PHOENIX — If you had an issue with a flight last year, you are far from alone.
According to a new report from the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), complaints against airlines were up nearly 9% in 2024.
"Well, you might say, 'Oh gosh, maybe more people were traveling' - Nope. That wasn't it. The number of passengers was only up by about 4%," Teresa Murray, one of the authors of the report, explained.
She says many of those complaints likely came from flight cancellations and delays, which rose in 2024 after seeing some improvements the year before.
"When you're just talking percentage points, it amounted to 1.7 million cancellations and delays in 2024. So, if you were on one of those flights. It was not a good day," Murray added.
The area that saw one of the biggest jumps for complaints was tarmac delays of three hours or more on domestic flights.
"A lot of times, what we've seen with these just outrageous tarmac delays is it gets to the 3-hour, 3 and a half, 4-hour mark, and they're stuck on the plane, and they may or may not have air conditioning, and they may not have access to food. If they're lucky, maybe the flight attendants are passing out water," said Murray.
The Plane Truth also found that certain airlines were much worse than others when it came to issues for travelers.
"Frontier's complaint ratio was twice as high as the next airline, which was Spirit," Murray added.
There were some areas of improvement.
"Mishandled bags and damaged wheelchairs and scooters, those percentages went down a little bit. So, they improved a little bit. So, that's good," said Murray.
The number of people involuntarily bumped from their flights also dropped slightly.
If you have an issue with a flight and you can't get a resolution from the airline, you can file a complaint with the Department of Transportation.
Whether it’s lost luggage, canceled flights, or endless delay, they’re aren’t just frustrating, they’re often mishandled. Good news, passengers have more rights than they realize.
Teresa Murray said, “Passengers have rights if they’re without their bags, say overnight, they can get reimbursed for toiletries, change of clothes, that sort of thing.” Murray added, “If you have a domestic flight and your bag doesn’t get there for 12 hours or more after you do you are entitled at the very least the baggage fee that you paid.”
Murray said based on new federal laws if a traveler experiences their luggage is lost, damaged, or crushed, they are entitled to reimbursement up to $4,700.
Make sure you have photos and/or write down the contents of your luggage.
Also under law, there is no maximum liability for any kind of assistive device, for example, wheelchairs, scooters, even C-PAP machines. “So, if your wheelchair costs $20,000 and they ruined it, then they are on the hook for $20,000.
And they have to provide you with a loaner if your assistive device needs repair.”
Traveler complained about being stuck on airplane for hours during tarmac delays. Murray said the airline must provide medical assistance for travelers if necessary and must always provide access a bathroom.
“Once you get to an hour, you get this, two hours you have to have access to food. After three hours, you have to be offered the right to get off the plane, and if you’re not that’s a problem,” said Murray.
Travel Tips to Remember:
- Download the airlines app ahead of time, this will help you keep track of updates.
- Put a tracking device (i.e. air tags, Tile) in your luggage. At leas you can find it, when the airline can’t.
- Pay attention to text and emails changes from airlines.
Murray added, “It’s important to know you have those rights so that if something happens, you’re like oh okay, wait a minute. I just got bumped involuntarily from this flight. What are my rights?”
If you are looking for more air travel tips, check out PIRG’s article: Before you Book That Next Airline Flight Here are Some Pointers.
Want to understand your flight rights? Visit flightrights.gov
If you have a consumer problem, we want to hear from you! Email Consumer@ABC15.com.
