Spirit Airlines Reaches Settlement in Deceptive Carry-On Bag Fee Case

Spirit Airlines agreed to pay up to $8.25 million to settle a lawsuit brought by passengers deceived by carry-on bag fees.

According to Reuters.com, the class-action lawsuit was filed by passengers against the low-cost carrier who claimed they were hit with additional carry-on bag fees when they booked their tickets through third-party websites, such as Expedia, Travelocity, CheapOair and more.

Lawyers representing passengers impacted by Spirit’s deceptive fees between August 2011 and May 2017 asked the Brooklyn federal court judge hearing the case to approve the proposed settlement deal, saying it “represents a fair compromise.”

Travelers eligible for payments as part of the settlement will be refunded up to 75 percent of their fees, but the total could be less “depending on the total amount of refunds sought by all class members.”

The documents revealed in court also showed that the $8.25 million maximum payout would include attorneys’ fees.

Spirit has also been in the news recently after reports that improper redactions in a lawsuit exposed that JetBlue plans to raise airfare prices on the low-cost carrier’s flights following the successful completion of the merger.

According to Law360.com (paid account required), an improperly redacted lawsuit by consumers challenging the $3.8 billion deal between JetBlue and Spirit showed that prices for passengers flying with the low-cost carrier could jump by as much as 40 percent.