Once in a while when I hold a flight reservation overnight on Deem and then try to confirm it the next day I get a message saying it cannot be completed online. Why is that?

There are several possible reasons, but by far the most common is that the fare has increased overnight. When you hold an airline reservation the fare is never guaranteed until you purchase the ticket, and since most fare increases take place overnight, those overnight holds can be risky. There is a potential solution for this, but it requires an agent’s help, and hence the message that the purchase cannot be completed online. When you call or email an agent for assistance he or she will contact the airline to attempt to have the original fare honored under the rule instituted last year that says airlines must honor a held fare for 24 hours. As great as that rule is, there are exeptions, so it doesn’t work 100% of the time. Among the limitations are:

• Fare rules that applied at time of reservation must still apply at time of ticketing
• There can be no changes to the reservation
• The request for the guaranteed fare or refund must come within a strict 24 hours of the time the reservation was made
• Reservations made less than 7 days before departure are exempt