DOT CONSENT ORDERS
May 27, 2016
Air France, Lufthansa, and British Airways violations of 14 C.F.R. Part 382 failure to adequately respond to complaints filed by passengers with disabilities — Air France and Lufthansa were each fined $200,000 and British Airways was fined $150,000 for failure to adequately respond to complaints filed by passengers with disabilities. Under 14 C.F.R. Part 382, carriers are required to provide a written dispositive response to written complaints alleging a violation of the ACAA within 30 days of receipt. The consent orders are the result of several on-site regulatory compliance inspections of each airline conducted in 2012 and 2013 by DOT’s Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings. During these inspections, DOT reviewed a number of disability-related complaint files and found that, in many occasions, Air France, Lufthansa, and British Airways failed to provide dispositive responses to passenger complaints. In some cases, British Airways failed to include a summary of the facts, stating instead that the complaint would be forwarded to the relevant airport authority for response. British Airways also failed to inform complainants of their right to pursue enforcement action with DOT. Lufthansa similarly did not inform passengers of their right to pursue enforcement action with DOT and improperly referred passengers to an attachment titled “Travel Tips” that failed to include adequate information to assist passengers with disabilities to file complaints against Lufthansa with DOT. Air France systematically failed to respond to passengers with disabilities requests altogether, and for those to which it did reply, failed to summarize the facts of the complaint or systematically admit or deny the violation as required by Part 382.
SeaPort Airlines, Inc. (SeaPort) violations of 49 U.S.C. § 41734 and 14 CFR part 323 for terminating service without proper notice in the DOT Essential Air Service (EAS) Program — SeaPort was fined $30,000 for unlawful conduct related to its participation in the EAS Program and was ordered to cease and desist from future similar violations. Specifically, the carrier violated DOT rules and federal statutes by terminating service to Greenville, MS despite orders from DOT for SeaPort to maintain service until another carrier could begin service to those communities as required under the EAS. Program. Through the EAS program, carriers provide air transportation to communities that would not otherwise receive scheduled air service. DOT subsidizes those carriers through the program. The carrier has to provide 90 days advanced notice to the affected community, the appropriate state authority and DOT prior to ending, suspending or reducing service to the community. This gives the community and DOT the opportunity to find alternative providers in a timely manner. The notice requirement also gives interested parties the chance to file any objections to the change in service.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6665).
Share This Post
Author
