Are the government’s airline cops about to get tough on crime? The Department of Transportation says it is, and now there’s new evidence that it’s following through.
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FINE
Here’s a problem travelers are running into more frequently: Months after a trip, they get a bill from their rental company charging them for an unknown traffic violation, plus a handling fee. Often, there’s little recourse.
Remember last summer’s overnight tarmac stranding incident in Rochester, Minn.? The government does. This morning it issued what it called a “precedent-setting” series of fines against two airlines in connection with the lengthy ground delay.
The online travel agency Ultimate Fares faces $600,000 in government fines for failing to include taxes and service fees in its airfares, a U.S. Department of Transportation Administrative Law Judge has ruled. The fine would be the largest ever assessed for advertising violations, according to regulators.
In yet another sign that the government has adopted a “get tough” approach in dealing with the airline industry, the Federal Aviation Administration today proposed near-record penalties against two airlines for safety violations.
The Transportation Department has hit Spirit Airways with a record $375,000 fine for failing to comply with rules governing denied boarding compensation, fare advertising, baggage liability and other consumer protection requirements, the agency announced this morning.
When it comes to fines, the Transportation Department is on a roll. Last month saw an unprecedented number of actions against airlines for deceptive fare advertisements. And now, the government has put a cruise line in its crosshairs.
A few days ago, a Transportation Department official bristled when I suggested that its recent fines against airlines were little more than warning shots. It turns out the DOT isn’t done making its point.
The Transportation Department has fined three airlines for consumer rule violations, signaling a new “get-tough” approach to the airline industry, if not in practice, then at least in principle.
In a surprise move, the Department of Transportation has fined two airlines for failing to disclose codesharing flights and disregarding their denied-boarding rules. United Airlines faces $80,000 in penalties for neglecting to inform travelers that certain flights were operated by another airline. And Delta Air Lines is being fined $375,000 for bumping passengers from its flights without compensation.
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