Did you book a domestic flight between July 1, 2011 and June 14, 2018?
Was the flight with Southwest, United, American, Delta, Continental, or US Airways?
Keep reading!
Somebody’s bringing the hammer down on domestic airlines…
A class action lawsuit was brought against the domestic air carriers listed above, claiming that “the four largest U.S. carriers along with Continental Airlines and US Airways conspired to increase fares on domestic flights.” The case is being handled by Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy LLP and Hausfeld, LLP based out of San Fransisco. You can read the full litigation notices and documentation here (English, Spanish, and French options available).
So you’re telling me I’ll get free money?
Well, not really, no.
Class action settlements occur when a corporation agrees to “settle” a class action lawsuit, typically by paying out a certain amount of money. The total amount paid out is capped by the settlement agreement, and then each claimee gets their share of the money. The amount each person receives is inversely proportional to the number of people involved. Usually, attorney’s fees, expenses, etc. are also taken out of the pool prior to payout.
So theoretically, you’re getting back money that you previously paid to a corporation, when you shouldn’t have had to pay that money. In this case, the class action suit contends that you paid more than you had to, because the airlines conspired to increase your fare. So, the offending corporation should pay back what they owe to consumers.
What’s interesting about this class action settlement?
Well, there’s a few reasons:
- Only American and Southwest have agreed to settle, for $45 million and $15 million respectively. I’m assuming US Airways is included in the American settlement, but I’m unsure. This means that the lawsuit is still ongoing with United, Delta, and Continental. If you like drama, take a look at this section of the letter – “Southwest…and American…have agreed to provide certain cooperation in the ongoing litigation against the Non-Settling Defendants.”
- The time period for claims is so long! July 1st, 2011 to June 14th, 2018 gives us almost a full 7 years of flights to include! If you’re here reading PWaC, I’m going to assume that you fly. At least occasionally.
Neither American Airlines nor Southwest have admitted any wrongdoing (common in class action settlements), and are only paying the settlement to “avoid the burden and expense of litigation.”
(SEE ALSO: Why Aer Lingus is Paying me $1306)
If you’d like to sue American or Southwest on your own, and be excluded from the settlement, you must opt out of the settlement by January 4th, 2019. It looks like we won’t hear much more until March 22nd of next year, when the court holds a hearing to determine approval of the settlement.
I received the below in an email from AwardWallet this morning (note, AwardWallet is not suing the airlines, they simply forwarded me an email sent to one of my frequent flyer account emails):
(Need AwardWallet? Apply here with our referral link!)
You can find out more about the litigation process here, and sign up to receive future communication here.
I don’t anticipate the settlement to be worth much to individual fliers (they rarely are). BUT a little extra money in my pocket, and a little more corporate accountability in the states is always a good thing!
How many flights did you book between July 2011 and June 2018? Let’s keep a tally in the comments!
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
Booked at least 2 revenue RT flights and 4 flights on points.
So, AA’s payment was $45 million, and in that time, they carried about 1.4 billion passengers…don’t spend that settlement check all in one place!
You forgot to back out lawyer fees 😉
So, mathematically, that comes out to something like 3.7 cents per person. My math sucks, but I think that’s right.
At least 30 flights during that period, should be worth about $4.58 settlement to me. Unfortunately many were on Hawaiian air
I’m somewhere around 50 flights for that time period, I’ll be able to buy a whole bottle of soda with the money!
I’ve flown more than a 100 segments with Delta and about 10 with American Airlines. Is there an easy way to export the trips other than manually going through emails of reservations? I have 96 reservations in total lol (and most with layovers)
This will probably end up being cents per person if we all claim all our flights.
You’re right – the more people that sign up, the less we all will get. Why did I post this to advertise to more people?!!?!? 😀
I would like to participate in the lawsuit settlement
Hi Marion, you’ll have to go to the settlement page and sign up for more information, PWaC doesn’t have any connection with the actual settlement. Here’s hoping we all get more than a few pennies! https://domesticairclass.com/Registration-Form?portalid=0
somewhere near 150 flights in that time period
I want to be included in the lawsuit
Hi Janet, you’ll have to register for more information at the lawsuit’s website. We don’t have any connection to the lawsuit, just reporting on it. Good luck!
https://domesticairclass.com/Registration-Form?portalid=0
It probably will not be cash, but rather travel vouchers that lowers the value. No skin off the airlines in this lawsuit. The attorneys will receive cash.
Of course they all conspire to price gouge, they continue to do so. I booked a bunch of flights and noticed that price pattern all airlines increase the prices at the same exact time, I was angry but cant do anything about it. Fed needs to step in and price cap these ******* to the point where they can be branded as “non-profit organizations”.
I think there’s validity in price changing due to a fluctuating market – as with all goods and services. BUT sometimes it seems totally unfair, interested to see how the lawsuit plays out, though I doubt it will be a force for any lasting change in the industry.
I was a road warrior. I am a million miler on United. Several hundred.
17 flights that were paid for (not booked with points): 1 with American, 9 with Southwest and 7 that don’t count with Spirit. I’ll try not to spend the windfall all in one place. 😉
Maybe 200 flights.
I have 10 flights in that time period
PLEASE EMAIL ME ANY INFORMATION
Hi Regina, you’ll have to check out their site for the information – PWaC isn’t affiliated with the lawsuit at all, we just wanted to get the word out to our readers!
https://domesticairclass.com/Registration-Form?portalid=0
Why did they send me the postcard when I was not even living in the USA during the entire period covered by the settlement. There is no possible way I could have purchased any airline tickets from any of the airlines.
I contacted the airlines, and they had no record of any flights purchased in my name. I contacted the class administrator (Rust Consulting). They could not supply me with the name of the airline that I had allegedly flew with.