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UPDATE: On Oct. 29, 2020, plaintiffs say United Airlines can’t use the refund policy in its purchase contracts to dodge a class action lawsuit demanding refunds for plane travel canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.
United Airlines has been hit with a class action lawsuit by travelers who claim they were not refunded for flight cancellations due to COVID-19.
Plaintiff Jacob Rudolph is a police officer in the state of Minnesota. Because of the coronavirus, the police department where he works canceled all vacations, instituted modified work schedules, and additional preventative health measures, he says.
The United Airlines class action states that he is prohibited from being in crowds, or else he would be subject to quarantine restrictions, which would be deleterious to his police department of 11 officers.
Rudolph claims that he purchased three tickets on Jan. 23, 2020 for travel to occur on April 4, 2020 to Hilton Head Island in South Carolina but United canceled his flight.
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On March 16, Rudolph states that he submitted a refund request for the tickets via the United.com website.
However, the plaintiff claims that United denied his request for a refund on each ticket. On March 31, 2020, United told him in writing that he was only allowed a rebooking or ticket credit for travel within one year of the original ticketing date, according to the United class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff maintains that at the time of his ticket purchase, he was assured that he would be entitled to a refund if his flight was canceled, and Rudolph was actually deceived by United regarding his options for canceled flights.
The United Airlines class action lawsuit says that United refuses to provide monetary refunds to passengers with canceled flights and does so even though all airline passengers are entitled to a refund if the airline cancels the flight.
Rudolph argues that having a monetary refund over a voucher is more pressing now, due to the nature of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Travel vouchers provide little security in this public crisis, particularly where many individual Americans need money now to pay for basics like food and rent, not restrictive, temporary credits towards future travel,” states the United class action lawsuit.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) is set to provide bailouts to the airlines, Rudolph maintains, but United continues to refuse to operate within the law and provide much needed monetary refunds to their customers.
United has engaged in unfair and deceptive conduct through its policy in refusing refunds, forcing passengers into a rebooking situation instead of giving back their money, Rudolph claims.
The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in numerous domestic and international travel restrictions, with states and counties issuing shelter in place orders.
As these restrictions were tightened, the plaintiff states that United started to cancel flights because of the spread of the coronavirus.
The United Air class action lawsuit says that while United initially canceled only 10 to 20 percent of its flights for April and May, it changed course and decided to cut its flights by 50 percent. On the same day of this announcement, United told investors that they expected the flight cancelations to continue into the summer travel season.
Rudolph states that within seven days in March, United changed its refund policy four times about passengers’ rights when they altered flights and misrepresented to customers that any canceled flights would result in re-bookings or through travel vouchers.
“Ostensibly consistent with passenger rights, pre-pandemic, if United cancelled a flight or changed a flight time by over two hours, passengers could receive a full refund,” the United class action lawsuit maintains.
The United Air lawsuit also goes on to say that United’s efforts to refuse to provide refunds for canceled flights goes against established transportation requirements which operate for the benefit of the airline consumers.
“Plaintiff brings this action because Plaintiff and the Class Members did not receive refunds for United cancelled flights, lost the benefit of their bargain and/or suffered out-of-pocket loss, and are entitled to recover compensatory damages, trebling where permitted, and attorney’s fees and costs,” according to the United class action lawsuit.
In addition, the lawsuit points to numerous complaints on social media regarding United’s unfair and deceptive conduct. For example, a passenger complained on Twitter that he had three flights for his family canceled by United Airlines and was refused a refund.
Members of the United States Senate reportedly sent a letter to United, urging the company to provide full cash refunds to passengers with canceled flights during the pandemic.
Prospective Class Members include: “All persons in the United States that purchased tickets for travel on United Airlines flights scheduled to operate to, from, or within the United States from March 1, 2020 to the present and who sought a refund and were refused or who seek a refund in the future.”
The plaintiff is represented by Steve W. Berman, Daniel J. Kurowski and Whitney K. Siehl of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP.
The United Airlines Flight Cancelations Class Action Lawsuit is Jacob Rudolph v. United Airlines Holdings Inc., et al., Case No. 1:20-cv-02142, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
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6 thoughts onUnited Airlines Class Action Alleges Coronavirus Refund Refusal
Tried using our voucher and they won’t give the original amount of credit or the airline tickets. No one will answer the phones and when one did once. He kept putting me on hold and checking on me every 10 minutes to see if I was there. He said he had all the credits applied and now I can’t even find my reservation.
I’ve already contacted you by phone and made a claim over the phone and haven’t heard anything back from you for almost a year. United canceled our flight back to the US from Croatia. They kept canceling every flight we tried. We were stranded in another country with not enough money to fly back home. We had to borrow 4,000 dollars for my husband and I to get back home for a ONE WAY ticket. It’s been 15 months and STILL haven’t gotten a refund. Then we both couldn’t work for awhile because we had to be Quarantined. I have called NUMEROUS numbers and emailed trying to get our money back with no results. I even called Trip Mate, the travel insurance company we purchased insurance from to protect us in case something like this happened with no answer and no results from them either. So it’s time we sue them for all the pain and suffering United has caused us.
I purchased 2 round trip tickets for a Cancun vacation for July. They are only offering a credit voucher.
Purchaser’s sister who has worked to get her a refund instead of voucher. Contacted United several times in writing and on the phone. Denied. Flight for August 19 cancelled July 2.
Went through the credit card company and provided documentation. Got a conditional credit — expected. Then she received “Good news! We’ve taken care of this for you by issuing a permanent credit for this dispute.” A month later they charged her again, reversing the “permanent” credit.
I’m still challenging Citibank, but if it doesn’t work. She’s in.
She is 79 years old and may never use the credit. Not a fan of class action lawsuits, but this is crazy.
United will only give me vouchers. Please add me
United is refusing refunds for our cancelled flights during April 2020 Add me please.