United Class Action Says Airline Collects Trip Insurance Kickbacks

A class action lawsuit filed by a United customer alleges that the airline unlawfully receives kickbacks from the sale of trip insurance sold through its website, while leading consumers to believe that the trip insurance is entirely separate from United’s profits.

Plaintiff Patricia Flores says she purchased a trip insurance policy through United’s website, and received an email from the insurance provider, Travel Guard Group Inc., that attached her policy.

Flores claims that the email did not reference United Airlines at all, leading her to believe that her purchase of insurance was entirely separate from her purchase from United.

The United Airlines class action lawsuit alleges that United misleads its consumers into thinking that the sale of trip insurance advertised on its website, sold through Travel Guard Group, is a sale between a customer and a third party, and is made solely in the customer’s best interest.

The plaintiff says that nowhere on the website does United disclose to consumers that they receive kickbacks from the sale of insurance, increasing the company’s profits.

Allegedly, the marketing used on the site reinforces the idea that the trip insurance is in the customer’s best interest, hiding the fact that United is pushing the product.

Additionally, the United class action claims that customers are not able to simply ignore the travel insurance purchase option, because they have to select “yes” or “no” in response to the option to purchase insurance.

The United travel insurance kickbacks class action lawsuit says that some language that reinforces this idea on the website are statements like “Don’t miss out!” and if a customer does not purchase travel insurance, providing them an option saying “No, I don’t want to purchase this travel insurance. I understand that by declining coverage I may be responsible for all cancellation fees and delay expenses.”

Allegedly, United leads consumers to believe that all of their purchase cost is going to Travel Guard Group, not United.

However, the United trip insurance class action says the airline receives money from Travel Guard Group each time a customer purchases travel insurance from them through the United website.

The United travel insurance class action lawsuit says that United is acting illegally in receiving kickbacks from Travel Guard Group, because state laws prohibit organizations from selling insurance if they are not licensed to do so, and because United profits from the sale of the insurance advertised through their website, they are allegedly effectively selling insurance in violation of state laws.

Flores claims that she and other reasonable consumers would believe that United is complying with state law in advertising the insurance, and would believe that the sale of insurance was going to Travel Guard Group, and would have no way of determining otherwise while they made their purchase.

The United customer is represented by George A. Zelcs, Randall P. Ewing Jr., Stephen M. Tillery, and Aaron M. Zigler of Korein Tillery LLC, and by Scott B. Cosgrove, Alec H. Shultz, and John R. Byrne of León Cosgrove LLP.

The United Travel Insurance Kickbacks Class Action Lawsuit is Patricia Flores v. United Airlines, Case No. 1:18-cv-06571, in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois.