DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Palus Politicus Travelers complain of steep airfares as they try to escape Hurricane Irma's path

This is absolutely disgusting. Gas stations did the same nonsense to the people in Texas.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/travelers...-224013499.html

On Monday evening, John Lyons, a 53-year-old father from West Hartford, Connecticut, purchased a one-way American Airlines ticket from Miami to Hartford for $159.20 for his daughter to get out of Hurricane Irma’s path as the storm churns through the Caribbean.

On Tuesday, he was shocked at the spike in airfare prices.

“I logged in and expected to see $160, and frankly if I had seen $260 I wouldn’t have reacted. And I logged in and saw, $1,020, and I about had a heart attack,” Lyons told Yahoo Finance in a phone interview on Tuesday afternoon.

Lyons, who describes himself as an “amateur meteorologist,” likes to post weather reports on West Hartford’s Facebook page. Although Hurricane Irma poses no direct threat to where he lives, he has been following the storm’s developments.

“I’m seeing the direct hit on Florida. My daughter is down at the University of Miami, so I called her and said, ‘I’m going to bring you home. If worst comes to worst, we waste money, and you don’t come home, and this thing misses you, and everything is fine.’ I logged in last night and saw $159.20 to be exact. I said you know what; this ticket is so cheap, I’m just going to buy it.”

The next day, he went back to look for a ticket for his daughter’s roommate, who is also a close family friend’s daughter. Shocked at the price increase, he said he even made sure that he didn’t click first class by accident and he also verified that the flight had pretty much the same number of seats available compared to when he checked last night.

“American Airlines had the audacity to raise the rate $800. I’m sorry. I posted it. You know, I’m angry. I think it’s horrible what they are doing. I just think it’s horrible. I’ll leave it at that.”



“We have not changed our fare structures, and, in fact have added capacity to help get customers out of the affected areas,” an American Airlines spokeswoman said in a statement. “We have added several extra flights – from St. Maarten (SXM), St. Kitts (SKB), Providenciales, Turks and Caicos (PLS); and San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU) – in addition to upgrading aircraft when possible. In addition, we have 33 airports included in our waiver program so customers will not be charged change fees or difference in fare with tickets for passengers who already held tickets. Full details on the waiver can be found at www.aa.com/travelalerts.”

Lyons said that he’s traveled to Florida many times and has never had that sort of price tag, even last minute.

“I have booked trips to and from south Florida from Connecticut, short notice during peak holiday periods and I’ve never paid more than $600 or $700 round trip. It is appalling what American Airlines is doing. Like, literally, I’m sick to my stomach over this,” Lyons said. “This is outrageous behavior. Peoples’ lives are at stake.”

Some major airlines are now offering fares above $1,000 for one-way tickets out of Florida and customers have taken to social media to express their outrage.




On Tuesday, a woman on Twitter with the handle @LeighDow tweeted a screengrab of a Delta ticket price changing from $547.50 to $3,258.50. Two hours later, she tweeted again saying “@Delta reached out & helped tremendously. Note to travelers, always call airline directly if something doesn’t look right.”

. @AmericanAir @Delta @united price going from NJ/FL and from FL/NJ if that’s not price gouging before the hurricane then idk what is pic.twitter.com/WEP5ZwDRp9
— John Parker (@itsjohnparkerr) September 5, 2017


Yahoo Finance looked at prices using Matrix Airfare Search by the ITA Matrix, a tool for searching the lowest fares on every airline.

At the time of this writing, a one-way ticket from Fort Lauderdale to Newark for Wednesday, Sept. 6 costs $1,326 on Delta Airlines (DAL) with a layover in Atlanta, while another flight on the same route at a slightly different times costs $1,526.

A one-way, non-direct economy ticket on Delta from Miami to New York, with a layover in Minneapolis-St. Paul, costs anywhere between $873 and $1,358, the site shows. A Delta ticket from Miami to Boston, with an overnight layover in Orlando, is going for $1,879.

