Miami - Spirit Airlines Sued In Fla. Over Passenger Fee |
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Photo Credit: APMiami - Low-cost Spirit Airlines is being sued in South Florida over a passenger fee the lawsuit claims is deceptive.
The lawsuit was filed in Miami federal court on behalf of a New Jersey man who paid a $16 passenger usage fee when he bought a Spirit ticket in March 2011. The lawsuit seeks class-action status to represent thousands of passengers who also paid the fee.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys say the fee has no real value and that Spirit has misrepresented it as supposedly required or sanctioned by the government.
Spirit has said the fee is used to cover ticket distribution costs. A company spokeswoman said Wednesday that the lawsuit is without merit and that Spirit will defend itself in court.
Spirit offers low fares but also charges a variety of extra fees.
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Read Comments (9) — Post Yours »
1
Aug 08, 2012 at 06:23 PM FmrBklynKid Says:Report as Inappropriate
They burned me once with their ridiculous fees. I will NEVER fly that airline again. That is the way to fix this problem. If nobody ever used them, they'd get the message. With a class action suit, only the lawyers get rich. The passenger suing will wind up with some useless voucher worth $10 - if he ever flys again on that airline within a year.
2
Aug 08, 2012 at 09:05 PM MTL Says:Report as Inappropriate
Good luck.
A few years ago, my daughter's luggage was delayed on a stopover from Vegas to NY where we were meeting for a wedding (we live in Canada). She arrived on the day of the wedding. 1st we were told it would take a few hours, then 24 hrs and she only had her clothes from the trip & running shoes. After a while, we went to buy her clothes for what would in the end be 5 days, including wedding clothes & shoes. The whole time we went to the airport multiple times to check and we made phone calls all day.
We finally got the luggage delivered 5 days later to Canada (amazingly enough).
We filed a complaint, sending copies of her boarding pass, luggage ticket and bills for the clothes and even the wedding invitation hiliting the date. They answered telling us they wouldn't honor the claim. We wrote back telling them NY wasn't even her home & she had no clothes for the 5 days her luggage was gone (she was coming from a year on shlichus, so she was carrying ALL her clothes).
I still have the receipts, letters & faxes I sent. With no answer. All this took over a year until I finally gave up.
3
Aug 08, 2012 at 11:28 PM Crazykanoiy Says:Report as Inappropriate
Even with all their fees, they still provide the cheapest fare of any Airline by far. For many large frum families living in South Florida Spirit provides the only financially viable way of flying. If you pack smartly and show up to the airport on time you will save a bundle.
4
Aug 08, 2012 at 11:40 PM Anonymous Says:Report as Inappropriate
“ Good luck.
A few years ago, my daughter's luggage was delayed on a stopover from Vegas to NY where we were meeting for a wedding (we live in Canada). She arrived on the day of the wedding. 1st we were told it would take a few hours, then 24 hrs and she only had her clothes from the trip & running shoes. After a while, we went to buy her clothes for what would in the end be 5 days, including wedding clothes & shoes. The whole time we went to the airport multiple times to check and we made phone calls all day.
We finally got the luggage delivered 5 days later to Canada (amazingly enough).
We filed a complaint, sending copies of her boarding pass, luggage ticket and bills for the clothes and even the wedding invitation hiliting the date. They answered telling us they wouldn't honor the claim. We wrote back telling them NY wasn't even her home & she had no clothes for the 5 days her luggage was gone (she was coming from a year on shlichus, so she was carrying ALL her clothes).
I still have the receipts, letters & faxes I sent. With no answer. All this took over a year until I finally gave up. ”
Your last line tells the story, with most airlines actually. They drag things out, hoping the customer will get tired and give up. Airlines are all the same, Spirit being one of the worst. I wouldn't fly with them if I had to pay double elsewhere! The are not cheaper at all. When you figure in all the fees, you end up paying more than with other, much better, airlines.
5
Aug 08, 2012 at 11:42 PM Pipk11 Says:Report as Inappropriate
So maybe now you understand that when the airline makes a mistake it's tough luck on them. Farshtei?
6
Aug 09, 2012 at 10:39 AM Anonymous Says:Report as Inappropriate
“ They burned me once with their ridiculous fees. I will NEVER fly that airline again. That is the way to fix this problem. If nobody ever used them, they'd get the message. With a class action suit, only the lawyers get rich. The passenger suing will wind up with some useless voucher worth $10 - if he ever flys again on that airline within a year. ”
Spirit is definitely out to get our money. when we flew down to Florida, they charged me nearly to 100 dollars for my luggage weight. being 2 hours before departure I still have plenty of time, I wanted to open up my luggage and to distribute it so it will not be overweight 1 over another, they did not allow me in the name of security! Spirit is out to get our money and they use cheaper air fare prices as a method to trick the consumers in and make money, airlines make their money out of the up front air fare charge, they make it on the side feeS! Nobody could tell me otherwise!
7
Aug 09, 2012 at 10:39 AM MTL Says:Report as Inappropriate
“ Your last line tells the story, with most airlines actually. They drag things out, hoping the customer will get tired and give up. Airlines are all the same, Spirit being one of the worst. I wouldn't fly with them if I had to pay double elsewhere! The are not cheaper at all. When you figure in all the fees, you end up paying more than with other, much better, airlines. ”
The downside of this is that we live in Canada & have no resources in the US to pursue this. This also happened to another child on United. They reimbursed him $50 for the clothes and accessories he had to buy for the 24 hours he was without.
We have, however, talked many people out of booking with Spirit. It's the least we could do.
8
Aug 09, 2012 at 01:34 PM MRW-S Says:Report as Inappropriate
Plus they charge you $3 for water!! come on!!!! And they arnt extremely cheaper, with all the carry on fees, luggage fees, refreshment fees, ect. You pay more!! They dont have the decency of giving out water, which you cant take on the plane anyway cuz they take away your drinks at security.
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Aug 09, 2012 at 04:56 PM ShmuelG Says:Report as Inappropriate
I used them twice, to Miami and to Managua, and both times they were much, much cheaper then other airlines (with the exception of Southwest), even with all the fees added. And the service was no better and no worse than most. So I would use them more, but from Baltimore they don't fly directly to almost any place I need to go, and I don't like transfers, would pay extra (within reason) to get on a direct flight.