Major US airlines slam Biden’s Department of Transportation for a recent policy change requiring them to disclose outright airline fees.
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, and Alaska Airlines sued USDOT in the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals last Friday, according to a copy obtained by Reuters.
The mandate was implemented by USDOT last month, requiring airline companies to declare service fees aside from airfare, allegedly to protect travelers from unexpected fees.
For major US carriers, the mandate is “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and otherwise contrary to law.”
Additionally, instead of aiding consumers, this rule would only confuse consumers and its attempt to “regulate” private businesses “in a thriving marketplace is beyond its authority.”
According to the USDOT, additional baggage fees or flight changes “must be individually disclosed the first time that fare and schedule information is provided on the airline’s online platform, and cannot be displayed through a hyperlink.”
The department also accused airline companies of conducting “bait and switch tactics,” to conceal the “true cost” of “discounted flights.”
But for the trade group for large US carriers, Airlines for America, the rule is a “bad solution in search of a problem.”
The organization further blasted the Transportation Department, “Airlines go to great lengths to make their customers knowledgeable about these fees.”
“The ancillary fee rule by the Department of Transportation will greatly confuse consumers, who will be inundated with information that will only serve to complicate the buying process,” the group quipped.
The final rules of the updated policy were released on April 24, which also require automatic refunds for passengers for delayed flights or cancellations of reservations.
It also compels US airlines to reimburse passengers for failure to deliver their checked-in bags within 12 hours for domestic flights or 15 to 30 hours for international flights.
The policy also applies to all the services the airline failed to deliver, which the consumers paid for.
Biden’s Transportation Department claims this move will resolve the rising refund complaints they received.
However, Airlines for America responded that such complaints were already down by mid-2020.
In fact, the group said they offer “a range of options—including fully refundable fares—to increase accessibility to air travel and to help customers make ticket selections that best fit their needs.”
From 2020 to 2023, 11 major US airlines have released $43 billion in customer refunds.
