Frequent Flyer
|
Voluntary Bumping |
Involuntary Bumping |
|
---|---|---|
Travel Status |
Not official travel status | Official travel status |
Expenses |
Can't claim on travel voucher | Can claim on travel voucher |
Other Benefits (meals, lodging, transportation) |
May accept | May accept but must reduce official travel claim accordingly |
Mileage Credits (as compensation for bumping) |
Can accept and use on personal trips | Can accept but mileage belongs to Government |
Example: It’s Saturday and you’re in the Los Angles airport ready to go back to Washington. Your next duty day is Monday. Then you hear an announcement that your flight is overbooked! The airline is looking for volunteers to give up their seats on the flight. If you volunteer to be bumped, the airline will guarantee you a seat on the following day’s flight. The airline will also pay for your meals and lodging for the extra 24 hours in Los Angles. To sweeten the pot, the airline is offering you additional frequent flyer miles. You are strongly tempted. Can you volunteer to be bumped and later use the mileage credits to take a vacation? Yes. You may volunteer to be bumped, as long as this does not interfere with the performance of official duties and does not result in additional cost to the Government. During the 24-hour delay in Los Angles, you are not in an official travel status, and you may not claim any expenses on your travel voucher for that period. You may accept the free meals and lodging from the airline. Finally, you may also accept the frequent flyer miles as compensation to you and use them for personal travel, because you were not in official travel status at the time they were earned.
However, if you are bumped involuntarily, the situation is quite different. You may accept the benefits BUT with significant limitations since you are on official travel as an involuntary "bumpee." You may claim expenses for that period on your travel voucher. You may choose to accept the meals and lodging offered by the airline. If you do, then you must reduce your claim for official travel expenses accordingly on your voucher. The free meals and lodging from the airline are compensation to the Government, not to you. Lastly, you can not use the frequent flyer credits for personal trips. Because you remain on official travel status when you are bumped involuntarily, those frequent flyer credits belong to the Government.
Reference:
41 CFR
310-53(5); 5 CFR 2635.704, 2635.204(c)(3)
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