This week, Frontier Airlines has been accused of unfair practices and will undergo an investigation from the US Department of Transportation. According to a letter from an Attorney General in Colorado penned yesterday, more than 100 complaints have been issued against the airline and its refund policy.
Frontier accused of unfair practices
The COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented, not only for its impact on daily life. It has also required airlines to rethink their strategies around refunds and vouchers to maximize their liquidity.
However, there is a fine line to tread between fair treatment, customer satisfaction, and the needs of carriers. Since the start of the pandemic, Frontier Airlines has had more than 100 complaints filed against it for unfair treatment.
It is thought that the airline is not abiding regulations issued by the Department of Transportation (DoT) regarding refunds and is acting outside of the interests of its customers. In a letter sent to the DoT on September 1st, Attorney General Phil Weiser has urged the organization to review Frontier’s behavior.
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Frontier unwilling to provide refunds
Under federal law, airlines have an obligation to issue full refunds to their customers, even when situations are outside of their control. The pandemic and worldwide shutdown of the air travel industry falls into this bracket. However, Frontier Airlines is indicted as unwilling to provide refunds.
Instead, it is issuing travel vouchers. This is now standard practice across the industry; however, Frontier’s travel vouchers are highly restrictive. Some customers with the airline have complained that they were given just 90 days to use their vouchers to rebook an alternative travel date.
While some customers were happy with this agreement, they were unable to book future travel due to an unresponsive website. When they called Frontier Airlines, they were disconnected before the issue was resolved, if they got through in the first place.
To remedy the issue, Frontier offered passengers the opportunity to extend their 90-day voucher. However, complaints suggest that this was not a realistic option. Furthermore, if customers did book tickets with the airline for a lower value than their initial voucher, they were not given a credit note for the remaining amount.
Weighing up these accusations, Phil Weiser penned in his letter that,
“After reviewing more than one hundred consumer complaints from consumers in Colorado and 29 other states in the past six months, my office has reason to believe Frontier violated […] USDOT regulations by engaging in various practices that cause consumers financial and psychological harm and meet the USDOT’s criteria for being ‘unfair’ or ‘deceptive.’”
Should Frontier offer full refunds?
Despite federal law stating that airlines should offer refunds, they don’t have to. So long as a customer is willing to accept a travel voucher, the airline is covered.
Therefore, Frontier Airlines should not feel compelled to give out refunds. However, how it issues travel vouchers should certainly be examined. In delicate situations like these, there is a right and wrong way to approach travel amendments and cancelations.
That said, though Frontier shouldn’t feel obliged to issue refunds, financially, it should be able to. Frontier Airlines received a portion of a $25bn loan set out by the Trump Administration for the airline industry. That money was supposed to help facilitate refunds. Instead, it could be used by Frontier to pay refund penalties, which come in at up to $2,500 per offense.
Do you agree with how Frontier Airlines has handled its refunds? Do you have a personal story to tell on this issue? Let us know in the comments.