In late April, we wrote about the US Department of Transportation (DOT) finalizing a rule requiring automatic refunds of airline tickets and ancillary services fees under certain circumstances. At that time, the DOT forecasted additional passenger-friendly rules on the horizon, including ways to guarantee that parents can sit with their children on flights at no extra cost. On August 1, 2024, the DOT announced a proposed rule which intends to accomplish exactly that. 

Indeed, the DOT’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would: 

1. Ban family seating fees to assign seats (age 13 or under) next to their parent or accompanying adult.
2. Require airlines to seat parents next to their young children for free within 48 hours of booking when adjacent seats are available. 
3. Mandate refunds, free rebooking, and other options when adjacent family seating is unavailable.
4. Require airlines to disclose to passengers that they have a right to fee-free family seating. 
5. Impose penalties against airlines who are in violation of these rules. 

Several commercial airliners already comply with some, or all, of the rules enumerated in the NPRM via their own internal policies. But those who do not, need to. And it is important to note that the new rule applies to all classes of service. There are a handful of additional nuances and complexities in the NPRM that we can counsel you on. 

Through this Administration, the advancement and expansion of airline passenger rights continues. With that comes significant burdens and challenges to airlines. Airlines have needed to swiftly change certain policies to comply with DOT’s new mandates, which has challenged airlines’ uninterrupted and efficient service to passengers. With this ban on family seating fees, some airlines will again need to quickly implement new policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the proposed rule, or otherwise risk the imposition of penalties.