Have you ever paid for a window seat on an airplane that didn’t actually have a window? You could be part of a class action lawsuit in the near future.
Delta and United Airlines have been sued this week in federal court for misrepresenting their seat offerings online. The plaintiffs note that when people buy tickets through competitors like Alaska Airlines and American Airlines, the website will flag when a window seat doesn’t actually have a window. Delta and United don’t tell consumers when that’s the case, according to the new lawsuits.
The filing against Delta, which is available online from Courthouse News, claims that the number of people affected could be over a million:
For many years, Delta has knowingly and routinely sold windowless “window” seats to travelers. For instance, various models of Delta’s Boeing 737, Boeing 757, and Airbus A321 aircraft are built with one or more seats that would traditionally have a window, but do not include one due to the placement of air conditioning ducts, electrical conduits, or other interior components. Delta operates hundreds of these planes, which each make multiple flights every day. As a result, Delta has likely sold over a million windowless “window” seats throughout the class period.
The lawsuit notes that people have many different reasons for trying to get a window seat, including a fear of flying or being claustrophobic. And if someone pays extra to get a window seat but doesn’t enjoy that benefit, they’re not getting what they paid for.
The court filings also include photos and social media posts from places like r/Delta where people have complained about paying extra and not getting a window.
Image: Courthouse News
Reuters points out that there are third-party websites like SeatGuru that allow consumers to look up a given plane to determine if a seat has a real window view. But Carter Greenbaum, a lawyer for the firm that filed the lawsuits, told the news outlet that, “A company can’t misrepresent the nature of the products it sells and then rely on third-party reviews to say a customer should have known that it was lying.”
The lawsuit notes that fees can add up quickly for people who are trying to get a window seat:
The added consideration required to select a window seat is significant. A typical basic economy traveler, for example, might need to spend upwards of $40 to advance to a higher ticket tier, and then must spend over $30 to select a particular window seat. For passengers who do not pay for these upgrades in cash, they pay for their seat selection with other valuable consideration, such as credits earned from Delta, membership fees for rewards programs, and/or in the opportunity cost of benefits they would have obtained from selecting a different credit card reward program. These additional fees to select particular seats are charged in addition to the base fare, taxes, and other fees.
The lawsuit against Delta has been filed in New York, while the suit against United was filed in California and they are listed as:
- Meyer v Delta Air Lines Inc, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, No. 25-04608
- Brenman et al v United Airlines Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of San Francisco, No. 25-06995
United declined to comment on the case because it’s an “ongoing legal matter.” Delta didn’t immediately respond to questions sent on Thursday. Gizmodo will update this article when we hear back.