Featured Image Credit: Caroline Rothstein/seng kui Lim/500px/Getty Images
A man who cost an airline $21 million tried to sue them after he had his lifetime first class ticket removed while traveling.
When Steven Rothstein first bought his $250,000 membership for life, it seemed like the deal of a lifetime.
It came with unlimited first class flights and for an $150,000 add-on, Rothstein could bring a companion.
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Only 66 people ever took American Airlines up on their offer and Rothstein spent decades enjoying his lifetime membership.
That is, until it came to an abrupt end in December 2008.
He was shocked to discover that the airline had revoked his ticket after he had cost them a whopping $21 million.
But he wasn’t going to go down without a fight and he decided to take American Airlines to court by suing them.
Unfortunately for Rothstein though, things didn’t sway in his favor.
The company cited ‘fraudulent behaviour’, claiming that the man would approach other passengers at the gate and offer them a free upgrade using his companion seat.
He was also accused of purposely keeping his companion seat empty and using it as a place to put his luggage while booking under a fake name.
Taking American Airlines to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Rothstein’s team argued: “American waived its rights to enforce the contract by not cracking down on Rothstein sooner.”
Having made the most of AAirpass for 21 years, it does feel like American Airlines was trying to close the gate after the horse had bolted.
The motion was denied in 2011, while litigation was delayed due to American Airlines filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Both parties had settled out of court by the end of 2012, although Rothstein’s appeal was dismissed and the airline’s counterclaims dismissed with prejudice.
Rothstein wasn’t the only one to face the wrath of American Airlines over the AAirpass, and in July 2008, Jacques E. Vroom Jr. was handed a letter similar to Rothstein. The airline tried to sue Vroom in 2011 and claimed that he was selling his companion seat, while Vroom countersued by arguing that the rule went into effect after he bought the ticket - as well accusing the airline of slander.
Vroom’s case fell apart when American Airlines filed for bankruptcy and the claims went unresolved. Rothstein has since admitted that he was ‘generous’ with upgrading people he met on planes if they had a good story, and at the end of the day, thinks he got a pretty good deal from American Airlines.
