Capitalizing on the timing of the busy holiday travel season, Sen. Mary Landrieu has introduced legislation to protect travelers from having to pay excessive fees for checked baggage. The Airline Passenger BASICS—or Basic Airline Standards to Improve Customer Satisfaction—Act would require airlines to allow passengers one checked and one carry-on bag for free. Landrieu says she’ll also introduce the Fair Airline Industry Revenue (FAIR) Act to impose additional fees on airlines that do not comply. “Passengers have been nickeled and dimed for far too long, and something has to be done about it,” says Landrieu in a prepared statement. “Air carriers should be required to provide a minimum standard of service to their passengers or face additional fees—that is what the Airline Passenger BASICS Act and the FAIR Act will do.” In 2008 and 2009, Landrieu says, airlines collected $4 billion in change/cancellation fees and $3.9 billion in checked baggage fees.
Today’s poll question: Do you think the government should regulate fees charged for airline services such as checked baggage?
