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Airlines strand and mistreat passengers
Kathleen Hanni and Catherine Ray were stranded for over nine hours without food, water, or working toilets. The two women were not lost in a desolate jungle or desert. They were paying customers forced to stay on a grounded American Airlines plane against their will. Their story reflects the ongoing mistreatment of passengers by the airline industry. Other problems include missed safety inspections, negligent and reckless operation of aircraft, misinformation, delays, and cancellations. (USA Today)
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2008-01-01-class-action_N.htm
Weitz & Luxenburg is one of the leading litigation law firms in the nation. We are here to provide you information about your consumer rights as an airline passenger.
Tormenting stranded passengers
The quality of air travel continues to deteriorate overall. Services and amenities have declined or disappeared, while prices continue to rise. Most of the airlines now require passengers to pay for any and all pieces of checked luggage. Meals are no longer guaranteed, even on extremely long flights.
Complaints filed by passengers with the Department of Transportation (DOT) have risen by 32 percent since 2009. Many travelers complained of being “tormented” by airlines when they were leftstranded for days until empty seats opened up after canceled flights or missed connections.
Kathie Grimes had been traveling to the Caribbean for more than 10 years. In all that time she had never before registered a complaint. She filed her first one with the DOT in 2010 after US Airways left her stranded in Barbados. The airline gave her little information. Instead of helping the frustrated customers, she said the company’s agents simply walked away from the airport counter. “This was horrendous,” said Grimes. “You couldn't get anyone to help you.” (Wall Street Journal)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703735804575536134256657378.html
The two women who were stuck on the American airlines flight for nine hours, Hanni and Ray, said that along with them, thousands of other passengers were affected when severe weather forced several flights to be diverted and stalled. After not being allowed to leave the plane, the passengers suffered from hunger, thirst, illness, emotional distress, and financial losses when American failed to provide food or water and empty the toilets.
Your rights
Hanni and Ray were so traumatized and upset by this experience that they sued American Airlines, and formed an organization called the Coalition for an Airline Passenger’s Bill of Rights. “We’re looking for justice for the passengers,” said Hanni.
This case is part of a growing public and congressional demand for stronger regulation of how airlines treat their customers. In 2008, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that forces airlines to provide essential needs to passengers, and a New York law went into effect which would penalize airlines for holding stranded fliers without food and water.
If you feel your rights as a paying customer have been violated, or that you have been wrongly mistreated by an airline, please do not hesitate to contact Weitz & Luxenburg immediately for a free consultation.
see also:
Stranded and mistreated by airlines
Airlines leave passengers stranded and then mistreat themPassengers stranded and mistreated by airlines
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