Over the past several years, Southwest Airlines has become notorious for its regular sales and low fares, which often have ripple effects throughout the entire industry. However, the airline is now facing a pretty significant lawsuit over some of that advertising.
A new class action lawsuit has accused Southwest Airlines of violating Washington state law by sending customers emails that contained misleading and false information in an effort to trick them into opening the emails and purchasing tickets.
This lawsuit comes after an expert already accused Southwest of using “psychological tricks” on customers.
Recent Southwest Airlines Headlines
- Ended its “bags fly free” policy back in May
- Will move to an assigned seating model in January
- Moving away from its point-to-point model
- Changed its credit card rewards and annual fee
- Offers complimentary WiFi for Rapid Rewards members
- More international routes
Southwest Faces Lawsuit Over ‘Fake’ Sales
Southwest Airlines has been hit with a class action lawsuit as Plaintiff Karleasa Mitchell claims the airline violated the Washington Commercial Electronic Mail Act and the Washington Consumer Protection Act with its “fake” sale emails.
“Defendant uses different types of false and misleading information in email subject lines to trick consumers into opening their email and making purchases,” the Southwest Airlines class action says, via Top Class Actions.
Mitchell claims Southwest Airlines would use subject lines such as “Last Day” only to later extend the sale. Mitchell argues that the airline never intended to only offer the sale for the initial time period, making the marketing practices deceptive.
“Defendant has a pattern and practice of advertising fake sale extensions,” the Southwest Airlines class action says.
Not the First Lawsuit Southwest Has Faced
Back in January, the U.S. Department of Transportation sued Southwest Airlines, claiming that the carrier harmed consumers by marketing flights with unrealistic schedules.
The agency claimed in its lawsuit that Southwest failed to adjust its schedules for flights that were consistently late. The government argued that this caused “significant” harm to its customers and violated federal law.
“When an airline knows that a particular flight is consistently late, it is essential that the airline adjusts its schedule,” the DOT said in the lawsuit.
