This week, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced that six airlines were forced to pay a combined total of more than $600 million to customers.
These consumers were “owed a refund due to a canceled or significantly changed flight,” and a severe delay in refunds from the airlines, said the department.
Payouts included the following:
· Frontier – $222 million in required refunds paid and a $2.2 million penalty
· Air India – $121.5 million in required refunds paid and a $1.4 million penalty
· TAP Portugal – $126.5 million in required refunds paid and a $1.1 million penalty
· Aeromexico – $13.6 million in required refunds paid and a $900,000 penalty
· El Al – $61.9 million in required refunds paid and a $900,000 penalty
· Avianca – $76.8 million in required refunds paid and a $750,000 penalty
Altogether, the airlines also paid more than $7.25 million in civil penalties.
“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, [the Department of Transportation] has received a flood of complaints from air travelers about airlines’ failures to provide timely refunds after they had their flights canceled or significantly changed,” said a Monday press release.
According to data from the department’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics, 2022 had had the highest percentage of delayed flights (21.16%) since 2014 (22.25%). This year has also had the second highest percentage of canceled flights (2.91%) behind 2020 (8.28%), when COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were in full swing.
“When a flight gets canceled, passengers seeking refunds should be paid back promptly. Whenever that doesn’t happen, we will act to hold airlines accountable on behalf of American travelers and get passengers their money back.” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “A flight cancellation is frustrating enough, and you shouldn’t also have to haggle or wait months to get your refund.”
As of the Monday announcement, the Transportation Department’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection has assessed $8.1 million in civil penalties in this year alone, “the largest amount ever issued in a single year by that office,” and hundreds of thousands of customers have benefited.
Even more orders assessing civil penalties for consumer protection violations are also expected this calendar year.
Orders from the department require airlines to comply with U.S. law, which stipulates that airlines and ticket agents have a legal obligation to refund consumers if the airline cancels or significantly changes a flight to, from and within the country if the passenger does not wish to accept the alternative offered.
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