jdminhbg
> As soon as the use of these type of apps become the norm the flight prices
> will probably go up a bit to compensate. Or maybe the airlines will be less
> cavalier about cancelling flights.

Presumably both these things will happen, the former as a consequence of the
latter.

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sadfaceunread
The power of attorney part is a little scary. I understand they really have to
handle the whole process to ensure they get paid at the end, but I surely
don't take giving someone power of attorney lightly.

~~~
bushido
It will most definitely be a limited power of attorney for this event only.
They should have called it "Representative Appointment Form" like other
industries do.

The latter is technically a limited power of attorney too.

Edit: The following is from their EU POA form:

    
    
       This power of attorney shall become effective on the day of signature and shall expire if revoked by me/us in writing. This document shall be construed and interpreted as a general power of attorney and my/our Agent shall have full authority to act on my/our behalf in relation to my/our claims resulting from disruptions of flights pursuant to EU Regulation 261/04. I/we furthermore grant my/our Agent the authority to:
    
       *(1) undertake all appropriate legal – judicial and extrajudicial – measures appropriate to collect my/our claim(s) from the airline until the claim is fully settled;*
    
       *(2) collect and receive payments on my/our behalf.*

~~~
bertil
Could a lawyer express an informed opinion about that?

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tibbon
Neat.

While perhaps impossible, I'd also love an app that would overall just help me
get back ontrack for flights and rebooked somehow.

I realize I can go to the gate agent (who invariably now has 50 other people
in line, and are working with computers that seem to require 1000 key presses
to even look up the most basic thing) or call the airline (similar situation)-
but it seems that the best results only happen for you if they aren't super
busy and like you.

Oftentimes I've found that there is some 'problem solving' that can occur to
get you back on track.

For example: I missed my flight to BOS to AUS for SXSW one year. Initially it
was a 'the next available flight is in a week' situation, which clearly wasn't
going to work for me. We went through some problem solving however and found a
solution that totally worked. They booked me on a flight instead to DFW or SAT
(can't remember which), with a layover in CLT. I went on Twitter and found a
friend driving to SXSW who was going to pick me up then and take me there from
the alternate nearby city. They also put me on standby for a flight from CLT
to AUS. The standby totally worked out, and I got to Austin only an hour later
than originally anticipated.

However, if the person at the gate/ticketing doesn't feel like helping you
then frequently you're just kinda screwed. I've had dozens of situations like
this where I was able to convince them to try something 'different' with me
and it worked out well.

If an App helped me automatically rebook and find my options that I'd
otherwise have to go beg a customer service agent for... that would be
awesome. If then I'm on a connecting flight that something is going to mess
up- I could probably have my plans made by the time I'm off the first plane.

~~~
kgermino
It's not an app but I've heard good things about
[http://crankyconcierge.com](http://crankyconcierge.com)

I've never had cause to hire them myself though.

~~~
oostevo
I used them for an award flight that got severely messed up.

I was pretty impressed with the service.

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Avitas
When airlines screw up such as when you miss a connecting flight due to an
airline-caused delay, walking to the ticket counter or agent desk gets you
paid. If you have a cell phone, a phone call to the airline gets you paid.

If you don't want to bother with walking to the airline reps in the airport or
you are not comfortable interacting with people, AirHelp may be useful.

~~~
mixmastamyk
Not in this day and age. United stranded me in Houston last year after leaving
late from LA... said it was because of the weather and politely told me to
"shove off." Well guess what, it was another perfect day in LA that day. If
work hadn't paid for everything I'd be very angry. I'm still angry but busy
and less motivated to fight.

A company that could do the fighting for me could be helpful. Even if they
didn't produce a profit for me, I'd consider using it out of principle.

~~~
saryant
Weather upstream from your flight can still be responsible. If the aircraft
your flight is going to use gets delayed due to weather earlier in the day,
that's a weather delay, even if you had clear skies at your departure.

Airlines aren't responsible for weather delays, full stop.

~~~
Avitas
> Airlines aren't responsible for weather delays, full stop.

Yes, exactly.

"Airline-caused" means things like:

\- flight crew delays/unavailable

\- mechanical issues

\- overbooking

~~~
nicwolff
Not even. If air crew is unavailable because a previous flight ran long due to
headwinds and they are out of allowable flying hours for the day, week, or
month? That's "weather-related" and you get nothing.

~~~
Avitas
I agree, I could have been clearer by repeating the exclusion for weather
delays on one or more line items. I'm sure there are even borderline cases
where a denial by the airline might be questionable and your only course of
action would be to repeatedly and/or strongly state your case, escalate the
matter up the chain-of-command, call/file your case with the government (e.g.,
DOT ACPD), file a request for arbitration (i.e., if your ticket requires),
file a small claims suit, etc.

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philip1209
I am intrigued and tried to submit a claim for a recent domestic (USA) flight.
However, the app update for US flights does not appear to have taken effect
because I was denied for not being eligible under EU law:

[http://i.imgur.com/sgDGyZy.png](http://i.imgur.com/sgDGyZy.png)

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collyw
Really curious to hear what their success rate is with Ryanair, as they seem
to be as consumer unfriendly as possible. (Though I think they have started to
change their priorities recently)

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cykho
So basically this app is a simplified version of this?
[http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm#ov...](http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm#overbooking)
If you get bumped involuntarily due to overbooking you are due compensation.
Else you're SOL.

