The massive penalty is 25 times larger than any previous penalty against an airline for such violations.
After years of stimulate promises and pace onward to improve the flying experience forpassengers with disabilities , the Department of Transportation has sent one of its stiff messages yet to airlines that transgress disability ordinance . On October 23 , it was announced that American Airlines welcome a $ 50 million punishment for violating recent laws put in place to protect airline rider with disability .
“ We believe today ’s action sends a clear content to the airline business industry that they involve to improve their surgical process and their compliance with the law to assure that all passenger can fly with the dignity , respect , and prophylactic that they both merit , and are entitled to under the natural law of our country , ” Transit Secretary Pete Buttigeig said in a unopen doorway pressing briefing .
Under Buttigieg , the DOT has authorise and proposed numerous rules and laws get at protecting rider with disablement . In 2022 , the DOT publish aBill of Rights for Disabled Air Travelers , and before this yr , a formula was proposed that would make airlinespay for damaged wheelchair .
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In penalizing American Airlines such a big sum , the DOT is convey that it will be extremely expensive to go along mistreating passenger with disabilities , specially passengers who utilize mobility assistive devices such as wheelchairs .
During the DOT investigation of American Airlines , complaint file with the department included allegations of :
The investigating also revealed that between 2019 and 2023 , the major carrier was one of the worst performing airlines in terms of both the full routine and rate of wheelchair and scooter mishandling claims .
While American is being fine now , they are n’t the only guilty air hose . It is an industry - wide issue . In DOT data published in 2023 , American was not even the mostegregious offender . Frontier , Spirit , JetBlue , and Alaska allranked worseat one point or another than American for mishandling wheelchair . Blane Workie , Assistant General Counsel for the Office of Aviation Consumer Protection , say American “ has the second highest mishandling rate , and it has the second high issue of reported mishandlings each class . ”
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In annunciate the penalty for American Airlines , the DOT also announced it had investigation into other US airlines . The penalization for American airlines will be “ the fresh standard for enforcement , ” when it comes to plunder these regularization . Deputy General Counsel Brian Stansbury declined to notice on which other airlines are currently under investigation .
“ I can say that this is the beginning of convey a new level of rigorousness and a young level of penalties to these types of violation , " Stansbury said about the enforcement . “ There are other active investigation underway at this time , and we would advise that those will be resolved in a manner more similar to this penalty , as opposed to some of the anterior penalisation . ”
The fresh penalty really is no jest : American will pay a $ 25 million mulct towards the US treasury . The other $ 25 million will be credited towards American ’s investment into the following :
The biggest caveat to the penalty is that if American does not spend the $ 25 million on the outlined items above , the airway will be fined an additional $ 25 million that will need to be give to the US treasury .
Still , it is unclear whether the scourge of expectant fines will be a sufficient motivator for airlines to improve the long - insufficient treatment of passengers with disability . “ We are proud of the historical work we ’re doing to make air travel more accessible and more honest , ” Butteig said . “ We also recognize that there is a lot more oeuvre to do . ”
