aviation – Ben Edelman

American Airlines – “first checked bag free” credit card complaint

Benjamin Edelman — Tue, 24 Sep 2024 13:00:13 +0000

Status: Pending.

Summary: In prominent marketing offers, including onboard napkins and large airport displays, AA promises “first checked bag free” if customers get certain AA-partner credit cards. But AA denies that benefit on itineraries that are completely or partially international — a restriction nowhere mentioned in initial marketing offers.

American Airlines – defective delay notification, limited rebooking contrary to tariff

Benjamin Edelman — Wed, 24 Apr 2024 13:00:12 +0000

Complaint. Answer.

Status: Pending

Summary: AA delayed an intercontinental flight by 27 hours, but in email notification didn’t say what flight was delayed or by how long. AA’s staff offered contradictory statements of passenger rights and rebooking options, including multiple supposed rules untethered to the Tariff.

Southwest Airlines – “class waiver”

Benjamin Edelman — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 17:00:41 +0000

Complaint. Answer.

Status: Pending.

Summary: Federal regulation favors private resolution of disputes between passengers and airlines. But Southwest’s “class waiver” disallows passengers from gathering together with a single set of lawyers and experts for efficient, cost-effective group resolution of their complaints.

Alaska Airlines – missing baggage fee disclosures

Benjamin Edelman — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 17:00:45 +0000

Complaint. Answer. Reply. Surreply.

Status: Pending.

Summary: Governing regulation requires an airline to provide the exact price for a passenger’s first and second checked bag within the text of an eticket confirmation email, but Alaska did not do so. Furthermore, the regulation requires bag allowance and price information in a booking summary page, but again Alaska did not. Meanwhile Alaska’s Manage Trip page provided an incorrect statement of baggage benefits and fees.

American Airlines – price advertising violations (2022)

Benjamin Edelman — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 17:00:38 +0000

Complaint. Answer. Reply. Surreply.

Status: Pending.

Summary: The American Airlines Business Extra site misrepresented carrier surcharges as “tax” in violation of governing regulation and prior DOT consent decrees. Furthermore, the site listed “approx” charges rather than the exact amount to be paid. And contrary to governing regulation, the site entirely omitted carrier surcharges from initial fare quotes.

American Airlines – price advertising violations (2021)

Benjamin Edelman — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 17:00:53 +0000

Complaint. Answer.

Status: Pending.

Summary: The American Airlines Vacations site misrepresented carrier surcharges as “tax” in violation of governing regulation and prior DOT consent decrees.

Delta – refusal to refund TSA fees

Benjamin Edelman — Tue, 01 Jun 2021 22:17:25 +0000

Complaint. Answer. Reply.

Status: Pending

Summary: Governing regulation requires an airline to refund a passenger’s TSA fee if the passenger does not travel, but Delta refused to do so.

JetBlue – refusal to refund TSA fees

Benjamin Edelman — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 00:10:07 +0000

Complaint. Answer. Reply. Surreply.

Status: Pending

Summary: Governing regulation requires an airline to refund a passenger’s TSA fee if the passenger does not travel, but JetBlue refuses to do so.

Class Action Settlement — Refunds for Certain American Airlines Checked Bag Fees

Benjamin Edelman — Sat, 21 Jul 2018 00:48:45 +0000

Bazerman v. American Airlines, Inc. is a consumer class action pending in the District of Massachusetts. The plaintiff alleges that American Airlines has charged passengers to check bags that should have been free under American’s contract with customers. On June 22, 2018, U.S. District Court Judge William Young preliminarily approved a settlement. If granted final approval, eligible American Airlines passengers who submit a valid, timely claim will receive either a 75% refund or a full refund plus interest for incorrectly charged bag fees. Awards will range from $18.75 to $200 plus interest per bag. Class members must submit a claim by November 26, 2018 to receive a refund. The final approval hearing is set for February 21, 2019. (Note that these dates were extended by court order.)

The Court has authorized notice to be sent to class members. Class members should receive an email on Saturday, July 21, 2018, with the subject line: “Notice of Class Action Settlement – Refunds for American Airlines Checked Bag Fees.” If you’ve flown on American in the past six years and get this email, you should read it since you may be eligible for a refund. The email includes a class notice and claim form. The case documents (including Claim Form and Class Notice) are available at the settlement website, aabaggagefeesettlement.com.

If you have any questions, you may contact Class Counsel: Linda M. Dardarian, Byron Goldstein, and Raymond Wendell at AAcheckedbags@gbdhlegal.com or 1-866-762-8575, or Benjamin Edelman.

Passenger Right to Record at Airports and on Airplanes?

Benjamin Edelman — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 04:00:00 +0000

Passengers have every reason to record airline staff and onboard events–documenting onboard disputes (such as whether a passenger is in fact disruptive or a service animal disobedient), service deficiencies (perhaps a broken seat or inoperational screen), and controversial remarks from airline personnel (like statements of supposed rules, which not match actual contract provisions). For the largest five US airlines, no contract provision–general tariff, conditions of carriage, or fare rules–prohibits such recordings. Yet airline staff widely tell passengers that they may not record–citing “policies” passengers couldn’t reasonably know and certainly didn’t agree to in the usual contract sense. (For example, United’s policy is a web page not mentioned in the online purchase process. American puts its anti-recording policy in its inflight magazine, where passengers only learn it once onboard.) If passengers refuse to comply, airline staff have threatened all manner of sanctions including denial of transport and arrest. In one incident in July 2016, a Delta gate agent even assaulted a 12-year-old passenger who was recording her remarks.

In a Petition for Rulemaking filed this week with the US Department of Transportation, Mike Borsetti and I ask DOT to affirm that passengers have the right to record what they lawfully see and hear on and around aircraft. We explain why such recordings are in the public interest, and we present the troubling experiences of passengers who have tried to record but have been punished for doing so. We conclude with specific proposed provisions to protect passenger rights.

One need not look far to see the impact of passenger recordings. United recently summoned security officers who assaulted passenger David Dao, who had done nothing worse than peacefully remain in the seat he had paid for. The officers falsely claimed that Dao was “swinging his arms up and down with a closed fist,” then “started flailing and fighting” as he was removed. United CEO Oscar Munoz’s falsely claimed that Dao was “disruptive and belligerent”. Fortunately, five passenger recordings provided the crucial proof to rebut those claims. Dao and the interested public are fortunate that video disproved these allegations. But imagine if United had demanded that other passengers onboard turn off their cameras before security officers boarded, or delete their recordings afterward and prove that they had done so — consistent with passenger experiences we report in our Petition for Rulemaking. Had United made such demands, the officers’ false allegations would have gone unchallenged and justice would not have been done. Hence our insistence that recordings are proper even–indeed, especially–without the permission of the airline staff, security officers, and others who are recorded.

Our filing:

Petition for Rulemaking: Passenger Right to Record

DOT docket with public comment submission form