~~~
nicomichaelsen
We started this company in order to help bridge the gap between people and
legislation. We asked ourselves, how it is possible that there is a defined
set of rules and still it seems like the process of actually enforcing them is
quite cumbersome. Today only very few passengers who are entitled to
compensation actually claim it. The reason must be that they do not know it
exists and/or they feel it is a huge mountain to climb. We want to make it
easy and transparent for all parties involved in the claims process. Pursuing
your legally given rights should never be a burden.

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nchuhoai
Just as a general PSA (without claiming to be complete):

(Generally, none of these apply if the airline can claim extraordinary
circumstances such as weather)

\- Flights Originating/Transiting/Ending in the EU:

1\. You are entitled to cash compensation for sufficiently long delays (2-4
hours depending on flight duration) 2\. You are entitled to cash compensation
(for the inconvenience) and reroute (whenever you want) for a cancellation or
cash compensation (for the inconvenience) and a ticket refund

If delay is long enough, you are entitled to meals and refreshments, if over-
night, to accomodation.

\- Flights in the US

AFAIK, you pretty much are only entitled to something if you get denied
boarding on an overbooked flight.

However, it's always best to just walk up to an airline agent, putting a smile
on your face and explaining the situation. They have nothing against you and
only help, but you greatly reduce their inclination to do so by making it
their personal fault.

~~~
bertil
> you greatly reduce their inclination to do so by making it their personal
> fault.

AirHelp should really include Hans Rosling’s video on how blaming yourself
really improves service. I swear, I remember him explaining that in one of his
speeches (he usually talks about developing countries). I can’t find it back,
but he is perfect at it.

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markolschesky
What are the statistics on the number of canceled or delayed flights that the
average flier has in a year that would qualify for reimbursement?

I used to have 40 round trip flights a year not so long ago, and I'd say that
there was probably only one or two flights that were canceled during that
duration of time. Occasionally I'd volunteer to get off a flight to grab a
voucher for reimbursement, but most of the time I only got a hotel or other
small voucher for a flight cancellation.

I understand that Europe provides more compensation for technical problems,
but are flight cancellations really that common of an occurrence for non-
frequent fliers?

~~~
mastef
my parents had a 3+ hour flight delay/re-routing in 3 consecutive years coming
back in the same holiday period - not frequent fliers, rather frequently
delayed

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shitlord
Just curious: in the US, if you were denied boarding, is the airline obligated
to compensate you in the form of cash? Or are they allowed to get away with
giving you a voucher for the equivalent amount ("store credit")?

~~~
saryant
If it's involuntary, you are owed cash, unless you're denied for
weight/balance reasons in which case nothing is due, or you're rebooked on a
flight within the hour. If it's voluntary, everything is at the airline's
discretion.

United's official rules: [http://flyerguide.com/index.php/S*UAL/DENIED-
IDB](http://flyerguide.com/index.php/S*UAL/DENIED-IDB)

------
brightsize
This sounds like an exact clone of the German company flightright, which has
been around for several years now.
[http://www.flightright.de/](http://www.flightright.de/)

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mrmch
Flying with US Airways this past week; 8 flights in 4 days, 5/8 flights were
delayed, causing missed connections, etc.

How I wish AirHelp was available in the US :(

~~~
nicomichaelsen
We are actually available in the US, the problem is that the airlines are only
obligated to compensate you if you're bumped when flying on domestic US
flights.

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relet
Feedback:

The airport search fields should recognize airport codes. If I type in "bru",
Brussels airport should be the first, not the third in the list. If I do not
choose from the suggestion box, but tab into the next field, it should fill
the field with the correct selection.

~~~
nicomichaelsen
Thanks for the feedback, really good point. Actually some of our batch mates
(algolia) from the current YC batch should actually be able to provide this.

~~~
ndessaigne
Sure, happy to help!

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gregcrv
What a great idea ! so easy to use ! With laws, general conditions, etc...
becoming more and more long and complex (even for educated people) I can see
this kind of concept taking off in many other fields. cannot wait !

~~~
nicomichaelsen
Thanks for the kind words, that was actually one of the reasons we started
AirHelp.

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antidaily
The form should know that travel between MDW and DTW is not eligible before I
enter in all my info. Kinda infuriating.

~~~
nicomichaelsen
Thanks for this feedback, that's really helpful to us.

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spinlock
Almost makes me want to fly United again ... almost.

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lvs
Another startup serving the needs of people who demand to be served.

~~~
tantalor
You are of course referring to people who paid for a service which was later
denied.

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stephengillie
So concatenate("Air",$SAASfeaturename) is the new hip naming convention? I'll
update the lexicon.

~~~
toomuchtodo
Or because its specifically designed for the air travel marketplace?

