ArcaMax

Q: I booked a business class seat for my American Airlines flight from St. Thomas to Charlotte, North Carolina. But 45 minutes before boarding, a gate agent told me that my seat was broken, and I'd have to move to the main cabin. They promised a refund for the fare difference, plus a $500 inconvenience fee. Another agent printed a new boarding pass but kept changing the compensation amount -- first to $200, then to $300. I accepted, assuming that I could resolve it later.

But when I submitted a refund request online, American denied it. The airline's customer relations department also rejected my claim, and emails to corporate contacts only got me generic replies. After weeks of back-and-forth, I still hadn't received a dime. Why won't American Airlines honor its promise? -- Laura MacLennan, Gurnee, Illinois

A: American Airlines should have immediately refunded the fare difference and honored its compensation offer. Under Department of Transportation (DOT) rules, passengers who are downgraded from a higher class of seating to a lower class are entitled to a refund for the difference in price. But if an agent offers an additional $500 for the inconvenience, then American should follow through.

But as good as this sounded, I'm almost certain that either the agents misspoke or you misunderstood them. The reason they kept changing the amount was that they needed to calculate the fare difference.

Airlines usually calculate these types of refunds by the book, although I've witnessed a few shenanigans in the past. For example, for an involuntary downgrade, I've seen them recalculate the price of your seat based on the day's fare. And as you probably know, the walk-up economy class fare can be almost as much as an advance-purchased business class ticket. Airlines can deny their customers any fare adjustment based on this funny math.

At first, I suspected this was the problem -- a fare recalculation that left you with nothing. And you say you did, too. Technically, American could try some funny math, and it would be completely legal. But it's definitely not the right thing to do.

You might have been able to avoid this by asking the agent for a written confirmation of the refund. While verbal assurances are common, a paper trail is critical. Always document your interactions, including the names of employees and the time of your interaction. You had asked for the names of the gate agents but said, "They gave me a hard time about this, and I felt weird trying to zone in on their name tags."

I see you escalated this to the American executives I list on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org. At the time you contacted me, the executives had switched email addresses (maybe to hide from customers like you), which is why your requests were going into the void. (Don't worry, my research team has fixed this.) The point is that the executives should have never abandoned their emails, and they should have responded to you.

If you ever get into a situation like this, it's best to look up the DOT rules and make sure that the airline is following them. Vague promises of $500 in compensation that change by the minute are not reliable, especially if the airline doesn't put it in writing.

I contacted American on your behalf. The airline claimed that you had not been downgraded but instead moved to a different business class seat. You sent them a boarding pass that confirmed you sat in economy. American issued a $300 travel credit and $226 for the fare difference.

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Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy (elliottadvocacy.org), a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris@elliott.org or get help by contacting him at elliottadvocacy.org/help/.

(c) 2025 Christopher Elliott

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