United and Delta Airlines are being sued by passengers who say they paid extra for window seats — only to be seated next to a barren wall during their flight.
The proposed class action lawsuits, filed in federal courts Tuesday seek millions of dollars in damages for over one million customers who rode on each airline.
While some Boeing 737, Boeing 757 and Airbus A321 planes have rows entirely without windows due to air conditioning ducts or other systems — Delta and United do not flag this to customers purchasing “window seats,” the complaint claims.
United and Delta charge hundreds of dollars for such seats and make no mention that they are without windows. Meanwhile, their competitors, American and Alaska Airlines, inform their customers that these types of seats do not have a window while booking, Reuters reported.
The lawsuit notes that passengers often buy window seats for specific reasons, including for extra light or legroom, to occupy children or to calm traveling anxieties.
United and Delta did not immediately return requests for comment from The Independent.
“A large proportion of airline travelers prefer window seats, and are willing to pay extra money to obtain them. For many, it is a special experience to see the world from 30,000 feet, or to watch a descent into LaGuardia,” each lawsuit states, according to The Hill.
“Windows can captivate or distract an antsy child. Many people have a fear of flying, or get claustrophobic or motion sick on planes, and windows give them a greater level of comfort in an otherwise stressful environment,” they continue. “Others just want a burst of sunlight to brighten their days.”
United and Delta, like many other airlines, offer basic fares that do not include seat selection. Passengers must pay extra to choose their seat, and some windowless rows are in upgraded sections.
Both complaints specifically note that had the plaintiffs known the seats they were purchasing — and paying extra for — were windowless, they wouldn’t have selected them.
The Delta lawsuit was filed by Nicholas Meyer of Brooklyn, New York, while the United suit is led by Marc Brenman of San Francisco and Aviva Copaken of Los Angeles.
While customers can do research online to see if their seat is without a window, Carter Greenbaum, a lawyer whose firm filed both lawsuits, told Reuters that doesn’t excuse the airlines’ bad behavior.
“A company can’t misrepresent the nature of the products it sells and then rely on third party reviews to say a customer should have known that it was lying,” Greenbaum said.
