totally bollocks easyjet, dd and i turned away from our flight at Alicante, as it was 'overbooked'. Am going to try for compensation.

[piratecat]

Really distressing to turn up, ready to come home, trains booked in advance back in uk to get home. We had to fly to Bristol which is 2.5 hours from our home, and our nearest airport. Offered to transfer to another that night. Would have then been stranded at 2 in morning. Which is WHY i booked that particular flightin the first place.

So unfair to do this to people. If you book a flight, and pay for it you should be allowed on. Two other people were turned away also. Yes we were the last to check in, but were still one hour before check in closed.

Crap way to end a much saved for holiday. To top it all there is absolutely no info on their site about getting compensation for this situation. I have a bit of paper with a phone number on it, for which there is a charge!!!!! grrrrrr

So do not want to be dealing with this, but also do not want them to get away with casuing us such stress. Had to re book trains for next day at stupid price, and all in all it was ridiculous.

Are they putting you up for the night? Not sure how you get compo from them, but IME, normally they'd offer it at the airport in exchange for taking the next flight. Def. pursue it though, as they've cost you a lot of money.

oh ruby that would be great. i just find the whole prospect a faff.

They did offer us a hotel, and food vouchers, but i chose to go back to mum's, so she trawled back up to the airport. With a child i just felt it easier to go to mums iyswim.We had to wait at the airport for 4 hours ( flight was delayed by two to add insult to injury!) to try and see if there were any spaces.

Apparently airlines do this lots, they work on a % of no shows, and people get turned away. it's a disgrace.

Sounds awful

piratecat that sounds awful.

Airlines systematically overbook because there are people who don't show up for the flight, and the airline can make more money if they sell the same seat twice - and that means cheaper tickets for the passengers. They should be doing it for individual routes based on experience of how likely no shows will be on that particular flight, not just a fixed % for every flight.

Unfortunately the airlines sometimes get it wrong and all the passengers show up meaning some get bumped. Overbooking for Alicante at the end of the summer holidays sounds very because that's the sort of flight where everybody is likely to turn up - i.e. families on holiday going home. I suspect it is business travellers who are more likely to not show up for a flight.

It's not much help for you after the situation, but if you can bear to fly again, do your online check-in as soon as possible, so you are not in the situation of being one of the last ones to check-in and first to be bumped. I think with easyJet you can do it anytime after you have bought your ticket (I could be wrong on this). Airlines will continue to overbook. Do what you can to try and limit the likelihood of you being bumped.

I hope you are able to pursue it and get the compensation that you are due.