Travelers who enjoy flying on cheap airplane tickets or purchasing cheap vacation packages sometimes find airlines policies are less than customer friendly when there is a problem. The Department of Transportation recently issued a new set of rules to better protect traveler rights.
The new rules required the airlines to do the following:
Refund baggage fees for lost bags. Fees will not be refunded for delayed bags.
Fully disclose all fees on websites. Currently most airlines list their fees, but often those fees are difficult to find.
Increase involuntary bumping payment. The new maximum payment will be $1,300.
Observe the extended runway delay rule on international flights. Airlines must allow passengers on international flights the right to return to the terminal vs. sitting on a runway for over 4 hours or face punitive financial penalties.
Include taxes in all advertised ticket prices.
One of fliers major complaints was left unaddressed by the new rule changes. Customers sometimes purchase a ticket well in advance only to be told shortly before their departure time that the airline no longer flies that route. Sometimes the late notice results in customers having to pay far more for a replacement ticket. Other fliers have experienced the situation where they purchased a nonstop flight only to ultimately be put on a flight making two connections at the originally agreed to price.
Yet another problem sometimes faced by fliers is when a flight is canceled and the traveler has prior land commitments that are non-refundable. In such cases customers often have to pay for additional hotel stays at their own expense.
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