A disgruntled Delta Air Lines customer vented his frustration on Reddit after the airline allegedly gave his first class seat to a dog that belonged to another passenger.
The passenger outlines his conversations with Delta customer support, and it appears there are mixed messages when they compare to the airline’s official policies.
‘Downgraded for a Dog’
Reddit user ben_bob shared a story on the Delta subreddit r/delta about a dog allegedly taking his first class seat.
Before an undisclosed flight, ben_bob states that Delta upgraded his seat to first class due to a seating change. About 15 minutes later, Delta changed his seat again to ‘a worse seat than I previously had’.
When ben_bob asked the desk agent what happened, she only said ‘something changed’. When ben_bob had his chance to board, he was ‘livid’ to find a dog in the seat. The dog was leashed to its presumed owner in the adjacent seat.
Ben_bob contacted Delta’s customer chat support. A representative told him there’s nothing that could be done since customers ‘may be relocated for service animals’.
“There is no way that dog has spent as much with this airline as I have … What an absolute joke, 😅” ben_bob wrote.
“What’s the point of being loyal to this airline anymore, truly. I’ve sat back when others complained about this airline mistreating customers lately and slipping in service levels, but I’m starting to question my allegiance as well. 😡”
The Reddit thread has 3,500 upvotes and 1,300 comments. There’s a mixed reception towards ben_bob’s story. Some readers agree with ben_bob while others criticize his reaction and argue that the owner could be disabled.
Delta’s Dog Policies and Official Response
It appears that Delta may have stepped out of bounds with their decision. As it states on the official website, service animals aren’t allowed to occupy a seat or ‘encroach upon another customer’s space’. Service animals must only sit on the owner’s lap, in the owner’s legroom or in an adjacent legroom if the owner purchased an adjacent seat.
People Magazine reached out for comment about the incident. A Delta spokesperson responded with the following:
‘Delta teams are aware of the customer complaint and are researching the details of what may have occurred.’
The spokesperson encouraged ben_bob to speak with Delta directly. The response message concluded by clarifying that service animals are accommodated on Delta flights without disrupting seating assignments.
