El Al Ticket Snafu

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  • #604452
    TheGoq
    Participant

    There’s little doubt that most people who became aware of this pricing gaffe knew that something was rotten in the state of denmark and yet im sure many hundreds of them chap areined is there anything wrong with that?

    #890384
    TheGoq
    Participant
    #890385
    ☕️coffee addict
    Participant

    no, why would there be

    #890386
    cherrybim
    Participant

    It was assur to take advantage of a Jewish company’s mistake; especially where they stand to lose many millions of dollars.

    #890387
    kollel2
    Member

    Since El Al is Jewishly owned, the money needs to be returned. Only Toaus Akum is muttar. Also there is an issur of onaah which is mevatel the mekach, since the tickets are worth a sixth more then the price they paid.

    #890388
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    I heard it was a 3rd party mistake. I’m not sure how that affects El Al, can they sue whoever made that mistake?

    #890389
    Toi
    Participant

    I imagine that el al will expect the third party company to cover the difference, as it was entirely that companies fault. if el al isnt losing any money, then it should be ok. if theres some clause between the two companies that the third party doesnt have to pay, then lichoirah be assur.

    #890390
    ☕️coffee addict
    Participant

    kollel2,

    thats only witth the buyer

    #890392
    ItcheSrulik
    Member

    AFAIK they are honoring it. Regardless of din, the menschlich thing for them is to honor the tickets and the menschlich thing for the purchasers is to return them for a refund. It’s just a matter of who has more vatranut.

    #890393
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    Itchesrulik, if it is a 3rd parties fault and that 3rd party is paying El Al for the losses they caused them, why should there be any inyan for the purchaser to return it?

    #890394
    choppy
    Participant

    Maybe the third party is Jewish too. Although the question arises whether a company that isn’t owned by people who keep halacha or Shabbos is considered Jewish or gentile insofar as the halachas of Taos Akum apply. Anyone?

    #890395
    zahavasdad
    Participant

    El-Al is a publically traded company.

    #890396
    oomis
    Participant

    They should honor it IMO, and they should also make the person responsible for incurring the losses, pay for that mistake. It is not the mistake of the consumer, who did nothing other than legitimately order a ticket through EL AL. If I were to tell a customer the wrong price for something (or if a store mistakenly stickered an item with the wrong price), they are leagally bound to charge the lower price, aren’t they? I woudl agree, however, that once people got wind of the error, they should not have continued to order tickets, if it was being done. I really know very little about this story, though.

    #890397

    Kollel2 – Does Onaah apply when a worker makes a mistake and mislabels a package, to which when presented to the owner he says it is ok? In addition, please remember that more tickets were sold in those few hours than would have been sold in many months. The Mekach may be batel, but they aren’t offering an opportunity to return the money (well, you can cancel on certain sites before sometime this evening.)

    #890398
    dveykus613
    Participant

    42 – m’ikar hadin I don’t know if one is chayav to return it if orbitz etc are not yidden but a good reason to do so would be to make a huge kiddush Hashem – imagine the effect of a bunch of yidden doing something like that…

    #890399
    yehudayona
    Participant

    Suppose the third party is Jewish owned.

    #890400
    ohr chodesh
    Member

    The third party in all likelihood has a contractual agreement with the airlines that absolves them for any human or technical error in pricing, even if they are at fault for the error.

    #890401
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    ” to do so would be to make a huge kiddush Hashem – imagine the effect of a bunch of yidden doing something like that… “

    I have seen many people make this tayna, but I don’t think there is much Kiddush Hashem invilved here, there were hundreds, if not thousadns of people who booked a whole bunch of flights for themselves, fmaily, friends, etc knowing that they can check scheduling, etc later and then cancel within 24 hours any “extra” flights. So I’m sure there were many cancellations today but the companies only see that as people cancelling flights that they were never planning on taking rather than people cancelling because it is “the right thing to do”

    #890402
    WIY
    Member

    Is Orbitz or whoever sold the tickets Jewish? Wouldnt it be a case of Taus Yisroel if yes?

