The US Department of Transportation has cracked down on six airlines, demanding they refund more than US$600m (R10,21bn) altogether to travellers whose flights were cancelled or significantly delayed since the onset of the global pandemic. The same airlines have also been fined more than US$7m (R119,2m) altogether for delaying the paying back of customers’ refunds.
TAP Portugal will refund US$126,5m (R2,15bn) and pay a US$1,1m (R18,7m) fine, Air India will refund US$121,5m (R2,07bn) and pay a US$1,4m (R23,8m) fine, and Aeromexico will refund US$13,6m (R231,5m) and pay a US$900 000 (R15,3m) fine.
El Al will refund US$61,9m (R1,05bn) and pay a US$900 000 (R15,3m) fine, and Avianca will refund US$76,8m (R1,3bn) and pay a US$750 000 (R12,8m) fine.
Frontier Airlines, however, faces paying back US$222m (R3,78bn) and a penalty of US$2,2m (R37,5m).
“When Americans buy a ticket on an airline, we expect to get to our destination safely, reliably and affordably, and our job at DOT is to hold airlines accountable for these expectations,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says.
Frontier Spokesperson Jennifer de la Cruz says the airline had already issued nearly US$100m in refunds, including to people with non-refundable tickets who cancelled on their own and were not entitled to refunds under federal law.
“We have more enforcement actions and investigations underway and there may be more news to come by way of fines,” Buttigieg adds.
