Parents Now Protected From Having To Pay Extra To Sit With Their Kids On Flights

[FCDub]

New guidance from the government urges airlines to seat parents with young children "to the maximum extent practicable and at no additional cost."

The Department of Transportation has released new guidelines that direct airlines to provide parents and children under 13 with adjacent seats at no additional cost.

The Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) released a statement explaining that while the number of complaints it receives about this problem are relatively low, "even one complaint is significant for the impacted travelers."

The notice explains that airlines "should do everything that they can to ensure the ability of a young child (age 13 or younger) to be seated next to an accompanying adult (over age 13) family member or other accompanying adult, without charging fees for adjacent seating."

The OACP says that in four months it will monitor airlines' actions in this regard and, if necessary, enact further regulation. The notice alone, however, puts the pressure on airlines to accommodate families' requests for adjacent seating.


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[Betty Rohrer]

New guidance from the government urges airlines to seat parents with young children "to the maximum extent practicable and at no additional cost."

The Department of Transportation has released new guidelines that direct airlines to provide parents and children under 13 with adjacent seats at no additional cost.

The Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) released a statement explaining that while the number of complaints it receives about this problem are relatively low, "even one complaint is significant for the impacted travelers."

The notice explains that airlines "should do everything that they can to ensure the ability of a young child (age 13 or younger) to be seated next to an accompanying adult (over age 13) family member or other accompanying adult, without charging fees for adjacent seating."

The OACP says that in four months it will monitor airlines' actions in this regard and, if necessary, enact further regulation. The notice alone, however, puts the pressure on airlines to accommodate families' requests for adjacent seating.


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read about something similar before covid and nothing appeared to change not sure this will be different

 

[starry_solo]

Guidelines don’t equal requirements.
all this will do is get rid of basic economy.

 

[CarolynFH]

Guidelines don’t equal requirements.
all this will do is get rid of basic economy.

Yes, if parents want to sit next to their children, they need to pay whatever the regular fare is to choose their seats at time of booking. I don't consider that paying extra. I don't book basic economy because I want to choose my seat when I book; parents have that same choice.

 

[dieumeye]

Yes, if parents want to sit next to their children, they need to pay whatever the regular fare is to choose their seats at time of booking. I don't consider that paying extra. I don't book basic economy because I want to choose my seat when I book; parents have that same choice.

Sure, but sometimes the issue is that there aren't seats together on the plane at the time of booking. You can say "then they should have booked earlier or take a different flight" but people travel for lots of reasons and those reasons aren't always known months in advance.

The real problem is that the airline customer experience has been chipped away over the years to the point that people have become accustomed to absolute bottom of the barrel service being the norm. So things that should just be part of the experience, like 'picking a seat' and 'having a bag with you' are now considered "premium extras" that cost more. That's lame.

 

[VAfamily1998]

Sure, but sometimes the issue is that there aren't seats together on the plane at the time of booking. You can say "then they should have booked earlier or take a different flight" but people travel for lots of reasons and those reasons aren't always known months in advance.

The real problem is that the airline customer experience has been chipped away over the years to the point that people have become accustomed to absolute bottom of the barrel service being the norm. So things that should just be part of the experience, like 'picking a seat' and 'having a bag with you' are now considered "premium extras" that cost more. That's lame.

Are you saying that passengers that already booked their seat (and possibly paid a fee to do so) should be moved to accommodate passengers who are booking later?

 

[_19disnA]

Seems like a guideline that will be difficult to implement and/or enforce. If you don't pay for seat selection ahead of time, what happens where there aren't enough open adjacent seats available to make this practical? Many guidelines/laws seem to be get passed without any thought to how it will actually work or if implementation is even possible. Wonder if they consulted any of the airlines for suggestions on how to accomplish this or did they just fling out a 'guideline' for someone else to figure out how to implement?

Southwest typically has no assigned seats (you board based on a group #) and it is first-come first-served, so I no idea how this would work for them.

