OAG solicits consumer complaints vs airlines

The Office of the Attorney General announced yesterday that it is soliciting consumer protection complaints regarding airline companies to forward to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Any consumer protection complaints involving the airlines must be provided to the Office of the Attorney General no later than Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014.

The Office of the Attorney General has recently received several consumer protection complaints involving airline companies. These complaints are serious and warrant investigation. However, the U.S. Department of Transportation is responsible for enforcing airline consumer rights and protecting consumers from unfair or deceptive practices. Federal law prohibits states from regulating airline companies. Accordingly, the Office of the Attorney General does not have the legal authority to process or investigate consumer protection complaints against airline companies.

Nevertheless, the Office of the Attorney General encourages the public to submit consumer protection complaints involving the airlines to its office. The Office of the Attorney General shall then forward these complaints to the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Department of Transportation takes consumer complaints very seriously, imposing over $4 million in fines for consumer protection violations in 2012 alone.

If an individual has a complaint or concerns about an airline company’s service, he or she should submit a complaint to the Office of the Attorney General—attention to Consumer Counsel Gus Harb—no later than Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. The complaint provided should include the following information:

Your name

Mailing address

Daytime telephone number (with area code)

E-mail address

Name of airline or company being complained about

Flight information: flight date, flight number, origin and destination of trip, copy of itinerary

Description of your complaint or concerns

Please understand that individuals may also submit a consumer complaint to the Department of Transportation Airline Service Consumer Division via telephone at (202) 366-2220 or by submitting a complaint online at http://www.dot.gov/airconsumer/file-consumer-complaint. Please visit this website for more information about filing a consumer protection complaint with the Department of Transportation.

Again, the Office of the Attorney General strongly encourages the public to submit consumer complaints involving the airlines to its office no later than Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. The Office of the Attorney General shall forward any complaints it receives to the U.S. Department of Transportation. If you have any questions about this statement or would like additional information on how you can bring a consumer complaint against an airline company, contact the Office of the Attorney General at (670) 237-7500. (OAG)