When Air France flagged Elana Gershuny’s ticket as fraudulent, it didn’t just strand her in Lyon, France. It also landed her on a secret airline blacklist.
“They won’t remove me from their fraud list even after going through the steps to verify my identity,” she says.
Gershuny had done nothing wrong — unless you think that paying money for an award ticket is a punishable offense. No, this appears to be a glitch on Air France’s part and one that Gershuny couldn’t resolve on her own.
It also raises a few questions:
- Can an airline blacklist you for a credit card mistake?
- How can you avoid getting on an airline’s blacklist?
- How do you get off an airline’s blacklist?
“I was stranded at the airport in Lyon”
Gershuny had booked a one-way ticket from Lyon to Washington on Air France through Flying Blue, the airline’s loyalty program. It was one of those tickets where part of the payment was in points and the other was paid with money.
“At some time after this transaction, my credit card company erroneously flagged the transaction as fraudulent,” she says.
Air France canceled the booking.
“I called Flying Blue customer service to resolve the issue, restore the points to my account, and rebook the same flight,” she explains. “It was the same flight that I had booked previously. The Flying Blue customer service agent confirmed that the booking went through on the phone with me.”
Except, it didn’t.
Air France canceled the second booking, too.
“I never received any email about it,” says Gershuny. “That’s right, I received no email or other notification that the booking was canceled, and no reason for the cancellation.”
And that’s how Gershuny found herself at the airport in Lyon without a ticket back to Washington.
“I was stranded at the airport in Lyon with no flight and no way home because of Air France’s negligence,” she says. “I had to purchase an expensive last minute, one-way flight on a different airline to get myself home.”
So what went wrong?
Can an airline blacklist you for a credit card mistake?
Gershuny was the victim of a false positive by her credit card company. When it flagged her transaction as fraudulent, Air France canceled her itinerary.
What can trigger a false positive? In her case, it could have been one of these issues:
- Buying something in a foreign country.
- Purchasing a product that is preferred by fraudsters, such as a one-way airline ticket in business class.
- Making a purchase over a certain amount, or one that is unusual for the cardholder.
Normally, your credit card will notify you of a potentially fraudulent purchase and give you an opportunity to verify the purchase. In Gershuny’s case, however, that didn’t happen. And again, there were probably reasons. Some banks text their customers with fraud alerts, but if you don’t have a calling plan abroad, you might not get the notifications.
Airlines can add you to their blacklists if they suspect fraud. From Air France’s position, it probably saw an error code of 7, which means “Pick Up Card, Special Condition (Fraud Account).” That’s a sign the card issuer believes the card or account may be fraudulent and advises the merchant to hold the card and contact the cardholder’s bank. It may have also received a simple 05 error code — “do not honor.”
Either way, that’s enough to raise red flags with Air France. Since Gershuny made this reservation with Flying Blue, it would have been connected to her loyalty account. And if Air France decided to blacklist the account, it would have meant that any future reservations would be denied.
So the answer is yes, airlines can and do blacklist customers for fraudulent — even potentially fraudulent — transactions. And if your loyalty account is connected, you’re effectively banned from the airline.
But you don’t have to stay banned.
How do you get off an airline’s blacklist?
Being added to an airline’s blacklist — whether it’s for allegedly bad behavior, unpaid debts, or a credit card mix-up — is never fun. But if you’ve been wrongly blacklisted, you do have rights. And there are steps you can take to resolve the problem quickly.
Get more information
To understand why you’ve been added to the blacklist, you’ll need to do some sleuthing. Airlines typically don’t disclose this information right away, but under certain circumstances, you may be entitled to request the reason. You can contact the airline’s customer service department and ask for clarification. The carrier should provide you with specific details about the incident or behavior that led to the blacklisting.
Ask for the paperwork
If the airline claims you were blacklisted for a specific incident (such as disruptive behavior or a credit card problem), ask to see the paperwork. If the airline has accused you of misbehaving on a flight, there’s usually an incident report. Ask for it. If your blacklisting was a result of misunderstandings or errors, having documentation will help clear things up. For example, if you were accused of a missed payment or fraudulent activity, you might have records that show the charges were settled or never occurred.
