Action
Final rule.
Summary
The U.S. Department of Transportation (Department or DOT) is issuing a final rule to strengthen protections for consumers by ensuring that they have access to fee information for transporting baggage and changing or canceling a flight before ticket purchase. Under the final rule, U.S. air carriers, foreign air carriers, and ticket agents must clearly disclose passenger-specific or itinerary- specific fees for these services to consumers whenever fare and schedule information is provided for flights to, within, and from the United States. The Department is further requiring that carriers provide useable, current, and accurate information regarding fees for these critical ancillary services to any entity that is required to disclose critical ancillary service fee information to consumers. This final rule is in response to the Executive order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy, which directs the Department to take various actions to promote the interests of American workers, businesses, and consumers. The rule will ensure that consumers have the information they need to understand the true costs of air transportation that apply to them, which will create a more competitive market with better outcomes for consumers.