Belt-tightening continues to weaken customer experience

The New York Times’ Susan Stellin reports that flexibility in travel arrangements isn’t what it used to be. Back in the days when the average person booked airline tickets through a travel agent, they had a week to ten days to change the schedule around. Now, the biggest window possible is 24 hours. And even those windows are shrinking. Northwest, United, JetBlue and Delta require passengers to purchase a ticket in order to lock in a fare and itinerary, then give them a 24-hour window in which to cancel or change the reservation for a refund - minus any taxes and surcharges, of course.

There are exceptions. US Airways still allows passengers to pencil themselves in, guaranteeing a ticket and an itinerary for 24 hours. Southwest - which is also one of the top two airlines in terms of customer responsiveness - allows a 24-hour “pencil in” window and another 24 hours in which to cancel the reservation penalty-free. And American Airlines allows passengers to lock in an itinerary and fare for 24 hours without purchase on its website as well as over the phone.

It seems that airlines have reduced their level of consideration for the customer experience to the point where those notable exceptions that still offer services we’ve all become used to will reap the benefits.