DOT announces new protections for air passengers with disabilities

The Department of Transportation announced new protections Monday for passengers with disabilities traveling on commercial aircraft, finalizing the rule series of proposals that was first posed earlier this year.

Under the new regulations, airlines must meet new standards for assisting passengers using mobility devices such as wheelchairs, as well as new minimum standards for helping passengers if something goes wrong. issues – such as lost or damaged wheelchairs – along with training requirements for staff. .

The rules take effect on January 16.

When something goes wrong: New airline refund rules come into effect – here’s what you should know

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement: “Every passenger deserves a safe, dignified trip when they fly — and we have taken unprecedented actions to force Airlines must be held accountable when they do not treat passengers with disabilities fairly.” “With the new protections we are announcing today, we are setting a new standard for air travel – with clear and thorough guidance for airlines to ensure that passengers using wheelchairs can travel safely and with dignity.”

First DOT proposed sweeping new regulations in February this year, describing them as “the biggest expansion of benefits for airline passengers using wheelchairs since 2008.” Essentially, these rules set the framework for how the agency enforces sections of the Airline Access Act, which prohibit airlines from discriminating against passengers because of disabilities. In February, Buttigieg said that violations could result in fines of more than $100,000 per incident.

The final rules require airlines to provide “safe and dignified” assistance to passengers with reduced mobility and mandate “rapid” boarding, de-boarding, and connecting assistance. trip. Airlines will also be required to promptly return lost or damaged wheelchairs and provide prompt repair or replacement services where necessary.

The rules go further by calling on airlines to provide suitable rental wheelchairs when needed and to refund fare differences if passengers pay more to fly on a larger aircraft with enough room in the cargo hold for larger wheelchairs.

Passenger protection: DOT offers compensation for flight delays, but the Trump administration will have the final say

While most wheelchairs arrived safely — in 2023, 835,327 wheelchairs were transported by the 10 largest airlines, according to DOT data, and 11,527 wheelchairs, or 1.38%, were damaged damaged, lost or significantly delayed — any mishandling can have serious consequences for passengers, especially those using custom or high-end wheelchairs than.

Although mishandling rates decreased slightly from 2022 to 2023, it remains an ongoing problem in the travel world. DOT in recent years has proposed many new regulations around wheelchair mobility, while airlines and aerospace companies have launched various proposals and tools aimed at wheelchair users.

United Airlines introduced a tool earlier this year allows passengers to enter wheelchair size or specifications when searching for flights and filter results to only include aircraft large enough to accommodate the devices.

Meanwhile, Delta Air Lines developing a new type of airplane seat that can secure certain types of wheelchairs while on board, allowing passengers to bring their wheelchair into the cabin and sit in it during the flight. The design is being developed by the airline’s innovation studio Delta Flight Products, currently in prototype form – TPG had the opportunity to see the prototype earlier this year.

Related reading: