Delta’s Little-Known Ticketing Policy Could Leave You Stranded

You might want to check your wallet before you head to the airport for your next Delta flight – having the right credit card with you could make or break your travel plans.

In an oddity among U.S. airlines, Delta's terms and conditions explicitly state (in a section called “Credit/Debit Card Presentation”) that travelers may have to show an airline representative the credit or debit card used to purchase the ticket in order to get a boarding pass. It's an obvious anti-fraud measure – and a rare one at that.

But it does happen. 

Herb Weisbaum, a consumer journalist for Consumers' Checkbook, wrote about nearly being stranded overseas last month when he and his wife were flagged for the issue ahead of their flights home from London-Heathrow (LHR) to Seattle (SEA) with Delta. When he got to the kiosk to print his boarding passes, the machine instructed him to swipe the card he used to purchase the tickets – a card he didn't have with him.

At the check-in counter, a Delta agent said the airline wouldn't print their boarding passes unless Weisbaum presented the card he used to purchase the tickets. Fortunately, Weisbaum coaxed a neighbor into breaking into his Seattle house in the early morning hours to take a picture of the card in question, which allowed the pair to get their boarding passes.

It's a little-known (and infrequently enforced) but longstanding policy at Delta, most likely to crop up on international routes where fraud concerns are higher.

And only Delta does it among the major U.S. airlines. Alaska, American, Southwest, and United don't have a similar rule, according to a scan of their policies. Over in Taiwan, EVA Air outlines a similar policy to Delta's in its own terms and conditions.

Delta's terms and conditions make clear this credit card policy is designed to “safeguard against credit/debit card fraud.” United's terms warns it may cancel tickets suspected of fraud, but does not have a similar requirement to Delta to actually show the card used to purchase.

Delta has not provided more information for travelers on when this requirement might be enforced, saying only that “most customers in most instances will not have to show the card used to purchase their booking.” The airline did not address specific questions about what might happen when a traveler cannot present the credit card – including when a ticket was booked by another person, like a parent or guardian.

Even if rare, it's a potentially massive problem for two reasons. 

Like Weisbaum, I don't carry all my credit cards with me everywhere I go – and I'm guessing there are plenty of travelers out there in the same boat. In fact, I rarely carry the card I use to buy almost all my airfare – the American Express Platinum Card®. It generally stays in my desk drawer.

But now, I'll be making room for that card in my wallet out of an abundance of caution. As my colleague Jackson Newman joked, I'm going to have to start carrying around a “George Costanza wallet,” stuffed to the brim with plastic (or metal).

More importantly: What happens to travelers – especially younger ones – who didn't book their own flights? 

What if, for example, mom and dad bought their college student flights to Spain for a study abroad program, only to get flagged before the flight home to provide proof of purchase? It's 3 a.m. in the U.S., so does that 19-year-old get stranded in Spain?

Delta's website explicitly says that if the purchaser is not traveling, the purchaser can show their credit or debit card “at an airport ticket counter or another ticket office location, whichever is most convenient.” Does that mean mom and dad have to drive to the nearest airport to show their card and ID in order to get their 19-year-old on the plane? What if that airport or office is closed at the time?

Weisbaum had luck getting a photo of the card used to purchase the flight, but that's not explicitly spelled out as acceptable in Delta's terms. What if another Delta agent doesn't see it that way? 

Delta again declined to provide more clarity about these scenarios, saying only that it is “limited in what it can say on this front” due to “many proprietary business and security considerations.” 

The airline may already be making changes meant to mitigate potential issues. A Reddit user purchasing flights for a family member to come visit the U.S. from Morocco posted their pop-up notification noting that the traveler would need to present a photo ID and the card used for the purchase at check-in … or be denied travel. 

Bottom Line

It may be incredibly rare, but this little-known requirement should be on your radar ahead of your next Delta flight. 

Unlike every other major U.S. airline, Delta reserves the right to require seeing the credit card you used to purchase your flight … or deny you boarding. The odds it'll crop up before your next Delta flight are likely slim to none – but not zero. 

For anyone out there like me who doesn't always carry the credit card they use to book flights: You might want to make room in your wallet going forward. Better safe than sorry, right?