A look at the options for 2024 if you get voluntarily bumped from your Delta flight.

Flights are generally oversold. Airlines understand that statistically not all passengers are likely to make it onto any given flight, so they sell more tickets than there are seats to maximize their revenue. Airlines are generally pretty good at estimating but there are times when it doesn’t work out and too many passengers are at the gate. That leaves two options for the airline: voluntary denied boarding and involuntary denied boarding.

The US Department of Transportation website clearly lists out the definitions and under which conditions you may be compensated. Generally speaking, if you’re hearing a bidding system start up at the gate as the agent looks for volunteers, expect that to follow the voluntary denied boarding procedures. With many carriers, the traveler is promised future travel with the airline (travel credits that may expire within a year), a hotel voucher if it involves an overnight stay, and a ticket on the next available flight. Thankfully with Delta, you’re not forced to take a travel credit and instead they issue gift cards, making it as close to cash as it gets without being true cash.

I recently had a chance to test out the system for myself as my Delta flight needed a few seats and I volunteered up myself (and my four-year-old daughter).

Volunteering to be bumped

We were traveling on a tight connection at Minneapolis St. Paul (MSP) airport and our inbound flight landed on time, though it took a while for the door to open and passengers ahead of us to exit. It’s a lovely feeling when flight attendants implore people to stay seated as several customers are on tight connections and everyone just gets up and crowds the aisle as though no one listened. Anyways, by the time we made it to the gate, we found the flight was oversold and they offered us each $1,000 to take the next flight. Knowing I had some time to spare, I raised my hand and proceeded to ask a few clarifying questions about the new flight.

Considerations Before Accepting

Before you agree to volunteer, you may want to consider the following:

• When is the next scheduled departure?
  • Is it going to involve an overnight stay?
  • Will it force you to connect in a different airport?
  • Are negative weather conditions coming in that might impact the new flight?
  • Will the delay cause you to miss an important meeting, dinner, etc.?
  • Is the compensation provided worth your time?
• If traveling with others, are there open seats next to each other? This might be especially important if you are traveling with younger children.
• Are there complimentary upgrades to a higher class of service available?
• If you purchased a higher class of service, will the new itinerary be in that same class of service?
• If you checked bags, are you comfortable being apart from your bags for a longer period of time?
• If you’re traveling for business, you might be discouraged from accepting these offers and travel credit may go to the employer instead of going in your pocket.

I’ve found that gate agents are generally willing to help answer these questions as you’re deciding, but they do want to get the process moving so expect short answers. In my case, I prioritized making sure that there were open seats next to each other and there was no problem with securing that. Getting the answers I wanted, I accepted the offer and shortly after the boarding door closed, they asked for my email and vouchers were printed.

Making a selection online

Shortly after providing my email address, I received a couple of emails from Delta (one for each passenger on the reservation) with a link to the site where I can choose from a selection of gift cards.

Once you enter the website, you need to enter the six-digit confirmation number (the same one used when checking in for your flight). I found that the link did not work right away and I had to wait a few minutes before the website would recognize my confirmation number.

Once in, you’re able to confirm receiving money in one of four currencies (USD, CAD, EUR, GBP). Once you make your selection, you’re not able to switch even if you haven’t chosen any gift cards.

Once you select your currency, you can choose your preferred gift card(s). I’m happy to see many options, including Visa and Mastercard prepaid options.

• Delta Air Lines ($50 to $1000)
• Prepaid Mastercard Virtual Account ($5 to $250)
• Visa Virtual Account ($5 to $250, or $251 to $500)
• Visa Reward Virtual Account ($501 to $2000) – note the six month expiration
• Mastercard eReward Virtual Account ($251 to $2000) – note the six month expiration
• T.J.Maxx ($10 to $500)
• Gap Options eGift ($10 to $250)
• Kohl’s eGift ($5 to $500)
• Macy’s ($10, $25, $50, $100, $250)
• Cabela’s ($5 to $500)
• Target ($1 to $500)
• Saks Fifth Avenue ($25 to $500)
• American Express Virtual Reward Card ($1 to $500) – note the six month expiration
• Game & Grub eGift ($25 to $500)
• Hello Fresh eGift ($60)
• Hulu eGift ($25, $50)
• Bass Pro Shops eGift ($5 to $200)
• Sephora ($5 to $250)
• Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse eGift ($25 to $500)
• Hotels.com eGift ($15 to $500)
• CVS eGift ($5 to $500)
• Darden eGift ($10 to $250)
• AirBnB eGift ($25 to $500)
• Nordstrom eGift ($25 to $500)
• Nordstrom Rack eGift ($25 to $500)
• Doordash eGift ($15 to $200)
• Best Buy ($5 to $500)
• Uber ($15 to $500)
• Lyft ($25 to $200)
• Starbucks ($5 to $500)
• Amazon.com ($1 to $2000)

Overwhelmed with all the options? In my opinion, the best options should be the Visa, Mastercard, or American Express options as those can be used at any store. Just remember that those options will expire six months after selecting them, so be sure to use it up in time. If you travel for work and anticipate getting expenses reimbursed, you could select gift cards to those vendors and then be paid back in cash when you submit your expenses. Also, you could use this opportunity to stock up on gifts you might normally hand out later in the year (birthdays, holidays, etc.), especially since you can choose as many different cards in different increments as you want. Just be sure to make your selection within 90 days of receiving the bump credit.

The aftermath of our self-induced delay

I did check a couple of bags for the trip and they successfully made the tight connection. Delta’s bag tracking within its phone app let me know that the bag was moved to the baggage desk at my destination. So I at least had some comfort while waiting in MSP airport that they were holding my bags.

Of course, just as I was feeling comfortable, I boarded my flight and saw the following email come through, which then caused some discomfort. Thankfully, this email was sent in error as the baggage desk did indeed have both my bags.

Four-year-old Char and I had a nice time in MSP airport, as there is a decent indoor playground found near the C gates in Terminal 1. That made me feel better with my decision to delay ourselves four hours. Yes, I could have just gone to the nearest Delta Sky Club and relaxed there, but this seemed like the better option given my company.

Want to know what we eventually did with our Delta bump cash? You’ll find the details in this post.

Have you ever volunteered to take a later flight for flight credit?