The Biden administration on Wednesday unveiled two new rules that will directly impact the millions of Americans who take commercial flights each year. The first rule requires airlines to be more transparent about additional fees, and the second requires airlines to automatically issue cash refunds rather than respond to customer requests.
Various provisions of the new rules Ministry of Transportwill be implemented over varying periods of time from six months to two years.
“When airlines owe passengers money, passengers deserve their money back without headaches or haggling,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement. Press release About the new refund rules.
The rule requires airlines to automatically issue full refunds to passengers when flights are canceled or significantly changed, baggage return is significantly delayed or passengers do not receive in-flight amenities they paid for, such as Wi-Fi.
Speaking at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday, Buttigieg said the Department of Transportation’s consumer protection team has in the past issued “millions of dollars in fines” to airlines whose passengers did not receive the refunds they were owed.
Another rule aims to eliminate so-called “surprise trash fees.”
“Airlines should be competing to secure passengers’ business, not who can charge the most unexpected fees,” Buttigieg said in a separate post. release Declare the second rule.
It will require airlines to list and explain all additional charges “clearly, conspicuously and accurately” when offering fares on their online platforms or online and offline.
The junk fee transparency rule also includes provisions to eliminate “discount bait-and-switch tactics,” which the Biden administration defined in a press release as the practice of offering discounts that appear to apply to the entire flight price but actually only apply to the ticket fee. part.
Wednesday’s announcement from the White House follows several airline incidents involving Boeing aircraft failures that have triggered regulatory investigations and forced major airlines such as Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines and United Airlines to reassess their business expectations.
“To be clear, we want the aviation industry to thrive,” Buttigieg said at Reagan Airport. “That’s why we are so strict about passenger protection. This comes at a time when airlines need to do more to ensure passenger trust.” It will increase people’s confidence in air travel.”
Buttigieg said on April 16 that the White House would work with state attorneys general to speed up responses to customer complaints against airlines and ticket agents. Technically, only the federal government has the authority to enforce passenger protections, although state prosecutors receive reports of numerous customer complaints.
In addition to the two new rules announced Wednesday, the White House is proposing a ban on charging extra seating fees for parents who try to sit next to their children. The White House also seeks to mandate certain accommodations and provide more accommodations for passengers who use wheelchairs.
The new airline rules are the latest in President Joe Biden’s broader battle against what the White House calls “corporate fraud.”
“There are tens of billions of dollars in other junk fees across the economy that I have directed my administration to reduce or eliminate,” Biden said in October 2022.
The directive has emerged as a multifaceted crackdown on hidden fees charged by different government agencies on financial products ranging from banks to cable TV to retirement savings accounts.
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