In using my Ticketless funds to make a reservation, I was not able to use them to purchase the seats. I called SW to see if I had done something wrong. The rep confirmed that “ticketless funds only could be used for reservations”. I responded that you need seats to fly on the plane, so how are they NOT a part of the reservations?! The rep said she didn’t know, but that was the policy.
If you purchase a “Basic” fare, I think a seat will be assigned to you some hours before check-in. Seems like this, significantly, would reduce any possibility of sitting with a companion. Also, if you’re traveling with children, seems like you’d almost be forced to select the Choice or a higher fare, b/c who wld want to take a chance on yr child being placed just anywhere on a plane, or having to “depend on the kindness of strangers” to move, in order for you to sit together or near each other?! Granted, this has been a policy of major airlines. But SW wooed us with policies contrary to this. Now that we’ve taken the bait for decades, they seem to be leaving us hanging. Have we been “hoodwinked…bamboozled”?! I think most people wld understand the need for the “money grab” to keep afloat with the rising costs of everything….but to restrict & limit the purchasing power of ticketless funds seems a pretty ugly & unexpected thing to do by an airline who built its brand on love, fun, originality & good will!
Southwest should change its policy & allow people to use their flight credits (ticketless funds, vouchers, gift cards) to purchase fares & seats! This airline made a name for itself & built a loyalty base around unique attributes. In removing and changing those attributes, it would seem that the company, at least, would retain at least ONE distinct & important trait…the use of Ticketless funds to purchase airfares, which would INCLUDE seats! When first receiving these very same funds, we could do it. So, is it even legal to change in midstream and just abruptly limit the purchasing power of these very same credits? Looks like the “LUV” airline loves us no more!
Recommendation: Consider returning to the other traditional/major airlines, since SW now has adopted their purchase seats policy.