Are Connecting Flight Fees Illegal?

The airline industry may be facing potential litigation as Delta, United and American Airlines have begun to charge passengers an additional fee for needing a connecting flight. Many customers are outraged by this fee and are threatening legal action if this policy is not reversed, or if their connecting flight fees are not reimbursed.

Airlines are notorious for charging customers numerous service fees, arguably without actually providing such service. According to travel experts, the most common airline fees are:

• Making a reservation on the phone or in person (Fee: $5-$25)
• Re-banking frequent flyer miles (Fee: $50-$100)
• Cashing in frequent flyer miles without sufficient advance notice (Fee: $0-$100)
• Bringing a pet onboard in the cabin (Fee: $50-$100)
• Checking luggage (Fee: $3-$25 each way)
• Getting a refund when a fare goes down (Fee: $25-$200 or more)
• Flying standby on the same day of travel (Fee: $0-$50)
• Paying for lap children (Fee: $10 to 10% of the adult fare)
• Getting a seat assignment (Fee: $5-$11 each way)

 >>Join a Class Action Lawsuit Over Airline Fees

Overview of Airline Service Fees

As implied earlier, these are merely the most commonly encountered fees customers routinely contend with from airlines. Due to America’s economic state along with other possible complications, the cost of flying is not expected to go down any time soon. However, if the cost of flying continues to rise through airline service fees, customers will feel even less inclined to fly.

Additionally, some of these fees have been found to be so frivolous in nature, some customers question if a number of the fees are even legal. In particular, the issue of connecting flights during domestic travel has become somewhat of a concern and annoyance to passengers who take a connecting flight to their destination. Unlike the fees mentioned above, the connecting flight is a situation the customer cannot avoid and therefore. customers will have no choice but to agree to pay the service fee.

Customers have also stated that these fees are not explicitly listed on the airlines’ websites when their tickets are purchased, or are extremely difficult to find or understand when they agree to the terms and conditions of the transaction. Some customers allege that they were illegally coerced or forced into paying a fee that they did not initially agree to pay, or that this fee is unjust because the point of their airline ticket is to get them to their destination. Whether or not a connecting flight is necessary for the customer’s travel should be irrelevant in terms of the airlines’ obligation of service to the customer’s purchase.

Join a Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you booked a domestic flight online for a flight that had a connecting city, you may have paid more than you should have for your ticket. You may qualify to join an Airline Fees, Connecting City Charges, Class Action Lawsuit Investigation and pursue compensation for your damages. Consumer fraud lawyers are investigating the pricing practices of certain airlines, including Delta, United and American. Some travelers may have been charged too much when they booked flights that involved connecting cities from the airlines’ websites.