U.S. DOT Proposes Ban on Airline Fees for Family Seating

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is proposing a ban on airlines adding fees for adults to sit next to their children. 

Under the proposed new rule, airlines would be required to seat children 13 and under next to their parents or accompanying adults for no additional charge.  

“Many airlines still don’t guarantee family seating, which means parents wonder if they’ll have to pay extra just to be seated with their young child. Flying with children is already complicated enough without having to worry about that,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The new rule we’re proposing today, which would ban airlines from charging parents a fee to sit with their children, is another example of the Biden-Harris Administration using all the tools at our disposal to lower costs for families and protect consumers from unfair practices.”   

In March 2023, the DOT launched an online dashboard showing which airlines guarantee that families will not be charged extra to sit together. The government agency also pushed major airlines to include this guarantee in their customer service policies. Since then, only 4 of 10 airlines have complied: Alaska, American, Frontier, and JetBlue. 

As part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, Congress permitted the DOT to propose the rule banning fees on family seating, which has been in the works since last year. The proposal includes a clause that requires airlines to “seat parents next to their young children for free within 48 hours of booking when adjacent seats are available.” 

The new rule would also mandate refunds, free rebooking, and other options when adjacent seating for children is not available. Airlines would rack up fines for any fees charged for family seating and would be required to disclose to customers their right to family seating. 

“For many families, being seated next to their children is not optional, especially when they are too young to feed themselves, fasten their own seatbelt, go to the bathroom, and, in some cases, communicate,” the DOT stated. “But despite adjacent seating being essential for young families, many airlines continue to force parents to choose between paying to lock in assigned seats or risk being seated apart. These fees add up and effectively raise the final cost of air transportation for many families traveling with young children.” 

The DOT also pointed to the disruptions caused for other passengers during the flight boarding process when parents opt not to pay the extra fees. 

“Once boarded, airlines may ask these passengers to ‘voluntarily’ forfeit their seats, which they may have paid for in advance, and move to a less desirable seat so that a parent and child can sit together. If passengers choose not to swap seats, they may be seated next to an unsupervised child, causing stress for the child, parent, and surrounding travelers.”