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Delta didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Meanwhile, a one-way ticket on American Airlines (AAL) from Miami to a New York City-area airport, all of which stop in Dallas-Fort Worth, costs anywhere from $837 to $1,240.

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American airfare
More
Elsewhere, JetBlue’s (JBLU) non-direct, one-way tickets from Fort Lauderdale to the New York area range from $433 to $492, but they all connect through San Juan Airport in Puerto Rico, which is in the path of the storm.

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Those folks in Florida aren’t the only ones trying to escape Irma’s path. Many were unable to get out of the Caribbean.

Stranded in the Caribbean

Klaudia Harris was supposed to celebrate her 19th birthday on Tuesday in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Instead, the Alabama native, is hunkering down in a three-story villa at The Westin Resort on St. John with her boyfriend, mom, and stepdad as Hurricane Irma barrels toward the island chain.

Their group arrived on Saturday evening. By Sunday, they received a letter on their door about the progress of Irma. They quickly began looking for flights back to the states.

“We were prepared to spend any amount to get off this island,” Harris said in a phone interview. “There were no plane tickets at all. We were prepared to fly to California to New York. We just wanted to get off the island but couldn’t find tickets.”

At one point, she said her mom found an itinerary with a layover in Puerto Rico that would have cost $5,000. By the time her mom went to purchase the tickets, they were gone.

Vincent Magenti, a 22-year-old from Florida, is also trapped on St. Thomas at the Margaritaville Vacation Club with his girlfriend and eight other family members.

They were expecting to leave on the Spirit Airlines (SAVE) flight at 4:19 p.m. on Tuesday out of Cyril E. King Airport heading back to Fort Lauderdale. At 1:30 a.m., they received an email that it had been canceled.

According to a notice Magenti received at his hotel, Spirit was the only major airline to cancel flights in and out of St. Thomas on Tuesday.

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A representative from Spirit didn’t return requests for comment.

Like many others, Magenti and his family are waiting out the storm with stocked refrigerators.

Klaudia Harris’ family is doing the same thing.

“We went to the marketplace yesterday and bought necessities like water, sandwich meat, bread, milk, cereal. We cooked meat for meals yesterday because they turned off the gas this morning.”

She said that neighbors and locals had come together to help each other out ahead of this storm.

“If you think the world is not nice anymore, you should come to the U.S. Virgin Islands during a hurricane, and you’ll change your mind.”

Yup, private citizens of the U.S.A. pay it forward and give hundreds of millions of their personal cash in aid to victims of Harvey, while the cash starved poor old oil Barrons and airline ceo's see an opportunity to put more cash in their pockets. It's how they do it. It's why we are where we are.

Businesses, have every right that humans do, especially the right for their own self interest. I don't see what the problem is. I'm surprised we haven't made charity companies that run gasoline pumps or airlines that fly people out for free. Probably because we live in socialist America and don't let the free market works as they're supposed to, in the best interests of humans, as it's wont to show. What is FEMA doing right now? Waste of resources. We should just send it all to the Red Cross.

I don't know why anyone would be surprised that corporate America would legally rape its customers in a time of need. I mean it's supply and demand, right?

Murica!

DON’T OUTLAW PRICE GOUGING AFTER HARVEY. LET THE MARKET WORK
BY MARK J. PERRY ON 8/28/17 AT 12:18 PM


Using the blank “Fill-In-The-Blank Price Gouging Form” above that I learned about from Art Carden almost ten years ago, I’ve started filling in the form below for Hurricane Harvey based on news reports that the attorneys general in both Texas and Louisiana have pledged to prosecute businesses who engage in “illegal price gouging” charging market prices for goods that are in high demand and short supply.

Fearing increases in the prices of ________________ (name of items in short supply) as a result of a HURRICANE HARVEY (type or name of disaster), officials in TEXAS and LOUISIANA (affected state or municipality) have declared a state of emergency whereby restrictions on “price gouging” are now in effect. According to LOUISIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL JEFF LANDRY and TEXAS ATTORNEY KEN PAXTON (names of politicians, attorneys general or law enforcement officials), the law is designed to protect innocent consumers from “unconscionable” increases in the prices of ______________ (names of specific items in short supply, e.g., water, food, gasoline, ice, electric generators, chainsaws, plywood, etc.).

