Frontier Airlines

Frontier Airlines

Basic information
Founded	1994
Type	Public
Industry	Airlines
Official website	https://flyfrontier.com/

Frontier Airlines, Inc. is a major American airline known for it's ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) model. In spite of it's no-frills approach to air travel, Frontier Airlines has faced increasing criticism from consumers, journalists, advocacy groups, and the media for its unfair business practices. In 2023, Frontier Airlines was the most complained-about airline. Since 2022, Frontier Airlines received almost 6,500 BBB complaints, many of which consisted of specific issues like "customer service," "repair." Frontier Airlines customers have heavily-critisized the airline because of it's history of prioritizing profits over passengers due to the airline's deceptive and exploitive business practices.

Consumer-impact summary

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:

• Denying boarding for customers due to the voluntary overbooking of flights
• Not compensating passengers or providing worthless forms of compensation to passengers for operational shortfalls (e.g., lost/mishandled luggage, canceled flights)
• Engaging in bait‑and‑switch tactics by charging passengers for "extra" services during checkout
• Charging customers for medical supplies
• Charging customers for speaking to a human
• Charging customers inconsistent fees without transparent price posting
• Charging customers succeeding fees in addition to the already-paid fee after the initial sale
• Temporarily removed its phone support in 2022, but reintroduced it in 2024 because of high customer demand
• Collect personal data on passengers before setting the price as part of their "dynamic pricing" approach
• 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 providing passengers a way to opt-out

Incidents

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

Compared to other airlines, including other airlines with a ULCC model, Frontier Airlines has the highest involuntary denied-boarding rate among carriers in the United States. In 2023 to 2024, Frontier had 3.21 involuntary bumps, the highest recorded number of involuntary bumps from 2023 to 2024. As a comparison, American Airlines follows this number with a rate of 0.6, a rate 400% lower than Frontier Airlines. At about 3.21 involuntary bumps per 10,000 passengers, this means that a paying Frontier Airlines passenger is about eight times more likely to be denied boarding than an American Airlines passenger because of Frontier Airlines' practice of deliberately overbooking flights.

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:

""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."

The passenger was ultimately given a refund after speaking with a Frontier Airlines spokesperson. Many other passengers share Miss. Woltjen's experience of being denied boarding due to Frontier Airlines' budget-focused practice of overbooking flights.

Failing to compensate passengers for cancelations and delays

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. 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.

There are numerous examples of Frontier Airlines providing worthless or inadequate compensation to customers, especially in the form of vouchers. Aviation outlet, Simple Flying has warned consumers about Frontier’s unfair and “highly restrictive” compensation practices, advising passengers to decline vouchers and request cash refunds when they are legally entitled to them. In 2024, Frontier Airlines issued travel vouchers in an attempt to compensate bumped passengers. The vouchers were often only valid for 90 days, and excluded taxes, fees, the cost of seat selection, and the cost of baggage, rendering these forms of compensation effectively "worthless" in many circumstances.

The DOT has implemented a new rule that airlines must follow that mandates airlines to:

1. Automatically rebook passengers on the next available flight for free in the event of a cancelation due to a controllable circumstance or provide a refund to the original payment if the passengers chooses not to accept the new travel plans.
2. Issue a voucher or flight credit that is transferrable and valid for 5 years if the passengers opts for one.

In 2024, Mighty Travels Premium reported a YTD flight cancelation rate of 1.7%. Frontier ranked among the highest of airlines with a cancelation rate in August and October with a rate of 3.3% and 3.1% respectively according to DOT Air Travel Consumer Reports. Though not explicitly stated, the recent implementation of these DOT rules allude to the obvious shortcomings of Frontier's current rebooking practices.

Bait-and-switch practices

It is common for ULCC airlines to advertise low fares, and then add strict fees after the fact, making the posted fare difficult to purchase as is. Frontier Airlines is exceptionally notorious for this. In 2023, Frontier constantly advertised low base fares for flights, but pressed fees for additional services. After declaring baggage and choosing seats, passengers may ultimately pay a total price about three to five times higher than the advertised base fare.

Charging customers for speaking with a human agent & ending phone support

Frontier Airlines has a history of charging passengers a $20 to $25 "Airport Assistance Fee" for communicating with their in-person support staff.

There is also a history of charging $35 fee for talking to customer service agents over the phone.

As of June 2025, passengers are still charged a $25 "non-refundable" fee for speaking with Frontier airport agents. They may qualify for an exemption though.

In 2022, Frontier shut down its customer service phone hotline, leaving customers only the option to seek support via live chat. This has since been reversed in 2024.

Unfair treatment of passengers with disabilities and medical conditions

Multiple passengers have expressed their disappointment with Frontier for their egregious treatment of passengers with medical needs. Perhaps one of the most notable of these instances was when a Frontier agent forced a paralyzed passenger to pay in cash to check a medical-supply despite a confirmation from TSA that it contained no prohibited items.

On more than one occasion, Frontier has mishandled mobility aids.