Virgin to charge £25 seat selection fee for Economy

I've just been reading a thread on the dibb. The OP has booked flights MAN to MCO in October for $3300 (4 adults) on Orbitz.com, seems a good price. Also the OP claimed to have booked seats.

Curious, I looked at the Orbitz site and did a dummy booking, It does offer you a seat map view and appears to allow you to 'select' seats.

I appreciate it is an American site.. and does not mention UK taxes in the Tax FAQ. I wonder if the seat requests get registered/honoured?

Well I could make no sense of the table on the website.

I asked Virgin on Twitter what would be the case for our 1st May flight out of LHR-JFK and return. We can pick for free, but only at T30. The T30 number makes me slightly anxious as I think most people will want to book seats so I can see it being a mad rush on T30 day. I sure as hell aint sitting in the middle rows!

I am disappointed with having to pay for seats. I get why they are doing it, but I think it's just the beginning of a slippery slope into all airlines merging into one pay-for-everything blur.

Also will the level within Economy determine which seats you can select. E.g will O, N and X mean you can only select the very worst seats for example?

Also will the level within Economy determine which seats you can select. E.g will O, N and X mean you can only select the very worst seats for example?

No -- you'll have access to the same pool as everyone else (which is admittedly already restricted).

Interesting idea, though. I can imagine the bean-counters' eyes lighting up at the thought of it!!

This is all getting silly now, my step sister has just rung to ask about seats for mid June and was told that there would now be no charge for existing bookings. When she questioned this the agent told her the website is misleading and was being updated.

Have VS done a U turn or is the agent confused ?|


Edited to add she has just rung the Premier Team regarding another matter but asked for confirmation of the above, the agent knew nothing about it and suggested that they were incorrect


-Steve

It is all over the floor like a dog's dinner.

Another confused passenger here!

I'm flying MAN-MCO (out UC, back PE) in Oct 14, booked in Dec 13.

The table on the website appears to say that if you book and depart after 1 Apr 14, you'll be able to choose seats at time of booking. But because I booked before 1 Apr 14, I'll have to wait until 1 Jun 14 to choose a seat.

Is that right? If so, then people who don't part with their money to Virgin until several months after I did will get to choose seats a couple of months before I can. Hardly sporting.

Seriously, isn't there anyone at Virgin HQ who can organise the proverbial in a brewery?

Looks like the seating FAQ's has been updated again this morning on the VS web site.

http://virginatlantic.custhelp.com/app/ ... dE1xS2w%3D

If the link doesn't work click on travel info, then FAQ's then selecting seats and exceptions.

David

It gets crazier. I am on the phone to them now and the poor rep is just as confused as the rest of us as to what is going on. Anyway, what she said in respect of this:

"Travel Agents will be able to assign seats at time of booking, for their customers travelling in Upper Class, Premium Economy and for Y and B booking class in Economy."

is that travel agents are still subject to the date restrictions that already exist. I have no way of proving this so it would be interesting to see what the actual situation is.

I'm very confused by a post the VS FB page as have just seen a response saying that seats can be reserved 60 days in advance for a flight on 18 April but the website states 30days. ?|

If travel agents can assign seats for UC at time of booking, when can those of us who have already booked UC via a travel agent submit our seat requests, as the time of booking was some weeks ago?

i think it's down to how agents' systems interface with VS (and other) airline systems

with most, not all, bookings via the company travel agent (concur) i can choose seats before i commit to the booking, other times i have to go to the airline's site afterwards and follow their rules

curiously, VS always rejects my FC number via the agent, i then have to login to my FC account and manually find and update the booking with my number

after reading posts on this forum i am no longer surprised by anything VS systems do, probably VS do not understand them either

I'm very confused by a post the VS FB page as have just seen a response saying that seats can be reserved 60 days in advance for a flight on 18 April but the website states 30days. ?|

Howard just confirmed it has changed again to be 60 days and website will shortly be updated oo)

I'm very confused by a post the VS FB page as have just seen a response saying that seats can be reserved 60 days in advance for a flight on 18 April but the website states 30days. ?|

Our booking email says 60 days before, but Virgin told me 30 days.

I don't think anyone actually knows. All I will say is that I will be majorly peed off if I open up my seat booking on the first day possible and all the decent seats are gone because TA's can book them straight away.

What a shambles.

Email sent today to Virgin-Atlantic from a man in the (*******) mood.

Ref your email 18/12/2013, & I quote: "From 1 April 2014 we are changing the way our customers can choose their seats. As your flight departs between 30 January and 31 Mar 2014 you will be able to choose your seat free of charge online via manage your booking from 30 days before your departure date" unquote. -

I thought my flight was on April 7th? Have you changed my flight without telling me? I have journeys pre-booked & paid for following on from that flight so I hope not!
If this is a slip & the flight is still April 7th, then are you seriously telling me I now have to pay you again to be able to sit next to my wife??!!

Yours, increasingly concerned over where this once excellent airline is going, xxxxxx

But they gave me exactly the same response except exchange March for June. Now they seem to be saying that you will be charged after 31st March, when tbey told me only Monday that it was when you booked the flights, not the date of departure that decided it.

So they seem to have changed it to day of departure being the deciding factor now. If I now have to pay after they guaranteed we would be able to select for free, I won't be impressed.

I think the best thing they could do would be to tell everyone to disregard what they've been told, make the info clear and then re-release the revised, clear version rather than keep changing it.

What a shambles.

My thoughts entirely !

Will be interesting in a couple of weeks if I can actually select my seat at 60 days. Anyone want to take bets?

My money is on 30 days.

Well this statement from the website is confusing regards flights after 1 april!

"If you already have a booking to fly in April seats can be assigned up to 30 days before departure. For flights departing and booked after 1 April seats can be chosen free of charge on booking or up to 336 days in advance."

So... I booked before April and I can assign seats any time 30 days before departure?

And, if it incorrectly worded, if booked in January for a flight in October I can only request a seat 30 days before departure whilst those booking after 1 April can assign a seat at booking or any time?

I read this as any pre booked flight departing after April 1st or any flight booked after April 1st will be able to select seats on April 1st, I'm flying June 13th (booked last July) and anticipate being able to request seats on April 1st.

Well this statement from the website is confusing regards flights after 1 april!

"If you already have a booking to fly in April seats can be assigned up to 30 days before departure. For flights departing and booked after 1 April seats can be chosen free of charge on booking or up to 336 days in advance."

So... I booked before April and I can assign seats any time 30 days before departure?

And, if it incorrectly worded, if booked in January for a flight in October I can only request a seat 30 days before departure whilst those booking after 1 April can assign a seat at booking or any time?

Agreed confusing.

I have PE booked (bought in October) and flying in July. When can I book seats? I'm still not sure from what it says in the FAQ.

I read this as any pre booked flight departing after April 1st or any flight booked after April 1st will be able to select seats on April 1st, I'm flying June 13th (booked last July) and anticipate being able to request seats on April 1st.

Confused?? We will be.

I read it that anything already booked before April 1 has a different rule to anything booked after April 1 as it seems to imply that earlier bookings can only request seats 30 days before departure.

However, I could be wrong...... especially as Howard on the VS Facebook page said yesterday that 30 was changing to 60

I just can't see even the inept VS IT department penalising people who have booked early, think they have just worded the explanation very poorly!!

I guess time will tell