Within the comments to a recent post on Chris Elliott’s blog, there’s an interesting suggestion to check the strike list before you book a flight.

The strike list, in this case, refers to TravelGuard’s list of travel providers whom they consider to be at risk of disruption or shutdown due to strike. Each name on this list comes with a date. For those buying TravelGuard’s travel insurance in association with a named company, you’re only covered if you buy the insurance prior to the date, i.e., “as long as the coverage effective date is prior to when the strike is foreseeable.”

In some cases, it’s not a company — it can be a country, an airport, or even a fuel supplier… anything that affects your travels. Here’s the list as of this moment, to give you a sense of the range:

Airline | No coverage for strike after this date
British Airways | 02/21/2010
Greece General Strike | 04/26/2010
Spirit Airlines | 05/11/2010 (end date of strike: 7/23/10)
Air Tahiti (Nui) | 05/17/2010
Air Tran | 05/17/2010
Iberia | 06/03/2010
Swedish Airline Pilot Association | 06/07/2010
French Polynesia General Strike | 06/14/2010
Airport Fuel Services, Sydney, Australia | 07/16/2010

That’s a few carriers and destinations that aren’t being covered, but not as many as I thought there would be, globally. Some of the carriers, such as AirTrain, were obviously not at immediate risk, but the insurer isn’t taking chances.

The insurer also maintains a similar list of providers whom they won’t cover, beyond a given date, due to financial default or bankruptcy. That list — the “Alert List” — is here.

So how should you use these lists? In my opinion, these lists are double-edged swords. They’re scary, after all: If an insurer tells you up front that the risk of booking with a company is high, and they won’t pay out if there’s a problem with your trip, then that’s a pretty powerful reason not to click “purchase.” And if you DO use travel insurance, then frankly you should follow the company’s guidance and stay away.

But if you’re not using travel insurance, don’t just take TravelGuard’s word for it, but do research before you buy a ticket. Depending on your travel timeframe, it may be a safe bet after all.

Take the AirTran example: They got put on the list on May 17. But they entered mediation shortly after and have been negotiating with their pilots’ union since. But as Atlanta’s WABE notes, “Any strike would be months away, as the National Mediation Board would first have to declare an impasse and then a 30-day cooling off period.” So in the short term, there’s no risk. I wouldn’t have a problem buying an AirTran ticket for August. For December? I might be wary.

Finally, note that each insurer has its own list. TravelGuard’s is simply the most public. (For example, AccessAmerica, which doesn’t write policies for every provider, turns it around: They provide a list of which providers they DO cover, rather than those they don’t.)

Upgraded: Inflight wifi subscriptions
Gogo Inflight (aka Aircell) is making its monthly subscriptions for inflight wifi applicable across airlines — Air Canada, AirTran, American, Delta, US Airways, and Virgin America, to name a few. They’re also introducing discounts: For $19.95 in the first month and $34.95 each month thereafter, it’s all-you-can-surf pricing. I like. I like a lot.

Upgraded: Pilots on the edge
Upgraded: Headline writing
Great headline for a post: “United Pilot Loses Cool, Pants.” Poorly-played, trouser-dropping United pilot. Well-played, BlackBook!

Upgraded: Smaller airports near large cities
Downgraded: Methodology
CheapFlights has released their list of the “cheapest airports” in America, and some smaller airports near(ish) larger cities are on the list. Burbank, Long Beach, Bellingham… no huge surprises. But these lists are perpetually flawed… who edited this thing? Chicago-Midway, Chicago-O’Hare, and Chicago-All Airports on the same list?! The “CHI” code doesn’t really count, guys…

Downgraded: Travel insurance in the UK
If you’re planning to buy travel insurance in the UK, prepare to pay an “ash tax.” Yes, a surcharge to cover prospective volcano ash delays and cancellations.

Upgraded: The ubiquity of opaque bookings
Expedia, which owns Hotwire, will be integrating Hotwire’s opaque (i.e., unnamed until purchase completed) hotel supply into the regular Expedia sales channel. Travelocity added “top secret hotels” back in March. I guess it’s Orbitz’ turn next?…

Upgraded: Yada, yada, yada
Remember the “YADA,” the roving check-in unit being tested by American Airlines last year? It’s coming to LAX.

AIG isn’t just the well-deserved whipping boy of the moment. It’s also a company that many travelers depend on, directly or indirectly — they just may not know it. So what are some of the ways AIG’s future affects travel?

Travel Insurance: Buyers
With AIG now 80% owned by the U.S. government (but seemingly not under its control), there’s pressure to spin off some of its businesses, such as their Travel Guard travel insurance subsidiary. For those who buy travel insurance, the current mess and the subsequent spinoff will likely have little effect. The federal government sure isn’t letting AIG renege on its policies, so your current policy is secure. Heck, you may even be better off with an AIG-issued policy now than ever before. How this would affect buyers after a spinoff is a question, but it’s still unlikely to harm the company’s viability or ability to make good on promised payments. They may not ceremoniously present you with a giant check, but the check is unlikely to bounce. Call it a wash.

Travel Insurance: Sellers
For those selling AIG’s travel insurance products, the spinoff is undoubtedly a good thing. Even before the spinoff, you’ll be hard-pressed to find references to AIG on their website today. The stigma of selling something with the AIG name would be gone, and travel agents (the primary sellers) will be able to simply point to the “Travel Guard” brand, which has a long operating history. Advantage: spinoff.

