Attention All Passengers Read Online Free Page A

consumer complaints are often
triggered by a flight delay. Burbank recalled years ago consulting an airline
cabin seating expert who noted the correlation between delays and overall
customer satisfaction: “If the flight was late, then the coffee was cold, the
flight attendants were mean, and the seats were uncomfortable. You’re already so
harried when there’s a delay.” (By the way, in 2009 I examined flight times for
USA Today.com and discovered that it now takes longer to fly on many routes
throughout the United States because flight times have been padded by as much as
a half hour.)
    On the positive side, Burbank sees fewer complaints
about Southwest and JetBlue. Perhaps not coincidentally, those are the only
large U.S. carriers not charging for first checked bags (the second bag on
Southwest is gratis as well). For the record, the DOT’s consumer complaint
rankings for 2010 found Southwest ranked first among the nation’s eighteen
largest carriers, while JetBlue ranked thirteenth, demonstrating it has a long
way to go in emulating Southwest. In addition, since the DOT began keeping
records in 1987, Southwest has led all other domestic carriers with the best
on-time performance record and the fewest passenger complaints.
    Suing an Airline Is Usually Not
an Option
    The general rule is that you can’t sue a
U.S. airline in state or local courts because the airline business is one of a
handful of industries that have been given federal preemption. However, there
are exceptions. The DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection Division even provides an
online manual titled “Tell It to the Judge: A Consumer’s Guide to Small Claims
Courts.” The DOT cites examples of situations in which you might consider using
such a court; of course, in all cases the key factor is the amount of the claim
being filed, since there are limits on monetary damages.
    Attorney Al Anolik also recommends this more
proactive course for passengers who have been wronged by domestic airlines. In
fact, a large part of his practice involves litigating such cases, often
handling ten or twelve cases in one morning. Anolik explains that small claims
courts have more liberal rules for admitting cases, which can work in consumers’
favor. What’s more, airlines have a duty to mitigate, so they can’t ignore such
filings.
    Anolik clearly has done okay by leading such fights
as one of the nation’s most knowledgeable travel attorneys. His beautiful home
offers a spectacular panorama of San Francisco Bay that encompasses both the
Golden Gate and Bay bridges, a view shared by neighbors Andre Agassi and Steffi
Graf. I asked him if I am wrong in concluding the major airlines have gone out
of their way to confuse customers by intentionally muddying their contracts of
carriage, those vital documents that spell out exactly what passengers can
expect. Anolik laughed and said, “The contracts of carriage definitely have been
tightened up. Very little in the contracts gives you a right, but they will
mention the rights they’re taking away.” He added, “Every time the airlines get
hit with a lawsuit they fill in a loophole. If there is a new cockamamie charge
and it is not on the contract of carriage, they put it in.” What’s more, Anolik
noted that these exemption lists keep growing, even though the DOT ordered a
moratorium on such exemptions. His blunt assessment: “It’s fraud.”
    These contracts spell out what an airline will do
if you are bumped, or your flight is delayed or canceled. And what we found
after studying the issue at Consumer Reports is that
over the last decade these documents have become murkier, as plain English has
been replaced with legalese. And a term such as “the airline shall” has been
supplanted by “the airline may” instead.
    In theory, U.S. airlines are supposed to
prominently post these contracts on their websites, but good luck in