Ka-ching: Hoping to avoid a United-like debacle, Delta is now offering almost $10,000 to customers willing to deplane without being forced off their flights by security guards.
According to an internal memo obtained Friday by The Associated Press, Delta has given its agents the green light to offer up to $2,000 ($1,200 more than the previous maximum). Supervisors are allowed to offer up to $9,950 (up from $1,350).
United would not disclose its current compensation limit to the AP. A spokesperson said the company is still reviewing its incentive policies and will announce its decision by April 30.
Airlines routinely offer travel vouchers or cash to customers on overbooked flights. But Delta was able to convince more passengers to give up their seats than any other U.S. airline last year, according to the AP, simply by offering more cash.
Last weekend, 69-year-old David Dao, a doctor, was violently dragged off a United flight after refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked flight. The incident, captured on video, has become a PR nightmare for the airline, and Dao plans to sue.
Still… don’t expect to be handed a suitcase full of cash just because your Delta flight is overbooked. It’s likely supervisors won’t offer the maximum amount right off the bat. (But even paying out the nose for tickets once in a while wouldn’t be too much of a financial hit for the airline, considering Delta earned nearly $4.4 billion last year.)
An Associated Press data analysis shows that from 2015 to 2016, Delta paid an average of $1,118 in compensation for every passenger who was asked to give up a seat. Meanwhile Southwest paid $758, United $565, and American Airlines $554.
11 Companies That Created Their Own PR Nightmares (Photos)
United Airlines went viral in the worst way possible when video of a man being wrestled off one of its flights hit the internet. The man, a doctor who needed to return home for his shift at a hospital, was forcibly removed from a plane because a crew member needed his seat. Video showed security dragging the man being off the plane by his arms with blood on his face.
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United's latest public relations nightmare was preceded by an incident last month in which two teenagers were barred from boarding their flight because they were wearing leggings.
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Within minutes of Pepsi unveiling a new ad starring Kendall Jenner, social media users almost unanimously came down against it, calling the protest-themed commercial tone deaf and opportunistic. The ad, which depicted Jenner resolving the tension at a protest scene with a can of Pepsi, was pulled after a day and the company issued an apology.
Pepsi
In 2015, Starbucks had its own PR disaster with its "race together" campaign, which sought to help heal race relations in America through coffee cup stickers, and not much else. Critics slammed the campaign, which began in response to a series police shootings, as a cheap marketing ploy.
Starbucks
Bloomingdales ran a print ad in 2015 encouraging readers to "spike your best friend's eggnog when they're not looking." With the accompanying photo of a man looking at a distracted woman, some accused the ad of contributing rape culture by encouraging people to shirk consent.
Bloomingdales
Budweiser found itself in a similar position when customers noticed that some Bud Light cans featured the quote “The perfect beer for removing ‘no’ from your vocabulary for the night.” One of 140 slogans printed on the cans as part of the “Up for Whatever” campaign, the quote nonetheless drew the ire of those who said the company was encouraging rape.
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The skincare company Nivea took some heat on social media after it debuted an ad featuring the phrase "white is purity," which some accused of supporting white supremacy. The ad also included a picture of a woman and the caption "Keep it clean, keep it bright. Don't let anything ruin it."
Nivea
Samsung began selling its Galaxy Note 7 phones in August 2016, and by September, it had suspended sales of the phone due to reports that they were catching fire during charging. After issuing replacement phones only to find that those phones were also catching fire, the company officially recalled the product on Sept. 15. In October, it issued a software update to brick the model entirely.
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Wells Fargo is currently amid its own PR disaster after it came to light that employees were creating thousands of fraudulent accounts to meet unrealistic sales goals. As many of 5,300 employees were fired as a result, and the company has since clawed back $180 million from two former executives.
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When President Trump signed the first version of his Muslim travel ban in February and taxis briefly withheld service from airports in protest, Uber announced it would be lowering its own prices. The action led to a mass boycott of the ride sharing service and the hashtag #DeleteUber.
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Chick-fil-A's history of anti-LGBT activism came to light after the company's CEO Dan Cathy admitted to opposing same-sex marriage in 2012. Amid increasing public outcry, the company eventually vowed to stop donating to anti-LGBT causes.
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From United Airlines violently removing a passenger to Pepsi, Starbucks and Chick-fil-A’s public faux pas
United Airlines went viral in the worst way possible when video of a man being wrestled off one of its flights hit the internet. The man, a doctor who needed to return home for his shift at a hospital, was forcibly removed from a plane because a crew member needed his seat. Video showed security dragging the man being off the plane by his arms with blood on his face.
Getty Images
Getty Images
