The Transportation Department seeks to end the industrys family seating fees
of ConsumerAffairs
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has proposed a new rule to prevent airlines from charging families extra to sit together.
The rule is aimed at ending the practice of charging extra to seat children next to their parents. When seating is available, the proposed rule would not allow the airline to charge a family seating fee.
DOT says that mandating fee-free family seating would lower the cost of flying with young children -- saving a family of four as much as $200 per roundtrip if seat fees are $25.
Many airlines still dont guarantee family seating, which means parents wonder if theyll have to pay extra just to be seated with their young child. Flying with children is already complicated enough without having to worry about that, said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Many parents say being seated next to their children is not optional, especially when they are too young to feed themselves, fasten their own seatbelt, go to the bathroom, and, in some cases, communicate.
But DOT says it has received complaints from travelers who say airlines force parents to choose between paying to lock in assigned seats or risk being seated apart. Buttigieg says these fees add up and effectively raise the final cost of air transportation for many families traveling with young children.
What the rule would do
If adopted, the proposed rule would apply to families traveling with children aged 13 or younger. When families buy airline tickets for a flight, the carrier would be required to provide adjacent seating within 48 hours of the purchase.
The proposal defines adjacent family seating as seats next to each other in the same row and not separated by an aisle. Airlines would be required to make adjacent family seats available in every class of service and prohibited from defining class in a way that limits the availability of family seating, such as structuring basic economy to consist of only middle seats.
In situations where it is impossible to provide adjacent seating for multiple young children, airlines would be required to seat them across the aisle from, directly in front of, or directly behind the parent or accompanying adult.
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2024-08-01 15:06:48
