Federal Government Wants Bag Fees Refunded If Luggage Is Lost
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Should you have to pay a bag fee if you take a flight and your luggage doesn't? Passengers at Philadelphia International Airport seem quite pleased with new rules being considered by the government.
The Transportation Department wants to force airlines to refund bag fees if the passenger and the suitcase don't arrive together.
Tina Mazaheri of Doylestown, Pa. says this rule should have been in effect years ago.
"I think it's a wonderful idea," she said. "There needs to be accountability with the airlines, there hasn't been for years, and this is a wonderful idea. It's a good idea that they bear the burden of losing our luggage instead of saying we're very sorry for losing your luggage, now there's a consequence for them."
Major airlines, of course, are opposed to the new rules because they pocketed more than $3-billion in bag fees, all while losing or misplacing more than two million pieces of luggage.
Other changes the Transportation Department would like to see include penalty-free flight cancellations for customers within 24 hours of booking and increased payments for passengers who are bumped from a flight.
Reported by Kim Glovas, KYW Newsradio
