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Three travel agencies fined for code-share violations
The U.S. Department of Transportation last week fined three travel agencies and one airline for practices that misled or cheated consumers.
Before taking off for the long holiday weekend it cited Liberty Travel, STA Travel and AAA Mid-Atlantic for not disclosing the use of code-sharing flights to consumers.
Then on Friday it cited United Airlines for failing to pay refunds promptly and for inaccurately reporting the lost baggage, overbooking, and injuries to pets it was carrying.
DOT said that while airlines are required to process refunds within seven days, United between March and May of 2012 failed to process 9,000 refund requests in a timely manner.
As far as the travel agencies, DOT’s Aviation Enforcement Office made a number of telephone calls during January and February of 2013 asking about booking certain flights.
The agency said its agents were not told that the flights were not operated by the carrier whose designator code appeared, but rather were code-share arrangements operated by a different airline.
It fined Liberty Travel $100,000, and the other two travel agencies $40,000.
DOT on May 23 fined JTB USA $60,000 for similar code-share violations.
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