I've just listened to one of my American podcasts.
Someone wrote into say they were on an overbooked flight.
Steward stands at the front and explains the situation then offers:-
$250 + another ticket - silence.
$750 + another ticket - one hand goes up, and off they go.
The consensus in the...
"You and your wife will be in jail and your kids will be taken away from you."
You can't make that kind of promise, then not follow through with it.
The poor bloke got his hopes up.