In an ideal world, rows of seats on an airplane would line up perfectly with the windows allowing passengers to see outside. That isn’t the world we live in, however, and sometimes the seat beside the plane’s fuselage doesn’t actually have a window there. What if you paid extra for that seat with the promise of getting a view on the way to your destination? That question is at the heart of a proposed class action lawsuit against United Airlines.
The legal news site Top Class Actions recently published an update on the suit in question. “The United Airlines lawsuit claims that this practice may violate consumer protection laws, as well as airline passenger rights and may constitute false advertising,” wrote Lori Waite. There’s a fairly narrow set of qualifications for people looking to join the lawsuit: they must be based in California, have paid for a window seat where there was no window and flew within the last four years.
In an analysis of the proposed lawsuit, View From the Wing’s Gary Leff observed that United Airlines differs from some of their competitors by implying that travlers will get a window seat “during the booking path as part of the upsell.” Leff’s take on the case is well worth reading, as he also explores some of the specifics of this case and why it’s likely limited to California residents.
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It’s part of a larger intercontinental expansionAs airlines charge more for any sort of desirable seat — in other words, anything that isn’t the middle seat — it’s easy to see how window seats can become premium destinations. But the lawsuit also raises a good question: is an airplane seat facing a wall with no view of the outside world worth paying extra for? We’ll see what California’s legal system has to say about this in the months to come.
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