Next time you get bumped off an oversold flight don’t freak out — cool your jets and cash in.
Personal finance expert Casper Opala shared a little-known hack in a recent Instagram video that could get you “bumped flight compensation” if you’re removed from one airplane and placed on another one.
“Do not leave the airport if you get bumped,” Casper said in his video, which has over 34,000 views since being posted late last month when he was told it would take three hours for his airline to book him a replacement flight.
The first thing you should do is Google “Bumped flight compensation,” Opala suggested.
Go to the Department of Transportation website — the first link that should pop up after the Google search — and look for a table showing the compensation you’re entitled to in relation to how long you’re delayed.
Earlier in the video he role-played a potential conversation with an airline employee who informed him he was put on a flight three hours later than his original one. He used this delay as an example to calculate his compensation.
“Since I was bumped from my flight and the next flight they can put me on is in three hours they owe me 400% of my one-way fare,” he said.
“Since I paid $300 for my one-way flight they now owe me $1,200 in cash compensation.”
He stressed the importance of not leaving the airport because “the airline is required to pay your compensation the same day the bumping incident happened.”
He also told his followers that people bumped from flights aren’t required to pay additional funds for the rebooked flight.”
Commenters on his video thanked him for the pro tip.
“Wow that’s a good one to know Thankyou ????,” one wrote.
good to know ! Wished I had known in July… lol,” said another.
Instagram and TikTok have become hubs for travelers looking for hacks to make their lives easier as well as those looking to save some dough.
TikToker Erika Kullberg shared that Delta will pay travelers up to $3,800 for baggage delays.
Californian-based musical group Bed Sweater shared their hack for skirting fees on extra heavy bags — one of them uses their foot to prop up the luggage scale.