 

[dieumeye]

Are you saying that passengers that already booked their seat (and possibly paid a fee to do so) should be moved to accommodate passengers who are booking later?

What do you think happens on flights currently? I'm saying the airlines created this problem. It's not like this issue has never come up before prior to this recommendation.

 

[supersnoop]

Are you saying that passengers that already booked their seat (and possibly paid a fee to do so) should be moved to accommodate passengers who are booking later?

Well, back in my day.....

Wow, it feels weird to start a post that way. Anyway; back when I used to travel frequently before "basic economy" was a sparkle in the eye of an accountant, airlines held back about 20 seats on every flight to be assigned at the gate. They'd hold back the first and last two rows in coach. If you tried to book the flight when no seats were left to be assigned, you got a ticket without a seat and with a note to see the gate agent. That way, there were always plenty of adjacent seats for families traveling with kids to sit together. There's no reason the same concept wouldn't work today.

 

[SteveH]

@supersnoop I think that still happens a lot on some airlines, the last 2 rows are often not booked and used for ferrying airline employees as well as for families.

 

[CarolynFH]

Sure, but sometimes the issue is that there aren't seats together on the plane at the time of booking. You can say "then they should have booked earlier or take a different flight" but people travel for lots of reasons and those reasons aren't always known months in advance.

I understand that. But I've also read more than one post on this forum from parents who booked basic economy instead of regular economy, far enough in advance that there would have been seats available together, and are then amazed that they can't get seats together at time of boarding and that other passengers aren't willing to give up the seats they paid a premium for.

Seems like a guideline that will be difficult to implement and/or enforce. If you don't pay for seat selection ahead of time, what happens where there aren't enough open adjacent seats available to make this practical? Many guidelines/laws seem to be get passed without any thought to how it will actually work or if implementation is even possible. Wonder if they consulted any of the airlines for suggestions on how to accomplish this or did they just fling out a 'guideline' for someone else to figure out how to implement?

Southwest typically has no assigned seats (you board based on a group #) and it is first-come first-served, so I no idea how this would work for them.

Yes, it will be difficult to enforce. The airlines that do assign seats at time of booking should be able to require families with children under 13 to pay for assigned seating. I don't consider that forcing them to pay extra. I have no idea what SW will do - maybe they could routinely give families with children under 13 a low group number at time of booking so that they'd be guaranteed to board early when there was better availability.

 

[Jwaire]

Yes, it will be difficult to enforce. The airlines that do assign seats at time of booking should be able to require families with children under 13 to pay for assigned seating. I don't consider that forcing them to pay extra.

I agree. A seat is a seat. I'm taking my 3-year old nephew to WDW in September on Delta. It never occurred to me that I shouldn't have to reserve his seat ahead of time or pay for it. That's ridiculous. He's a person and is taking up a seat that Delta can't sell to anyone else.

Due to pilot and staff shortages, planes are completely full. Plan accordingly.

If you are flying Southwest, Spirit or Frontier, you know what you're getting into. At least with Southwest, you can pay a small upcharge to check-in early.

 

[VAfamily1998]

Well, back in my day.....

Wow, it feels weird to start a post that way. Anyway; back when I used to travel frequently before "basic economy" was a sparkle in the eye of an accountant, airlines held back about 20 seats on every flight to be assigned at the gate. They'd hold back the first and last two rows in coach. If you tried to book the flight when no seats were left to be assigned, you got a ticket without a seat and with a note to see the gate agent. That way, there were always plenty of adjacent seats for families traveling with kids to sit together. There's no reason the same concept wouldn't work today.

We must be very different ages. I have definitely experienced my siblings and I (preschool-early elementary ages) being separated from our parents on planes as a child. I also was separated from my (then) five year old son on a plane when we missed our connecting flight and had to take an alternative one.

 

[VAfamily1998]

What do you think happens on flights currently? I'm saying the airlines created this problem. It's not like this issue has never come up before prior to this recommendation.

What I think happens currently? I’ve definitely heard stories of children sitting separately from parents recently, and I personally experienced it (both as a child and as a parent) many years ago. So that is what I think happens on flights currently.

