Proposed US rule would ban airlines from charging parents additional fees to sit with their children
The U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing a new rule that airlines ban of asking parents for more money to sit with their young children.
Under the proposal, released Thursday, U.S. and foreign airlines would have to seat children 13 or younger for free next to their parent or accompanying adult.
If adjacent seats are not available when a parent books a flight, airlines must offer families the choice of a full refund or waiting until a seat becomes available. If seats are not available before other passengers board, airlines must offer families the option of rebooking for free on the next flight with available adjacent seats.
The Biden administration estimates the rule could save a family of four up to $200 in round-trip seat fees.
“Flying with children is complicated enough without having to worry about this,” said the U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said.
Buttigieg pointed out that four airlines — Alaska, American, Frontier and JetBlue — already guarantee that children 13 and under can sit next to an accompanying adult for free.
Congress has authorized the Department of Transportation to propose a rule that would prohibit family seat charges as part of the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Actwhich President Joe Biden signed in May.
The legislation also imposes higher fines on airlines that violate consumer laws and requires the Department of Transportation to publish a “dashboard” so consumers can compare seat sizes across different airlines.
The Department will receive comments on the proposed family seating rule over the next 60 days before issuing a final rule.
Airlines are pushing back against the Biden administration’s campaign to abolish what they call ‘ nonsense costs.”
In April the government a definitive rule has been issued Airlines must automatically refund money for cancelled or delayed flights and better disclose baggage or cancellation fees.
Airlines have filed a lawsuit and earlier this week a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Court of Appeals heard a case temporarily blocked that line take effect, ruling that it “likely exceeds the agency’s authority.” The justices granted a request from airlines to halt the rule while their lawsuit plays out.
Asked whether the family seating rule would face the same fate, Buttigieg noted that the Department of Transportation also has the support of Congress, which approved the rule.
“We are confident that any rule we propose is well-founded by our authorities,” Buttigieg said during a conference call discussing the family seating rule.