    #890403
    choppy
    Participant

    A public company is only considered Jewish if the majority of its shareholders or majority of officers are Jewish.

    #890404
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    My assumption (not really based on anything) is that El Al is a mostly Jewish company and all halachos would apply to it while Orbitz, Expedia, etc as well as the “3rd party” are all non-Jewish. But it is either El Al or the “3rd Party” who is losing money here so the halacha would probably depend on that.

    #890405
    TheGoq
    Participant

    I see I’ve broken one of the crommandments i started this thread and did not post anything since mea culpa!, i do not have much to add i just thought it was a moral quandary and wanted the rooms take.

    #890406
    choppy
    Participant

    Do the halachas of Taos Akum apply to a Jew who is a rasha (doesn’t keep halachas)?

    #890407
    hatzolajew
    Member

    Yes. Also talk about being a naval b’rishus HaTorah. Looking for reasons why it’s halachically ok for this.

    #890408
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    I wouldn’t flippantly call a whole group of Jews “reshaim”, they might be tinok shenishba or somewhere in between. Rasha is a very strong term (which should only be used by The Wolf in reference to himself).

    I heard from a “3rd party” quoting the Business Halacha institute that since El Al is run by non-frum Jews there is less of an issue of Ta’us Yisroel. V’tzarich iyun.

    #890409
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    I would assume that El Al is majority owned by Jews (though probably not Shomer Shabbos).

    #890410
    147
    Participant

    Instead of all of us chatting but having absolutely no knowledge of the pertinent Halochos, I have forwarded this entire question to the “Institute of Business Halocho”.

    Let them worry about making a decision, and about all the ramifications.

    #890411
    cherrybim
    Participant

    “Maybe the third party is Jewish too.”

    The third party is not Jewish. The question is: will the airline consider the circumstances and allow a cancellation with a refund of the ticket payment, or without a penalty?

    #890412
    zahavasdad
    Participant

    Expedia and Orbitz are publically traded companies

    While El-Al is traded on the Tel-Aviv stock exchange, so its likely the majority of the shareholders are jewish. Orbitz and Expedia are traded on the New York Stock Exchange and you can assume most of the shareholders are not jewish

    #890413
    YW Moderator-42
    Moderator

    zdad, the 3rd party here is the company that submits the prices to Orbitz and Expedia.

    #890414
    mewho
    Participant

    none of my friends called to tell me about it.lol

    #890416
    rbcb
    Member

    Why is this different then any other Shaila one might have. Ask your Posek and do what he says.

    #890418
    ItcheSrulik
    Member

    42: A- Avoid taking advantage of the third party for its mistake. B- You can bet the two companies will have to fight tooth and nail over each ticket.

    #890419
    popa_bar_abba
    Participant

    My opinion: I don’t think anybody could have known it was a mistake. Airline fares fluctuate, and it is normal to have unadvertised sales. I once flew to Belize from Newark for 143 roundtrip. I once flew from LGA to San Fransisco for 40 roundtrip.

    #890420
    TheGoq
    Participant
    #890421
    ItcheSrulik
    Member

    pba: I was pretty sure. It’s practically unheard of to have a sale like that right before a high traffic season.

    #890422
    yitayningwut
    Participant

    I had no clue it was a mistake. People always get cheaper tickets that time of year.

    #890423
    popa_bar_abba
    Participant

    It is pretty rare that I flew for 143 roundtrip to Belize on an unadvertised sale during peak season (December).

    Nobody would have been so surprised if the tickets had just gone straight through with no further comment from anyone. Anyone who is saying it was an obvious mistake is either monday morning quarterbacking, or unfamiliar with the airline industry.

    #890424
    oomis
    Participant

    ELAL is honoring the tickets.

    #890425
    AZ
    Participant

    mod 42-

    “I heard from a “3rd party” quoting the Business Halacha institute that since El Al is run by non-frum Jews there is less of an issue of Ta’us Yisroel. V’tzarich iyun.”

    This is not correct. No one with permission to speak on behalf of that org said such a thing. (i looked into it and spoke to the Dean of the org).

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