Biden Administration Proposes Rule to Ban ‘Junk Fees’ for Family Seating

Skift Take

If finalized, the rule would ban airlines from charging fees to assign seats to children aged 13 or younger next to their parents or an accompanying adult.

Meghna Maharishi

The Department of Transportation is proposing a rule that would prohibit airlines from charging “junk fees” to seat families together on flights. 

The rule comes as the Biden Administration has repeatedly urged airlines to revise their family seating policy. 

“Baggage fees are bad enough — airlines can’t treat your child like a piece of baggage,” President Joe Biden said at his 2023 State of the Union. 

After his comments, carriers like American, JetBlue, Frontier and Alaska revised their policies to let families sit together at no extra charge. 

The DOT said the proposed rule could save a family of four as much as $200 per round-trip if seat selection fees cost $25 each. 

“Families don’t need any additional stresses or costs when flying on top of how demanding it could be to be a parent flying with your kids,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg during a call with reporters. 

Buttigieg added he believed the rule would help in situations where passengers are sometimes asked to give up their seat so an airline could accommodate a family. 

“When those scenarios arise, it is not fair to anyone on board, the parents, the children, the other passengers and it puts the on board flight crew in a difficult position, too,” he said.  

What the Rule Says

In particular, the rule would ban airlines from charging fees to assign seats to children aged 13 or younger next to their parents or an accompanying adult. 

Adjacent seats would also need to be free within 48 hours of booking, and airlines are required to make such seats available in every cabin class. In the event adjacent seats aren’t available, airlines would have to ensure that children could either sit directly across the aisle, in front of or behind the accompanying adult. 

Under the rule, airlines would also have to give families the option of a refund if adjacent seats are not available at the time of booking. Families would also have the option to wait and see if adjacent seats become available closer to departure. 

If it’s still not possible for families to be seated together before boarding, then airlines have to give them the option to rebook on the next flight with adjacent seats for free. 

Similar to the “junk fee” disclosure rule the DOT released in April, airlines would have to disclose the right to no-fee family seating on their websites and at customer service reservation centers. 

The DOT said airlines are also subject to a penalty for each child who isn’t seated next to their parent. 

Appeals Court Blocks Fee Disclosure Rule

Just days before the DOT proposed a rule on family seating, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked a separate “junk fee” disclosure rule, pending further review. 

The appeals court argued that Congress didn’t give the DOT the authority to enforce the rule and such a rule would “irreparably harm airlines.”

The DOT issued the “junk fee” rule in April and it would require airlines to disclose fees such as baggage, seat selection, change and cancellation fees upfront. The DOT has said it will defend the rule. 

This time, the DOT argued that since the 2024 FAA Reauthorization Act mentions the right to free family seating, the DOT has the ability to propose a rule. 

“It certainly helps though when there is reinforcing language from Congress,” Buttigieg said.