Laptop Computer Screen Damaged by Reclined Seat Aboard Airplane: Who is Responsible; and How Should This Be Resolved?

Here is an interesting scenario: what happens when the screen of a laptop computer is damaged from someone who reclined his or her seat aboard an airplane during a flight? Who is ultimately responsible for the damage?

Laptop Computer Screen Damaged by Reclined Seat Aboard Airplane: Who is Responsible; and How Should This Be Resolved?

Pat Cassidy claims to be a Silver Medallion elite level member of the SkyMiles frequent flier loyalty program of Delta Air Lines; and he further claims that his laptop computer was “destroyed when the person in front of me reclines their seat.”

@Delta small note for the suggestion box, maybe have a little warning sign or someway to prevent my laptop from being destroyed when the person in front of me reclines their seat. pic.twitter.com/QHmphXiDhH

— Pat Cassidy (@HardFactorPat) February 26, 2020

After contacting Delta Air Lines via Twitter, Pat Cassidy purportedly received the following response from the airline:

Update: @Delta is giving me the equivalent of a $75 gift card and an explanation that you would give a six year old. Cool. pic.twitter.com/etGLUXOOjs

— Pat Cassidy (@HardFactorPat) February 29, 2020

Hello Patrick,

Thank you for writing us about your experience. I’m sorry your laptop was broken due to another passenger reclining on your seat. It’s not fair when one person’s behavior affects another person. Please know that Personal property damaged in-flight as a result of a passenger action is not reimbursable. We regret the inconvenience this has caused you.

As a goodwill gesture, I’m adding 7,500 bonus miles to your SkyMiles account. They should be transferred into your account within three business days.

Thank you for your loyalty with Delta Air Lines, we are looking forward to serving you again.

For the record, some people would say that 7,500 SkyMiles is not the equivalent of a $75.00 gift card — but rather the equivalent of $150.00 if each SkyMile was valued at two cents apiece.

At least one person accuses Pat Cassidy of creating the situation solely as a publicity stunt…

https://twitter.com/kuhlynda/status/1234169032590405632

…and that assumption can be understood when reading the following exchange of messages between Delta Air Lines and Pat Cassidy…

Goodness! Did you speak to a gate agent or Red Coat about the damage when you got off the plane? If not, you can write in to https://t.co/ZXiM0tPQ0k to have someone evaluate the damage & reach out to you. HWG

— Delta (@Delta) February 26, 2020

I’m just not sure that’s going to be good enough, not sure if you picked up on this but I have a podcast.

— Pat Cassidy (@HardFactorPat) February 26, 2020

@Delta let me know who I can email about this? You’ll know it’s me because the bottom of the email will read “sent my from iPhone”

Goodness! Did you speak to a gate agent or Red Coat about the damage when you got off the plane? If not, you can write in to http://bit.ly/2jj7G11 to have someone evaluate the damage & reach out to you. HWG

I’m just not sure that’s going to be good enough, not sure if you picked up on this but I have a podcast.

…but even if accusation that this is nothing more than a publicity stunt was true, what if this incident actually happened?

Thoughts Pertaining to the Seat Recline Debate

The ability to recline seats in the economy class cabins aboard airplanes has been an issue for decades for a number of reasons.

The problem with the seat recline wars stems more from selfishness and self-importance — along with a lack of consideration and respect for fellow passengers — rather than from the issue of comfort, in my opinion. As with similar heated debates over armrests and children and window shades and swapping seats, passengers should be able to quickly work out a compromise without having to resort to confrontations to resolve what should be a simple minor issue at best.

I do like to recline my seat — even if the additional comfort is only marginal at best…

…but since learning over the years of how adamant are passengers on either side of this issue, I have since resorted to the practice of asking the passenger behind me if he or she minds if I recline my seat — even though I am technically not required to request permission — and I cannot recall my request ever being denied.

What a simple solution that can easily avoid confrontations of just about any kind aboard an airplane — and all it takes is a moment of civility with minimal effort.

Simply put: if passengers were more polite, and considerate and respectful of each other, this whole debate over the recline of seats in the economy class cabin aboard commercial aircraft would be a minor issue at best — if at all.

I have written extensively over the years pertaining to the seat recline debate aboard airplanes in the form of articles posted here at The Gate — including but not limited to:

• She’s Joked About Seat Recline For At Least 24 Years
• The Seat Recline Debate Continues With Video — February 2020 Edition
• The Seat Recline Debate Continues — Violently This Time
• Seat Recline: What Would You Do in This Situation?
• Should Seats Which Recline and Not Recline Be Sectioned Off From Each Other?
• Seat Recline Battle Results in Flight Diversion; Police Called
• Word of the Day: Derecline…

Summary

This situation is not the fault of Delta Air Lines, as no one associated with the airline was complicit with the occurrence of this incident — but the airline compensated Pat Cassidy anyway even though it was not obligated to do so.

Passengers are permitted to recline their seats if they are equipped to do so; and passengers working on laptop computers which rest on the tray tables in front of them is not at all uncommon aboard airplanes.

Is the actual design of the seat itself to blame? Perhaps diminished seat pitch — or the amount of space between rows of seats — might be a contributing factor to what happened? Should a smaller laptop computer have been used instead of the large one which was supposedly used prior to being damaged? Maybe laptop computers should not be permitted to rest on tray tables while passengers are working on them?

So who is actually at fault pertaining to this incident — assuming that it is not a publicity stunt — and who should ultimately be held responsible for what purportedly happened?

Photograph ©2014 by Brian Cohen.