Warning: The unintended and unseen adverse consequences of enforcing price gouging laws are predictable, unfortunate, and avoidable.

While price ceilings may be motivated by an understandable desire to help consumers in Texas and Louisiana by keeping prices low, those artificially low prices exert secondary effects that are guaranteed to retard the recovery process following Hurricane Harvey.

As the prices that are kept artificially low by government mandate, consumer demand for critical supplies (fuel, food, water, generators, plywood, hotel rooms etc.) will quickly outstrip the available supplies resulting in artificial shortages for those supplies.

The price gouging laws that prevent prices from rising to reflect the true market conditions are also guaranteed to slow the flow of critical goods and supplies into the affected areas in Texas and Louisiana.

Shipments that do arrive in those affected areas will likely be greeted by long lines of consumers, many of whom may end up without anything.

What we know with economic certainty is that the price gouging laws in Texas and Louisiana are guaranteed to result in serious misallocations of critical resources at the exact time that an efficient allocation of those scarce, critical resources will be desperately needed.

Bottom Line: A frequent claim we hear is that the laws of economics should be suspended, ignored or circumvented following a natural disaster like Hurricane Harvey, which then motivates laws against “price-gouging.”

But you can make a stronger case that it’s during the period following a natural disaster like a hurricane when we want market prices to prevail and market forces to operate as forcefully and powerfully as possible.

Reason? It’s the period immediately following a disaster like Hurricane Harvey when efficient resource allocation and addressing scarcity become more heightened than during a normal, non-disaster period.

Disasters typically create huge economic disruptions that usually make certain critical goods much scarcer (water, plywood, fuel, ice, generators, chainsaws, hotel rooms, etc.) than before.

To address those serious economic disruptions and disaster-related shortages, we only have two basic choices: a) market prices that accurately reflect true scarcity and market fundamentals, or b) price controls that ignore scarcity and market forces, and therefore transmit false information about scarcity.

As cruel as it may sound to those who are long on indignation and short on economics, market forces and market prices will address the post-disaster shortages in Texas and Louisiana more quickly and more effectively than government-determined, non-market based prices that result from price gouging laws.

Mark J. Perry is a scholar at AEI and a professor of economics and finance at the University of Michigan's Flint campus.

Another Opinion

I'm not sure when further victimizing flood victims became a good idea.

Thats actually pretty normal. It goes up a lot if you buy it last minute. It has nothing to do with the hurricane.

Refreshing Reason wins the day.

Normally yes, prices go up on airfare purchases bought just a few days in advance. But I see the point, hurry a friggin hurricane is barring down... damn the humanity raise the airfare and throw some chump change later towards recovery efforts.

Upside down world, Thanks Trump!

You never fail to amaze me. Trump gets the blame for this?




Check this out: Jetblue caps prices out of Florida.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/jetblue-offers-99-flights-florida-185921457.html


You best give Trump credit for that as well. Otherwise, your hatred and two facedness is on full display.

Trump didn't cause disaster price gouging in Texas or Florida, he just changed the culture of America to a place where it is acceptable. He ushered in an era of indecency toward people on a human level, I give him full credit for that. He turned the world upside down. Everything is just fake news.

Such Hate.

Oh, really? This price gouging is new? Really?

Wake up. It's been going on for a long, long time.


Seriously, cold, you're like the boy that cried wolf when it comes to Trump.

You bash him daily over idiotic things like this that he has no bearing on.

I like reading your posts, and a few other peoples, about Trump. Great comic relief.

The sad thing is, you really feel that way.

Things Trump is not responsible for:

- Airline price gouging
- Wall Street highs

Both of these things are based on decisions made by private companies. Not the fact that the Donald is President.

The whole right vs left thing is making so much electronic media borderline unreadable.