 

[piccolopat]

The only fair solution is to prevent someone from booking tickets that include a child unless there are adjacent seats available for selection at the time of purchase. It's not right for the airlines to move other passengers who booked earlier and selected seats to suddenly be moved just because a family booked later and there were no adjacent seats available.

 

[Lewisc]

Airlines typically reserve a number of seats for gate assignment to accommodate issues. Airlines have gotten greedy with fees. The question is if a passengers should pay for a specific seat or have to pay if the requirement is to just sit next to a young child.

 

[xdan0920]

This is very funny. People defending airlines. Just when you thought you’ve seen it all.

 

[lpereira]

No one is defending airlines. Parents have an obligation to pay for what they need. The only result of this is force everyone to buy seats at time of booking. I remember how expensive flying was before you could purchase just what you needed.
That being said it takes a year to develop a regulation with no pushback. Longer if there is mobilized opposition. If it makes it that far the regulation will run afoul of West Virgina v EPA. There is no basis in law for this regulation. Chevron is now graveyard dead. If people want it to be mandatory for airlines to seat families together at no charge then they will have to go to Congress. See my first point. This will only make everyone pay for seats when only those people who need or want to pay for seats have to do so now.

 

[MinnieMSue]

They should save some seats in the back of the plane for parents with children. When my daughter was young it was just an added expense. We bought tickets where we could pick our seats ahead of time or paid the extra on southwest to hopefully get A boarding group. Kids cost more. Just how it is.

 

[bumbershoot]

the government urges airlines

That is in no way what you wrote in the subject line: "Parents Now Protected From Having To Pay Extra To Sit With Their Kids On Flights." It's been a DOT suggestion for years. The issue is there's no real way to do it.

Sure, but sometimes the issue is that there aren't seats together on the plane at the time of booking. You can say "then they should have booked earlier or take a different flight" but people travel for lots of reasons and those reasons aren't always known months in advance.

That flight is, for all intents and purposes, full for your family. Find a different flight. People booked months before and they have paid for their seats. I just traveled for a funeral at the last minute, and I strongly urge you to remember that your or my emergency is not mine or yours, respectively.

So things that should just be part of the experience, like 'picking a seat' and 'having a bag with you' are now considered "premium extras" that cost more.

But they aren't.

In 1982 I flew across the country for a school trip, SFO to Washington DC and back. It was $800. An inflation calculator tells me that "$800 in 1982 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $2,456.46 today".

I can get the same experience that I had in the middle of that TWA wide body with chicken kiev served if I feel like paying 2500. I don't feel like paying that. I want my flight to be cheaper. And that means I don't get what I got in 1982.

Basic Economy is for those without bags or issues sitting anywhere. It is for me NOW with an 18 year old if we are doing carryon only. It was not for me 10 years ago.

Southwest typically has no assigned seats (you board based on a group #) and it is first-come first-served, so I no idea how this would work for them.

On Southwest unless you're at the second half of Cs you'll almost certainly find at least 2 seats together in various sections. If they are little, you board with the families between A and B.

What do you think happens on flights currently?

Almost no one is asked by airlines to give up seats. The first/only time our "metal" changed as we drove to the airport due to weather on the other side of the country, my then 8 year old was separated from me on each of our flights. On one I was able to get him almost with me. He had a GREAT time. And from then on the world opened up a bit. Now we know that our fave way to fly, if we want to sit near each other, is across the aisle from one another.

Due to pilot and staff shortages, planes are completely full. Plan accordingly.

My flight home last night on American was not. I had a full row; so did the guy behind and across the aisle. I believe there were others. But the SW flight that got me to the funeral was definitely full.

This is very funny. People defending airlines. Just when you thought you’ve seen it all.

Why is it funny? If you want to sit together buy the product that allows for that. Don't buy the discount product. And WATCH YOUR FLIGHTS. Be eagle-eyed so you can catch any changes that might change the seating assignments.