The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has fined American Airlines $50 million for mistreating passengers using wheelchairs, and for mishandling those passengers’ wheelchairs and other mobility equipment.
The DOT made the announcement in late October and noted that the fine “is 25 times larger than any previous DOT penalty against an airline for violating disability regulations.”
The announcement added that American Airlines committed “numerous serious violations of the laws protecting airline passengers with disabilities between 2019 and 2023. DOT’s investigation into American Airlines uncovered cases of unsafe physical assistance that at times resulted in injuries and undignified treatment of wheelchair users, in addition to repeated failures to provide prompt wheelchair assistance. American also mishandled thousands of wheelchairs by damaging them or delaying their return, leaving travelers without the device they need for mobility.”
A penalty that sends a message
DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the hefty fine was intended to influence how airlines treat passengers who use wheelchairs.
“The era of tolerating poor treatment of airline passengers with disabilities is over,” Buttigieg said in the announcement. “With this penalty, we are setting a new standard of accountability for airlines that violate the civil rights of passengers with disabilities. By setting penalties at levels beyond a mere cost of doing business for airlines, we’re aiming to change how the industry behaves and prevent these kinds of abuses from happening in the first place.”
The DOT requires airlines to return wheelchairs and mobility devices to passengers in a timely manner; to return equipment in the same condition in which the equipment was received by the airlines; and to provide prompt assistance with boarding the aircraft, exiting the aircraft, and moving through the airport.
“The Department also considers violations of these regulations for those traveling on domestic flights to be a failure to provide safe and adequate service,” the announcement said.
The DOT said it reviewed multiple complaints filed by Paralyzed Veterans of America, and examined a viral video of American Airlines employees mishandling a wheelchair at Miami International Airport in 2023. In the video, a baggage handler at the top of an airplane jet bridge drops what appears to be an ultralightweight wheelchair down a steep baggage ramp. The wheelchair hurtles down the ramp, hits the end of the ramp, and catapults onto the tarmac, at which time a second baggage handler finally goes to retrieve the chair.
Responding to the video posted on X, formerly Twitter, in November 2023, Buttigieg said, “This is totally unacceptable. We’ll be investigating.”
American Airlines to pay fine, invest in improvements
While the announcement noted that American Airlines was not the only company to mishandle wheelchairs, “American had been one of the worst performers among U.S. airlines in terms of both the total number of wheelchairs and scooters mishandling claims and the rate of mishandling claims, and DOT’s investigation revealed a significant number of violations,” the announcement said.
“These problems are not unique to American Airlines, and allegations of wheelchair mishandling and inadequate wheelchair assistance are far too common. DOT has active investigations into similar violations at other U.S. airlines.”
American Airlines will pay a $25 million fine to the U.S. Treasury. The rest of the fine is to be spent on “investments in equipment to reduce incidents of wheelchair damage, investments in a systemwide wheelchair tagging system to reduce incidents of wheelchair delay, deployment of hub control center employees to coordinate wheelchair handling on a systemwide basis at large airports, and compensation for affected passengers during the timeframe covered by DOT’s investigation.
“If these expenditures are not made, the additional $25 million will be paid as a fine to the U.S. Treasury.”