Airlines: Plane leases
More complicated: AIG also owns International Lease Finance Corp, the worlds largest plane lessor, and a huge customer of Airbus and Boeing. Major airlines often lease the plane through ILFC rather than buying the equipment outright, so finance trouble at ILFC could affect their clients. Much like a renter getting booted from his apartment because the landlord was foreclosed, airlines (and their passengers) could feel the brunt of any funding trouble at ILFC, which has relied on the nearly-closed short-term commercial paper credit markets to finance its operations.

And ILFC is admitting it’s in trouble. The subsidiary “said it may not survive unless it gets help from its parent company or new access to credit.” While help from the AIG mothership (read: the American taxpayer) is promised, who knows how things could look in a month or two.

This could also affect the supply of new planes in the skies. The leasing company has 168 planes worth $16.7 billion on order, and needs to find a way to actually pay for them.

For the time being, AIG’s implosion and subsequent rescue haven’t hurt travelers, but the firm’s downfall has added uncertainty to an already uncertain system. As if travelers needed one more thing to think about…

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Ed Perkins points to the deceitful but unfortunately effective practice of insurance upselling by front-desk employees at car rental agencies.

Agents told [customers] that although their [credit] cards covered damage to the vehicle, they didn’t cover the additional “loss of use” fee the car company would collect for the rental revenue lost while a damaged car was out of service. That statement is a flat-out lie.

Loss of use is included in the CDW (collision damage waiver) provision of credit card coverage. If your card has rental car insurance built in, then you should be fine. (Check your card’s fine print to see if you have the coverage in the first place, of course. If you don’t have the rules governing your card’s benefits, call your bank and have them send it. If you don’t have the coverage, get a card that does.)

This “loss of use” story is a sales pitch I’ve gotten before at the time of rental, most memorably and insistently from a desk agent at Advantage Rent-a-Car at the Phoenix airport. I’ll never forget that guy. He kept telling me over and over again how much Advantage charges for “loss of use,” and how neither my own auto insurance nor my credit card would cover it. It was his aggressive hard-sell, and the snotty attitude he copped after I declined his coverage again and again, which cemented my policy to never rent from Advantage ever again.

Bottom line: Never trust a car rental agent to tell you what your existing insurance covers. Not when they try to tell you about the insurance provided by a credit card, and not when they try to tell you about your own policy.

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The UK ratcheted down their threat level (similar to the rainbow of fear in the United States) and hand luggage is once again permitted on board British flights.

In a statement, it said: “Each passenger is permitted to carry one item of cabin baggage through the airport security search point. The dimensions of this item must not exceed a maximum length of 45cm, width of 35cm and depth of 16cm, including wheels, handles and side pockets.”
However, liquids of any type – including gels, pastes, aerosols and lotions – cannot be taken on to planes. The exceptions were prescription medicines and baby milk.

But don’t be surprised if flights headed TO the UK will still carry a restriction on carry-ons today. As other countries and airlines have adapted to the British ban, they will likely not instantly reverse that ban. Today’s a transition day, so you may still face problems out there.

This is especially good news for those carrying electronics such as iPods and laptops, since insurers are balking at paying for damaged, lost, or stolen electronics that are transported in checked luggage. Even though passengers didn’t have a choice in the matter.

Insurers say the airlines are responsible, and the airlines reply with “I’m rubber and you’re glue,” refusing to pay more than the maximum amount of £850 as determined by the Montreal Convention. Passengers, stuck in the middle, lose.

Official announcement of new UK security rules is here.

(hat tip Consumerist on the insurance article)

The law, on your side:

Florida v. Wyndham et al.
Florida’s attorney general successfully prosecuted a case against Wyndham hotels for failing to disclose mandatory fees (such as resort fees, energy surcharges, etc.). The decision against the chain means that Wyndham hotels in Florida need to state the total price of a room at the time of booking. This includes price quotations on third-party travel sites. (via Elliott)

This is major. Mandatory fees are a big complaint against hotels, and in some parts of the country (like Palm Springs) the practice is rampant. Like airlines that impose fuel surcharges to make the base fare seem cheaper, resort fees should die a quick but painful death.

The court’s decision is an important step in that direction. For starters, Wyndham has agreed to change its business practices nationwide, and not just in Florida. (Aside: I wonder how this affects bookings through opaque sites like Priceline, where you sometimes get whacked with resort fees despite paying for your room up front…) Second, the case sets a legal precedent for other plaintiffs, so other chains are on notice to change their pricing or face a suit.

Until other hotels DO move to total pricing, the decision puts Wyndham at a disadvantage in side-by-side comparisons with other chains that DON’T quote total prices. Expect Wyndham, recently gone public on the NYSE, to push for total pricing in the industry, now that it lost its case. Other firms, and other states’ regulators, should heed the call.

British regulators targeting travel insurance
Travel insurance is a tricky game, both for medical insurance or trip cancellation/interruption coverage. Insurance companies are very adept at selling you the policy, but then finding a way to avoid payouts. Now the UK’s Treasury is investigating lazy or unscrupulous agents who sell these policies without disclosing the real terms and conditions.

Travel insurance is big business in the US as well, with about a third of travelers opting to buy in. For many, the coverage may be redundant, already covered by their homeowner policy, their medical coverage, or even their credit card. (For example, I’ve never purchased insurance of any kind, but my credit card’s automatic insurance covered the extra expenses I incurred — hotel, meals, transportation, etc. — when a tropical storm delayed my return home Barbados a few years ago.)

Three suggestions: Check your existing policies and credit cards to see if you are already covered. Only consider insurance for really big ticket items. And read the fine print of any policy you do actually consider buying, to make sure the thing you’re trying to insure isn’t excluded (e.g., cancellation due to hurricane evacuation, pre-existing medical conditions, etc.)

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