A one way ticket from Miami to Boston departing on Saturday 9/9/17 can be purchased for $103 and $153 departing on 9/8/17. It's only a little over 2hrs+ to Logan International from West Hartford.

This father doesn't seem very resourceful.

You guys are really naive and gullable.

In the airline system there are literally hundreds of fare rules that determine the price of a seat. A ton of factors go into it. And it changes price all day long every day.

Last minute bookings mean a higher price,
So does a full plane.

Airlines experience a major weather event several times a year. This happens every time.


Its completely normal.

But feel free to continue acting like ignorant idiots just to stoke yourselves over a false narrative.

Liberals are dumb.

I just hope it's you ilk paying for most of these "normal fluctuations."

I dont know what that is supposed to mean.

But Delta Airlines paid my paycheck for 15 years, so I probably know something about it.

Is that like milk from a goat?

Who says you are entitled to fly out?

Irma isn't supposed to hit until Sunday - maybe Sat. night.

Drive. The roads are still passable. With that much warning, time wise - pack a car and go. You can take more with you in the car than you can an airplane, right?

Nobody seems to be entitled to anything except the airline being able to raise their rates by close to five times. If that's not an entitlement I don't know what is. lol

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but the original article states it was American Airlines that jacked up the rates.

I posted a link showing Jet Blue didn't, and won't.


So, if you're in Florida, what do you do? Pay AA, go Jet Blue, or, drive?

What are you talking about "entitled" for? It seems as if you feel the people are entitled to fly on a certain air line for a price that airline apparently isn't offering anymore. But, a different airline has cheap rates. And there's plenty of time to drive.

Who's the "entitled" one here?

Their planes, their prices. Dont like it, go find a hole to curl up in.

The whole thing revolves around one word that I refuse to let my kids use... fair. In the liberal mind, everything has to be "fair".. and this just doesn't feel "fair"... I posted an article above by a college professor of economics from Michigan.. I will make the broad leap and assume he is probably fairly liberal, though I don't know that for sure... he is stating that these price fluctuations are the ONLY way to ensure that the goods and services needed in a situation like this actually get where they are needed.. he makes a reasonable argument..

Folks are free to agree with it or disagree with it, I don't really care... but nobody has even commented on it because it's just so much more fulfilling to make the totally emotional argument that THIS JUST ISN'T FAIR!!!!!!... <stomp feet and storm off to my room>

I've said for many years, Presidents are like quarterbacks, they get way too much credit and way too much blame because they don't have nearly as much influence on the markets and the economy as people think they do...

But thank you for being the voice of reason from the north..

I think people are missing the point.

The airlines have a right to do this, but we also have a right to complain about it.

Just because something is legal doesn't make it ethical. So while they have a legal right to do it, it doesn't make them any less than scum.

But the same people defending this are the same people who would try to sell air if they could get away with it. Gotta squeeze as much money out of people as possible, no matter how dire the situation is.

You can complain and be emotional with your feelings hanging out all you want, but they dont owe you anything. In no universe will you ever get to decide how much a plane ticket costs. Their planes, their prices. You dont like it too bad. They dont care.

Feel free to drive. Or there is a spot in Pit's hole to crawl up in. Trump said he will give free pacifiers to the liberals.

So Wall Street investors and Economists are wrong by calling the last 10 months of the Soaring Markets the "Trump Rally" and then the Trump Rally was soon bolstered by Earnings because some dudes on DT think Trump had nothing to do with it?

It was Trumps promises of growth, tax reform, tax cuts, immigration reform, and America First policies that drove investors to invest in America's future.

Now good business earnings have taken over and continue to drive this rally.

You can't even manage to give credit where credit is due because of your hate.

Nope, consumer confidence has a lot more to do with it than actual policy.. as you point out, Trump hasn't even really done anything yet but talk about how great our economy will be.. and things go up... Of course if his actions don't match his promises, there will be a correction.


Save your childish use of "hate" for those you have your daily playground slap fights with... I will give credit (and blame) where I feel it is deserved.

