In a poll completed last week by the Consumer Travel Alliance (CTA), almost 73 percent of passengers said they would fly even if they had the flu. More than half of those would fly because either change fees were too high or it was “to late” to make changes vacation plans.
With daily headlines like Flu shots running low, Swine flu fears, Seven-year-old girl dies, Flu epidemic to hit country earlier and worse, it would seem that everyone should be doing their part to slow the spread of this disease. The airlines have not done their part. The still impose onerous change fees and sometimes dramatic airfare increased to reschedule flights.
Yesterday, when landing at Washington Regan Airport, I noticed signs posted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urging passengers not to fly if they feel they may have the flu. Unfortunately, the signs make no mention of the financial ramifications changing tickets at the last minute mean. It would be nice if the airlines and the CDC would work together.
Here are the CTA survey responses. This sample is from a very frequent flying group of respondents — about 30 percent are elite members of frequent flier programs and almost half are frequent leisure travelers who fly three or more times each year.
1. If you thought you had the H1N1 (swine flu) or any flu, would you pay the airline change fees (up to $250) and possible additional changes in airfare to change your flight?
Yes — 27.3%
No — 72.7%
2. Have you ever flown while sick in order to avoid a change fee?
Yes — 43.6%
No — 56.4%
3. If you did fly while sick, why?
I had to fly for work — 22.7%
The rest of my family was flying so I didn’t have a choice — 8.3%
My vacation plans were set and it was too late to change them — 25.2%
The airline wouldn’t let me change my flight — 12.4%
Change fees were too high — 31.4%
4. What do you need to do to get a note for a trip cancellation from your doctor?
Call my health insurance company first — 3.6%
Go to the emergency room — 2.2%
Just call my primary care doctor and he will see me — 66.6%
Forgetaboutit. It takes forever and costs more than the change fee — 27.6%
5. Should airlines allow changes to airline tickets during the flu season for passengers that claim they have the flu?
Yes — 31.5%
Yes, but only with a doctor’s note — 60.9%
No — 1.8%
No, passengers should buy insurance for problems like these — 5.7%
This is not the only survey that shows passengers will fly with the flu — another survey of thousands of travelers conducted by TripAdvisor showed that more than half of passengers would fly with the flu.
This week the Consumer Travel Alliance is sending these results to the airline CEOs and asking them to suspend change fees and penalties during the flu season for sick passenger.
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The results are hardly surprising. In a recent poll of Quebec residents 25% said they would continue to go to work every day even if they had H1N1. That’s not gosh I think I have the flu, I might be sick – that’s been medically diagnosed as having it. If 25% of people are going to be selfish enough to keep going to work when they KNOW they’re infecting people with H1N1, why on earth would people be willing to change their travel plans (with fee or free) on the suspicion that they might have it? Yes part of it is financial, and part of it is just that people are selfish and don’t want to be put out.
I don’t think people realize if you’re traveling abroad, there is a possibility of being quarantined buy foreign governments and unfortunately you have to abide by thier laws and health preventions.
Reports from China, India, Japan and some European countries have travelers who are sitting beside passengers being quarantined. I posted a blog about warning international travelers at http://www.insurancefortrips.com.
It is not wise to put other people at risk if you are sick and you also run the risk of being quarantined and your trip being interrupted or delayed .
Can we really trust Trip Advisor’s report on its results? ;-)
This is only half the story. What do you do if you leave home and feel fine and then get the flu while you are traveling? Do you stay in a hotel an extra few days to get well? What if the hotel is sold out? Who will pay the extra hotel cost? Will travel insurance cover that extra cost? (I don’t think so). What do you do when you run of clean clothes? If you get sick while traveling, you still need to go to a restaurant to eat. You’re room still needs to be cleaned by hotel staff. It’s easy at home, but it is much more difficult to “self-quarentine” when on the road. In this case there may be no choice but to travel on an airplane even though your sick.