If your airline seat was broken for a 10-hour flight, getting only 5,000 points can feel underwhelming. A non-functioning seat affects comfort, sleep, personal space, and sometimes even safety-related features like recline or seat controls. On a long-haul trip, that is not a small inconvenience. Whether 5,000 points is reasonable depends on the airline, the cabin you paid for, the specific defect, and what those points are actually worth.