United, Delta and American patted themselves on the back for getting rid of $200 change fees. So why did they charge them in the first place?
For anyone who believes airlines ding passengers with gratuitous fees for no better reason than because they can, America’s biggest carriers have an answer.That appears to be the inescapable conclusion after United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines this week announced they’re permanently doing away with the whopping $200 fees they charged to change many bookings.
“Consumer advocates have told the airlines time and again that these fees are excessive, bear no relationship to actual costs, prey on consumers whose plans may change through no fault of their own, and serve to line the pockets of the airline industry at consumers’ expense,” said Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League.
“This is the nature of business and aviation,” she said. “During times of high demand, companies — in this case airlines — can and do place restrictions and fees on many actions that customers might want.”Part of the story here is that, for years, airlines have tried to mislead passengers into thinking fares are lower than they actually are.
To me, this week’s developments, while undeniably welcome for consumers, call into question not just the validity of other airline fees but also pricing transparency.I reached out to United, Delta and American to ask why we shouldn’t view their dropping of change fees as proof that the charge was never warranted. I asked why we shouldn’t be suspicious about the economic rationale for most other airline fees.
And don’t tell us these fees are gone for good when there’s nothing stopping you from bringing them back once the pandemic is over.
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