It’s been a rough month for United Airlines, but even this week’s latest scandals might not be enough to bite into the company’s bottom line.
After all, when it comes down to it, The Points Guy’s Emily McNutt said only one thing really matters to consumers.
“Industry trends show us that passengers are looking for low fares,” the news editor told Cheddar. “So I don’t think [the incidents] would be that detrimental for United in the long run.”
Just this week a puppy died on a United flight, sparking national outrage and prompting Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) to propose [legislation](https://twitter.com/SenJohnKennedy/status/974314896098824197) to protect pets while traveling. Days later another dog was mistakenly sent to Japan rather than Kansas City.
And it doesn’t stop there. Last year a passenger was dragged off a United cabin and a pet rabbit died on one of its aircrafts. Earlier this month, before the latest news, the company said it would subject its customer service staff to a mandatory “compassion” training to prevent such incidents from happening again.
But even if nothing changes, consumers who want to boycott but are driven by price may have little choice.
“Route networks are expanding in a way, but they’re also condensing in the sense that low-cost carriers are growing into this legacy market and taking over,” she said, “especially on domestic flights.”
Much like all the upheaval shaking the world, the huge swings rocking Wall Street may feel far from normal. But, for investing at least, this is normal.
Joe Cecela, Dream Exchange CEO, explains how they are aiming to form the first minority-controlled company to operate an exchange in U.S. history. Watch!
A Michigan judge is putting sponges in the hands of shoplifters and ordering them to wash cars in a Walmart parking lot when spring weather arrives. Genesee County Judge Jeffrey Clothier hopes the unusual form of community service discourages people from stealing from Walmart. The judge also wants to reward shoppers with free car washes. Clothier says he began ordering “Walmart wash” sentences this week for shoplifting at the store in Grand Blanc Township. He believes 75 to 100 people eventually will be ordered to wash cars this spring. Clothier says he will be washing cars alongside them when the time comes.
