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An airline passenger is claiming he was double-charged for early boarding when he was forced to reschedule a Southwest Airlines canceled flight.
Plaintiff Thomas J. Klutho of Missouri reports that he booked a round-trip flight on Southwest for himself plus a companion to San Diego and back to St. Louis.
The Texas-based carrier’s policy is to charge a separate fee to those who wish to ensure early boarding; so Klutho opted to pay an extra $100 to gain favorable positions in the “A” boarding group for himself and his companion — $50 for the trip to California, plus $50 for the return flight.
The carrier reportedly later canceled their flight back from San Diego, forcing Klutho to rebook those Southwest Airlines tickets to get home. But when he did so, he discovered that while Southwest was crediting the airfare he’d already paid toward his new return tickets, it was apparently keeping the extra $50 he had paid for early boarding. He claims that he had to pay an additional $80 to confirm early boarding for both return tickets.
Klutho notes in the Southwest Airlines class action lawsuit that he was forced not only to pay twice for the same service, but also to pay 60 percent more the second time around — even though the new booking was necessary as a result of Southwest Airlines’ canceled flight. This constitutes unjust enrichment and money had and received, he argues.
When Klutho called to ask for an explanation, a Southwest representative told him it was the airline’s policy not to refund early boarding fees when a flight was canceled, nor to credit them to rescheduled flights, according to the lawsuit.
A visit to Southwest Airlines’ official website on May 24 revealed different information.
Under the heading “EarlyBird Check-In Refundability,” the company states: “All EarlyBird Check-In purchases are nonrefundable. Customers who cancel their flight will forfeit the funds they used to purchase EarlyBird Check-In.”
However, it adds: “In the event that we cancel a flight, Southwest will refund the cost of any EarlyBird Check-Ins purchased” (emphasis in original text).
It is not clear from the information on that page whether this has been the policy all along for Southwest Airlines tickets. However, based on comments in its website’s “Community” section, it appears that it may have been recently changed.
In a discussion titled “What does it take to get a refund?” a customer with the screen name KYTransplant complained that she was “out” the $80 she had paid for early boarding on a Southwest Airlines canceled flight. But on April 7, a “top contributor” screen-named dfwskier responded: “Actually Southwest has revised its policy and will refund your $80 as a voucher. You will have to contact the airline and demand it. Also all fees will be refunded to whatever source you used to pay them.”
Klutho originally filed his lawsuit in the St. Louis County Circuit Court, but the case has been moved to federal court as a class action, partly because the actual damages allegedly suffered by Klutho alone make an individual lawsuit impracticable.
The proposed Class are all individuals who paid for early boarding privileges as part of their purchase of Southwest Airlines tickets, then had their flights canceled, and were forced to pay a second time for early boarding when they rescheduled.
“Because Defendant’s representative stated that Defendant’s policy and procedure was to retain the first payment and require a second payment when a flight is canceled and rebooked, on information and belief, Defendant has been unjust[ly] enriched by many thousands of people for the last five years,” he argues.
The vast number of domestic and international flight cancellations resulting from coronavirus safety measures this spring may add significantly to the proposed class.
Klutho is demanding a jury trial, looking to get back the second set of early boarding fees he paid for his new Southwest Airlines tickets, at the very least.
He also is seeking an incentive award for his efforts bringing this class action, attorneys’ fees, punitive damages totaling five times the actual damages awarded, and “all other relief deemed just and proper.”
The plaintiff is represented by Robert Schultz of Schultz & Associates LLP.
The Southwest Airlines Class Action Lawsuit is Thomas J. Klutho v. Southwest Airlines Co., Case No. 4:20-cv-00672, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
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