This week’s DOT Airline Customer Service Dashboard Update advises everyone on which airlines are family-friendly and which aren’t. Naturally, our interest lies in the six airlines with flights to Hawaii, which include Alaska, American, Delta, Hawaiian, Southwest and United.
According to the government’s dashboard, only Alaska and America guarantee that children under 13 can sit for free with an accompanying adult.
The government has been trying for months to bring the airlines into compliance with the demand base, and since it’s apparently not working as they would like, they are using this new technique to try to embarrass or make the airlines airline in an agreement. According to the Department of Transportation (DOT) dashboard:
Airlines must stick to their commitments. DOT will hold them accountable if they don’t. If you believe an airline has not lived up to its commitment to customer service, contact the airline to make sure it gives you what it owes. If you are not satisfied with the airline’s response or behavior, you can file a complaint with the DOT.
All this comes as the government’s aviation gurus are in a tizzy in light of the widespread travel chaos that has plagued the industry since the COVID-19 pandemic and more so recently.
Hawaiian Airlines Receives DOT Request.
Beat of Hawaii reached out to Hawaiian Airlines for their response, as the new “Airline Customer Service Dashboard” shows them and three other airlines with a red X regarding family seats.
Alex Da Silva, Hawaiian Airlines Director of External Communications, gave us the following:
“As you know, we are a leisure carrier and we understand how important it is for families to sit together. We have always had robust processes in place to ensure that families are seated together. Guests booking our Main Cabin Base Fare product should be aware that they will not have access to seat selection at the time of booking, but we will accommodate them on the day of travel or offer them options travel alternatives.”
It comes after Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg said: “Parents traveling with young children should be able to sit together without an airline forcing them to pay unwanted fees.”
As we understand it, to get the “green marker” of the dashboard, an airline must WARRANTY that parents and children can sit together at no extra cost if seats are available during the purchase process. This statement should be included in their customer service plan. So far, this has only happened on Alaska, American and Frontier (which doesn’t fly to Hawaii).
BOH: When we read that statement “…if seats are available during the purchase process”, it seems like there is a potential loophole here for airlines. If you buy Basic Economy, seats are by definition, unavailable in the purchase process. So where does this leave families? It looks like more clarification is needed from the DOT.
Delta does not charge for family seating, but only works with customers on a case-by-case basis.
United just upgraded its family seats, but it’s also not compliant. They now allow connecting flights to the same destination when adjacent seats are not available. And there is no charge or fee change for that change.
From what Hawaiian Airlines told BOH, their plan looks similar to United.
Southwest is also not compliant. They offer “Family Boarding, which occurs after Group A has boarded and before Group B begins boarding.” Southwest also says that “families with children ages seven and older, parents may ask a flight attendant for help finding a seat next to their child.”
DOT panel strategy
The DOT said, “The dashboard will serve as a bridge to help families while the Department advances a regulation to ensure that airlines seat young children with a parent or other accompanying adult.”
DOT’s tactics seem to be working. They said: “Prior to the incentive, none of the 10 largest US airlines guaranteed meals or hotels when a delay or cancellation was under the airlines’ control, and only one offered free rebooking. Now, all 10 airlines guarantee meals and reservations, and nine guarantee hotels when an airline problem causes a cancellation or delay.”
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