New Rules Give Airline Customers Rights | Dallas, Texas Personal Injury Attorney Blog

The Department of Transportation on Monday announced new rules that give the traveling public some rights in the event of extended delays. The new rules prohibit U.S. aircraft on domestic routes from remaining on a tarmac for more than three hours with travelers aboard. In addition, once the new rule takes effect, airlines will also be required to provide adequate food and water for passengers within two hours of their plane being delayed on the tarmac, and to maintain operable restrooms and provide medical attention if necessary.

These new Rules will take effect 120 days from the date of its publication in the Federal Register, the publication date is anticipated to be before end of the 2009 calendar year, making the Rules effective approximately June 1, 2010.

There will be some exceptions to the new three-hour rule. For example, the airline can keep passengers on the plane for more than 3 hours for safety and security reasons or if air traffic controllers advise a pilot that returning to the terminal would disrupt airport operations. Likewise, U.S. airlines operating international flights departing from or arriving in the United States “must specify, in advance, their own time limits for deplaning passengers, with the same exceptions applicable.”.

According to the DOT, the new Rules also:

• Prohibit airlines from scheduling “chronically delayed” flights. Those who do may face enforcement action from the department for “unfair and deceptive practices.”
• Require airlines to designate an employee to monitor the effects of flight delays and cancellation, respond “in a timely and substantive fashion” to consumer complaints and give consumers information on where to file complaints.
• Require airlines to display flight delay information on their Web sites for each domestic flight operated.
• Require airlines to adopt customer service plans and monitor compliance.
• Prohibit airlines from retroactively applying material changes that could negatively affect consumers who have already purchased tickets.

In addition to these passenger friendly rule changes, the DOT announced that it plans to “begin another rulemaking process designed to further strengthen protections for air travelers.”

Areas under consideration include requiring airlines to:

• submit contingency plans for lengthy tarmac delays to the DOT for review and approval;
• disclose baggage fees;
• report additional tarmac delay data; and
• strengthen requirements that airline ads disclose the full fare consumers pay for tickets.

In short, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood commented that “Airline passengers have rights, and these new rules will require airlines to live up to their obligation to treat their customers fairly.”

The airline industry has responded to the new Rules with mixed reviews. Robert Crandall, former chairman and chief executive of American Airlines, who spoke in September at hearings in support of the three-hour limit. Meanwhile, James May, president and CEO of the Air Transport Association, commented, “We will comply with the new rule even though we believe it will lead to unintended consequences — more canceled flights and greater passenger inconvenience.”

Hopefully, you will never encounter a lengthy delay in your travels, but if you do, it is nice to know that in the future you will have some rights to basic needs.