Frontier Airlines: Difference between revisions

|Founded=1994

|Industry=Airlines, Aviation

|ParentCompany=

|Type=Public

|Website=https://flyfrontier.com/

}}

Over the years, Frontier Airlines has earned itself a budget-focused reputation because of its controversial business practices and business operations. The most well-known of these issues are:

*Forcing customers to waive their right to sue or join class actions if they enroll in their fly pass program

*Sells passengers' personal information to third parties without making opting out readily available

==Incidents==

===Deliberately selling more seats on flights than available, then denying boarding for passengers===

The following is an account from Frontier Airlines passenger, Erin Woltjen, who was denied boarding while attempting to board her flight from Philadelphia to Atlanta:<blockquote>"''I scanned my boarding pass from my phone and it didn't work. He looks at the computer and he says to us, 'I'm sorry, the plane's been overbooked.' And he goes on to explain that none of us are getting on the plane at this time."''</blockquote>The passenger was ultimately given a refund after speaking with a Frontier Airlines spokesperson.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Klisauskaite |first=Vyte |date=August 3, 2024 |title="You Were Not There": Frontier Airlines Tells Passenger They Were A No Show After Overbooking Flight |url=https://simpleflying.com/frontier-airlines-passenger-no-show/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250409000628/https://simpleflying.com/frontier-airlines-passenger-no-show/ |archive-date=April 9, 2025 |access-date=June 9, 2025 |work=Simple Flying}}</ref> Many other passengers share Miss Woltjen's experience of being denied boarding due to Frontier Airlines' budget-focused practice of overbooking flights.

Frontier Airlines has a large history of refund complaints by customers. In 2022, Frontier Airlines accounted for 13% of all refund-related complaints filed with the Department of Transportation (DOT), and only 2.9% of all boarded U.S. airline-boarded passengers were Frontier Airlines passengers. This indicates an extremely high complaint rate.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Murray |first=Teresa |date=April 24, 2023 |title=REPORT: Frontier, Spirit, JetBlue have worst complaint ratios |url=https://pirg.org/media-center/report-frontier-spirit-and-jetblue-have-worst-complaint-ratios/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250114061400/https://pirg.org/media-center/report-frontier-spirit-and-jetblue-have-worst-complaint-ratios/ |archive-date=January 14, 2025 |access-date=June 9, 2025 |work=PIRG}}</ref> Additionally, the airline was fined $2.2 million by the DOT, only 0.066% of the company's revenue in 2022. This equates to a person making $100,000 per year being fined $66.

Frontier Airlines has a suspicious history of technical glitches and errors with their website and their mobile application when customers attempt to check in for their flight online.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Leff |first=Gary |date=May 3, 2025 |title="Never Flying This Airline Again”—Watch As Frontier Threatens Ban, Calls Police When Passenger Complains About $25 Fee Just To Check In |url=https://viewfromthewing.com/never-flying-this-airline-again-watch-as-frontier-threatens-ban-calls-police-when-passenger-complains-about-25-fee-just-to-check-in/comment-page-1/ |url-status=live |access-date=June 18, 2025 |work=View from the Wing |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250713143518/https://viewfromthewing.com/never-flying-this-airline-again-watch-as-frontier-threatens-ban-calls-police-when-passenger-complains-about-25-fee-just-to-check-in/comment-page-1/ |archive-date=13 Jul 2025}}</ref> In addition to the technical inconveniences, passengers have reported long wait times for customer service and unresponsive support from customer service while seeking assistance with these online check-in issues. Passengers who checked in late, some no doubt due to the technical issues, were charged unexpected fees for doing so.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fenton |first=Reuven |date=May 7, 2025 |title=Frontier Airlines agents jeer at passenger after hitting him with surprise fee: ‘You thought you were gonna get on your flight?’ |url=https://nypost.com/2025/05/07/us-news/frontier-airlines-staff-taunt-passenger-trying-to-check-in-hit-him-with-25-fee-video/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250517034451/https://nypost.com/2025/05/07/us-news/frontier-airlines-staff-taunt-passenger-trying-to-check-in-hit-him-with-25-fee-video/ |archive-date=May 17, 2025 |access-date=June 18, 2025 |work=New York Post}}</ref>

As of June 2025, passengers must pay a $5 "Web Check In" fee to check in on Frontier's website.<ref name=":1" />

==References==