Yesterday, multiple car rental companies in the US announced that they will be ending discounts for NRA members. Specifically, Alamo, Avis, Enterprise, Hertz, and National are (the only) five car rental companies that have offered discounts to NRA members, and they have all decided to end the agreement. This is most likely due to public backlash against the organization following the shooting in Parkland, Florida.
Today, Delta and United both tweeted that they will also end discounts through group travel programs. Neither airlines are official sponsors of the NRA, but both have set up discounts with the NRA on flights to Dallas, where the NRA Annual Meeting will be held in May. These discounts entailed 2 – 10% off flights for groups traveling to Dallas, and will no longer be offered.
Delta is reaching out to the NRA to let them know we will be ending their contract for discounted rates through our group travel program. We will be requesting that the NRA remove our information from their website.
— Delta (@Delta) February 24, 2018
United is notifying the NRA that we will no longer offer a discounted rate to their annual meeting and we are asking that the NRA remove our information from their website.
— United Airlines (@united) February 24, 2018
As of this writing, the NRA Annual Meeting’s website still lists the contracted discounts with both Delta and United.
Delta and United have previously offered 2 – 10% off airfares for attendees of the NRA Conference in Dallas.
Unlike the car rental companies, which ended ongoing discounts, Delta and United have simply ended one-off preferential pricing, since they do not offer discounts to NRA members in general. These special agreements or discounts usually involve group travel of more than 10 passengers, and are not uncommon for big conferences. For a destination like Dallas, where American Airlines and Southwest have a strong presence, it’s no secret why Delta and United would want to otherwise incentivize flyers. Both Delta and United have responded to media inquiries from Think Progress; Delta pointed out that these discounts are pretty routine, while United said that this is “standard meeting agreement process.”
Obviously, this isn’t a “ban” or anything to NRA members, since they can still buy tickets to fly to the conference, just like anybody else. However, airlines obviously have the option to choose who they offer discounts to, and by pulling the discount, it’s clear that they are taking a stance here—either at a corporate level, or as a reaction to public feedback.
On Twitter, airlines are getting backlash from both sides of the conversation, which isn’t unexpected.
Hi, Ada, thank you for your continued loyalty to us, I hope you have a wonderful weekend! *TRR
— Delta (@Delta) February 24, 2018
As CEO of a very profitable and real business that flies United 69 times per month my 6.9 million employees will NEVER fly United again!!!!!
— DL (@davelozo) February 24, 2018
In some cases, Delta’s response is actually pretty tongue in cheek.
Hey Shane. I am so sorry to hear your flight has been canceled. Could you please DM me your confirmation number? So I can take a look at this for you. *TLJ
— Delta (@Delta) February 24, 2018
This isn’t the first time we have seen corporate entities take stances on politically charged issues, and I’m sure it won’t be the last one.
The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
5 comments
I am not a member of the NRA but do support the 2nd as well as all amendments!! I will not support any company that punishes people for how they think.
Just as a matter of ckarification, since we’re talking corporate, not brand policies, that’s just three rental car companies: AvisBudget Group, Hertz and Enterprise Holdings.
AvisBudget Group is the parent company of Avis, Budget, Payless and ZipCar. Hertz is the parent company of Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty. Enterprise Holdings, meanwhile, is the parent company of Enterprise, National and Alamo.
Please review the Twitter excerpts you’ve posted. Are you sure they’re the right ones? They don’t seem to match your comments.
Larry,
How is “no longer offering a sale” a “punishment” ?
Small steps began. Great job on DL and UA.