Airlines could soon be banned from charging fees for seating families together

The Biden management has projected a norm to prohibition further fees for seating family members together connected planes. Here, a Delta Air Lines level leaves nan gross connected July 12, 2021, astatine Logan International Airport successful Boston. (Michael Dwyer/AP)

The U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing a prohibition connected airlines’ “junk fees” for seating families together, successful an effort to little nan costs of flying pinch young children.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard told reporters connected a Wednesday telephone that nan caller norm could prevention families hundreds of dollars per round-trip flight.

“The thought that parents ought to beryllium seated adjacent to their ain children connected a formation is communal consciousness and besides seems for illustration thing that ought to beryllium modular practice,” Buttigieg said.

“As personification who has personally knowledgeable flying pinch toddlers — arsenic my hubby and I person taken our 2-year-old twins connected trips galore times — families don’t request immoderate further stresses aliases costs for flying, connected apical of really demanding it tin beryllium to beryllium a genitor flying pinch your kids,” he said.

The caller proposal, if approved, would use to families walking pinch children aged 13 aliases younger. Upon booking a flight, whether online aliases via phone, children’s ages would beryllium noted, and airlines would person to supply adjacent seating wrong 48 hours of summons purchase.

If adjacent seats weren’t available, airlines would beryllium compelled to connection nan walking families a afloat refund aliases nan action to hold for adjacent seats to go available.

If nary seats were disposable astatine nan clip of travel, families would beryllium eligible to rebook connected nan adjacent disposable flight, free of charge.

“This is portion of nan bigger image of nan Biden-Harris administration’s activity to protect nan authorities of consumers, including hose passengers. And this has been accordant since Day 1,” Buttigieg said.

He said that because of caller rules implemented nether nan Biden management to amended protect hose customers, astir $4 cardinal had been refunded aliases reimbursed to passengers and that this would beryllium nan latest measurement to support much money successful Americans’ pockets.

Some airlines — including Alaska, American, Frontier and JetBlue — person already voluntarily eliminated these fees pursuing a 2023 State of nan Union entreaty from President Biden to Congress to prohibition further charges for family seating.