And where exactly do you think that Consumer Confidence came from? According to the Experts, it was from Trumps election and push for economic growth and the elimination of unnecessary government regulations, which one by one he has been coming through on.

Save your foolish economic theory for those ignorant enough to fall for it.

I hope I in no way came across as "defending" it.

If I were in Florida right now, I'd be packing up the car and driving.

Jet Blue has airfares from every airport it flies into/out of in Florida, cheap.

So, if 1 wants to fly, don't use AA.

And anyone who thinks Delta is a greedy business is ignorant.

They do charity events in their communities all the time.

During my time working there, they struggled mightly financially and had to make many cuts. They even went into bankrupcy.

But they always tried to give back to their communities and employees when they could. When the company did better financially, they made sure their employees benefited finacially as well.

Anybody who thinks they are so greedy can go google their charitable giving.

Starting with this.
http://fortune.com/2016/02/26/delta-charity-one-percent/

http://themilitaryfrequentflyer.boardingarea.com/2013/04/16/everything-delta-does-for-the-military/


They have the ideal business model in a business that cares, and every business should strive to be as good hearted as them.

I agree. Simply supply and demand.

I have been in and around Florida for 50 years. Hurricaines are very survivable as long as you aren't down on the beach, but you have to be prepared. Hurricaines aren't like tornados that simple blow a house apart. Building codes for decades have required hurricane straps that tie the roof to the structre beyond simple nailing. Roofs don't just blow off anymore. You might lose a lot of tiles or shingles, but your roof is going to stay in place. You might have a lot of broken window glass that gets hit buy roofing materials and such.

You need to have a safe room. Most Fla. homes constructed since the 60's and a interior hall that can be closed off and doesn't have any windows. Ride it out there.

When it is over, you do need to have a supply of drinking water and food that can be eaten without cooking. It doesn't hurt to have a camp stove and a dozen small propane bottles in the garage. Tuna and peanut butter work good for that and are pretty cheap. Plastic sheeting and rolls of duct tape to cover up broken windows. A few flashligts, batteries, a few garden solar lights you bring in before the storm to have some light inside at night. Just stick them up outside during the day.

It isn't as expensive as some might think to be able to hole up for 4-6 months if necessary. Especially if you make it a point that over 1 year you are going to do that.

You do have to have a way to protect what you have. The starving looters will be out in 8 hours to 4 days.

You can do all of that for under the cost of the $1000 airline ticket.

There is no excuse to not be able to get by for at least a 2-3 months let alone a week or so...

Yes Eve, when corporations file bankruptcy or or go under it's because they rely on corporate welfare and are poorly managed.... but when they do well and make good profits it's because they are greedy bastards who exploit the people... those are the two narratives we get and we wonder why so many folks (especially younger folks) think capitalism is bad.

Odd cause as a young person, it's not even close to being the only two narratives, yet the only one talking about it seems to be people in your generation.

Makes me wonder if you actually know how this generation thinks or if you're just assuming what we think

True, but I don't think you are the spokesperson for your generation either.

It's takes a pretty board brush to cover what an entire generation of people think.

I agree, which is why trying to narrow any idea or beliefs into two narratives isn't productive.

This is an example of what unfettered capitalism brings. It's why there are regulations which some consider a bad word.

Six dollar a gallon gas.

http://tampa.cbslocal.com/2012/02/22/flo...e-gas-stations/

Ninety nine dollars for a case of water

http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/31/news/hurricane-harvey-price-gouging/index.html

Almost eight dollar a gallon gas in Texas

http://fortune.com/2017/08/31/hurricane-harvey-gas-prices-spike/

While I'm not reffering to you, let the excuses begin why this is okay.

Gas prices are higher than usual here also.

Harvey knocked oil refineries offline.

And the major gas pipeline that services the southeast was shutdown.

So, some price hike is understandable.

Florida gas is always really high priced to begin with.

So I can somewhat see that price range, if there is no gas supply.

If there is plenty of gas supply coming in, then there is no reason for it to be that high.