‘Sneaky overbooking tactic’ or smart alternative to denying boarding from flights?

Evan Davis, an Australian living in Birmingham, has just returned from Paris to the West Midlands. But on Friday night, the day before his flight on Vueling from Paris Orly (code ORY) to Birmingham (BHX), he received an email from the Spanish airline indicating the flight was heavily booked.

The message offered volunteers willing to take a later flight – in this case three days later – a voucher for future travel worth €250 (£215). He wasn’t tempted, and let me know his less-than-favourable reaction:

“Surely this is a sneaky overbooking tactic? Overbooked passengers should be getting €250 in cash as well as hotels until the next flight, and that should be on any airline that has seats available.”

The email begins: “Your upcoming ORY-BHX flight on 15 JUL 2023 may be full and we are therefore looking for volunteers willing to change to another flight if necessary in exchange for a discount of 250EUR per person to use on their next booking.”

That €250 corresponds to the amount stipulated under European air passengers’ rights rules for someone denied boarding involuntarily. In those circumstances, the payment should be in cash. Hotels plus an early replacement flight as possible are obligatory.

But the Vueling email is an invitation to volunteer to be offloaded. The law has nothing to say about such circumstances: it is purely a matter for the airline and the passenger to agree upon.

Vueling takes pains to manage the traveller’s reaction. “Important: your booking hasn’t changed,” it writes. “If you aren’t interested in this offer, please just ignore this email.”

I am not sure that every passenger will feel entirely relaxed to learn that their impending departure may be full, and that volunteers are being sought not to travel.

Anyway, for those who choose to read on, this is the Vueling offer: