Skiplagged seeks dismissal of American Airlines lawsuit over ‘unauthorized’ sales

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Update:

• Skiplagged, an online travel agency and metasearch engine, asked a federal court in Texas to dismiss claims it sold American Airlines tickets without authorization. 
• American Airlines accused Skiplagged of pretending to be an authorized agent of the airline when selling tickets on its website despite not having signed an agency agreement.
• Skiplagged argues Texas has no jurisdiction over the “incendiary” claims, which include breach of contract, copyright infringement and trademark infringement. 
• The company asked that, in lieu of being dismissed, the complaint be transferred to the state of New York.

American Airlines lawsuit overview: 

• Who: Plaintiff American Airlines Inc. filed a lawsuit against Skiplagged Inc.  
• Why: The airline filed the lawsuit against Skiplagged for selling American tickets without being an authorized agent of American.
• Where: The American Airlines lawsuit was filed in federal court in Texas.

(Aug. 23, 2023)

American Airlines Inc. filed a lawsuit against Skiplagged Inc. for selling American Airlines tickets without being an authorized agent.

Skiplagged has never been authorized as an agent for American and the tickets sold by Skiplagged can thus be immediately invalidated, the lawsuit says.

“Skiplagged is not, and never has been, an authorized agent of American,” the lawsuit says. “It is a middle-man improperly inserting itself between American and flight consumers. It employs unauthorized and deceptive ticketing practices, entices consumers to participate in those deceptive practices by promising savings, and then doesn’t deliver. Instead, Skiplagged often charges consumers more than if they had booked a ticket directly with American or through an authorized agent of American.”

Skiplagged touts discounts but charges more than American Airlines

While Skiplagged lets the consumer believe they are getting a deal on the ticket by using its website, many of the prices are higher than on the American website, the Skiplagged lawsuit claims.

Skiplagged attempts to hide that it sold the American Airlines tickets and tells consumers to do the same, the American Airlines lawsuit claims. Skiplagged is then accused of tortious interference, breach of the AA.com terms of use, trademark infringement, copyright infringement and other violations in the Skiplagged lawsuit.

American Airlines is asking for a permanent injunction against Skiplagged selling American Airlines tickets along with damages and a full accounting of all American Airlines tickets sold by Skiplagged.

American recently filed a lawsuit against Kiwi for selling American Airlines tickets without being an authorized agent. Kiwi was an American agent with the authority to sell American tickets between 2018-2020, but American discontinued that agreement after it says Kiwi violated the agreement terms.

Have you ever used Skiplagged to book a flight? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Dee J. Kelly Jr., Lars L. Berg, Tyson Lies and Julia G. Wisenberg of Kelly Hart and Hallman LLP along with Bina Palnitkar and Nathan J. Muyskens of Greenberg Traurig LLP.

The American Airlines lawsuit is American Airlines Inc. v. Skiplagged Inc., Case No. 4:23-cv-00860-P, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas Fort Worth Division.

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