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Home » Frontier » Real or Mistake? Frontier Airlines Slashes Fares by 99%
FrontierLaw In TravelMistake Fares

Real or Mistake? Frontier Airlines Slashes Fares by 99%

Matthew January 3, 2018 5 Comments

Since the subject of “mistake fares” seems to be a recurring theme on this blog, let me ask you this: is 99% off too good to be true?

Frontier closed 2017 with a 99% off sale using the promo code SAVE99.

It then started 2018 with a 99% off sale using the promo code CHEERS.

You’ll note the asterisks above. Frontier noted in fine print that the discount was off its base fare, not the entire fare (i.e. no discounts on government taxes).

That sometimes made effective savings only 35%, but some tickets were still slashed by more than 80%.

Frontier was (and appears to still be this morning) selling one-way fares between many city pairs for $20 each all/in.

And all of this must cause us to ask…is a $20 fare too good to be true? Is 99% off too good to be true? Or how about $0 base fares, which often are present during a Ryanair fare sale?

How should we know what is a legitimate sale and what is not? Should consumers know the difference between low-cost-carriers and full-service-carirers? What about when these full-service carriers match their low-cost competition on price with basic economy fares?

One thing is certain: we know that Frontier cannot be making money on a $100 fare reduced to $1, since it is not pocketing the government taxes. And while we can certainly acknowledge that Frontier allocates a limited number of seats per flights at this slashed price for reasons of publicity, there is no regulation to stop Frontier from later cancelling these tickets, claiming the fares were “clearly mistaken”.

Legal Analysis

So my point is simple, a mantra I have made before and will continue to make on Live and Let’s Fly: consumers should not have to know when a fare is valid versus mistakenly filed. Airlines should be given 24 hours to cancel fares with notice, just as consumers are. It’s a compromise, but forcing consumers to understand how and why one 99% off fare is a valid fare sale but a 70% off fare is not makes for poor public policy. Airlines need to do a better job of filing fare correctly in the first place.

Even if some people will more accurately spot “true” mistakes than others, bright-line rules exist for a reason. If people over the age of 65 are banned from piloting commercial airplanes, it is because such policy represents a generally accurate summary of good individual decisions, and is much less costly to administer than any alternative. (Just think about the expenditures that would be necessary to assess competence on a case-by-case basis.) These rules do not summarize individually wise decisions, but rather express a social judgment about valuations and relations.

CONCLUSION

I’ll stop now. But whenever I hear “clearly mistaken” and yet see 99% off fares from Frontier or 90% off first class redemptions on Garuda, I shake my head. We need a change in law, yesterday.

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About Author

Matthew

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 120 countries over the last decade. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, BBC, Fox News, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, Al Jazeera, Toronto Star, and on NPR. Studying international relations, American government, and later obtaining a law degree, Matthew has a plethora of knowledge outside the travel industry that leads to a unique writing perspective. He has served in the United States Air Force, on Capitol Hill, and in the White House. His Live and Let's Fly blog shares the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs and promotions, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel. His writings on penandpassport.com offer more general musings on life from the eyes of a frequent traveler. He also founded awardexpert.com, a highly-personalized consulting service that aids clients in the effective use of their credit card points and frequent flyer miles. Clients range from retirees seeking to carefully use their nest egg of points to multinational corporations entrusting Matthew with the direction and coordination of company travel.

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5 Comments

  1. Kristin Reply
    January 3, 2018 at 10:49 am

    Agreed!

  2. Ric Garrido Reply
    January 3, 2018 at 1:00 pm

    Certainly can be a real deal. I am flying in a few weeks on a $58.06 round trip ticket Las Vegas to Miami I purchased during the last Frontier 99% off sale.

  3. Gregory Johnson Reply
    January 3, 2018 at 3:02 pm

    One still has to consider if flying on Frontier for any amount is worth it. For me, NO. And I was an Elite tier member for years, if anyone even knows what that is anymore.

  4. Bill Reply
    January 6, 2018 at 6:32 pm

    I wouldn’t fly Frontier for 100% off. I used to fly Frontier all the time before it became a flying Greyhound bus. The customers it attracts now are trash in flip flops and pajamas. Flying was never intended to be for the masses.

    • lenin1991 Reply
      January 7, 2018 at 12:37 am

      > Flying was never intended to be for the masses.

      Are you a member of the House of Lords, circa 1927?

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