United Airlines to offer up to $10K to passengers affected by overbooking

Under-fire US carrier United Airlines has said it will change its overbooking policy so that any passengers asked to give up their seat could be reimbursed as much as $10,000.

United was heavily criticised after videos were circulated on social media last month showing a man being forcefully ejected from a flight after it had been overbooked by the carrier. The videos showed the passenger visibly shaken after being allowed to return to the aircraft at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.

The airline said it would introduce a policy to "increase customer compensation incentives for voluntary denied boarding up to $10,000", as well as an initiative to reduce the number of passengers affected by the practice.

"Our goal is to reduce incidents of involuntary denial of boarding to as close to zero as possible and become a more customer-focused airline," United said.

United CEO Oscar Muñoz has since apologised for the incident, and added in a statement on Thursday that the company was taking steps to improve its customer experience.

"Today, we are taking concrete, meaningful action to make things right and ensure nothing like this ever happens again," Muñoz said.