Review the documentation carefully
Sometimes, blacklisting can happen due to simple clerical errors. For instance, you may have been confused with another passenger with a similar name, or a miscommunication could have led to your inclusion on the blacklist. In this case, providing identification and clarifying the issue with the airline should fix the problem. Be sure to check all personal details on your records, especially if you suspect this type of error.
File a complaint
If the airline refuses to remove your name from the blacklist, file a formal complaint with the airline. Most carriers have a dedicated department or process for handling complaints. Ensure you keep a detailed record of your communications with the airline, including emails, invoices and phone calls. If the airline’s response is unsatisfactory, you can escalate the matter.
Call an advocate
In many countries, consumer protection agencies or aviation regulators oversee airline practices. If you’re in the U.S., you can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation, which monitors airline consumer issues. (You may be covered under nondiscrimination laws.) In the EU, there are similar agencies that govern air passenger rights. These organizations may not be able to reverse the blacklisting directly, but they can apply pressure on airlines to follow fair practices and help resolve disputes. Of course, my advocacy team is always here to help.
Being wrongly added to an airline’s blacklist can feel like a major roadblock to your future travels. There are clear steps you can take to protect your rights. But you’re probably wondering: How do I avoid something like this in the first place?
How can you avoid an airline’s blacklist?
Getting blacklisted by an airline can have serious consequences, from being denied boarding on flights to being permanently banned from that airline.
Airlines don’t like to blacklist their passengers — after all, it means fewer customer — but they will under certain circumstances. You can reduce the likelihood of finding yourself on a blacklist.
- Follow the airline’s rules. Every airline has a set of rules and policies. These include guidelines on behavior, dress code, baggage allowances, and payment requirements. Airlines also have particular rules about how to use their tickets. Ignoring or violating these rules can land you on the blacklist. Always review the airline’s terms and conditions when booking your flight, and be sure to adhere to them.
- Don’t misbehave. Airlines typically have zero tolerance for disruptive, abusive, or violent behavior. This includes physical altercations, verbal abuse of staff or other passengers, and refusal to follow safety instructions. If you’re unsure about any behavior being acceptable, it’s always safer to err on the side of caution.
- Skip the casual attire. Many airlines enforce dress codes, especially in their premium cabins (first or business class). Avoid dressing inappropriately or in a way that could be perceived as offensive. That includes T-shirts with edgy slogans or ball caps with political statements.
- Avoid credit card disputes. Many businesses have begun flagging customers after they file credit card disputes. If you win a chargeback and the bank returns your money, you may find yourself on an airline blacklist. If you need to cancel or change your ticket, do so within the airline’s policies to avoid any problems.
- Don’t be a security risk. OK, this one’s obvious. If you’re a potential security risk, it could land you on a list.
While blacklisting by an airline is relatively rare, it can happen if you’re consistently noncompliant with policies, engage in disruptive behavior, or fail to meet the airline’s expectations. But sometimes, you can get banned for reasons that aren’t your fault and that you couldn’t have avoided. That was what happened to Gershuny.
What went wrong here?
Gershuny’s problem was obvious. Her credit card company had flagged her ticket purchase as fraudulent, which set off alarms at Air France. Since it was a booking made in part with loyalty points, the transaction also flagged her frequent flier account, effectively disabling her ability to make any future reservations.
Worse, there seemed to be no way of undoing the problem. Gershuny tried to “verify” herself by calling Air France, but the best the airline could do was to clear her to book an airline ticket in person at the airport.
I contacted Air France on her behalf. A few weeks later, we had some good news.
“I just wanted to confirm that I have been removed from their blacklist so I can purchase normally with a credit card,” she told me. “They are insisting I take it up with my bank to request compensation. But at least I am off of their blacklist. Thanks so much for your help here.”
Air France has an opportunity to learn something from this case. It can fix the systems that flagged a customer’s account. It can improve its notification systems to allow the customer to know when a credit card payment is denied or an account is blacklisted. And maybe it could put a system in place to ensure that a passenger like Gershuny is never, ever stranded at the airport again.
