Frontier Airlines: Difference between revisions

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On more than one occasion, Frontier has mishandled mobility aids.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Boey |first=Valerie |date=July 28, 2023 |title=Frontier Airlines returns missing wheelchair to paralyzed Florida man who went without it for 3 days |url=https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/another-person-says-frontier-airlines-lost-their-wheelchair |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241107012825/https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/another-person-says-frontier-airlines-lost-their-wheelchair |archive-date=November 7, 2024 |access-date=June 10, 2025 |work=Fox 35 Orlando}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wakeman |first=Lauren |date=November 14, 2023 |title=Lawsuit filed against Frontier Airlines for losing, damaging disabled woman’s custom wheelchair |url=https://www.salvilaw.com/press-release/lawsuit-filed-against-frontier-airlines-for-losing-damaging-disabled-womans-custom-wheelchair/ |url-status=live |website=Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.}}</ref>

===~~Paying incentives~~ to employees for ~~forcing~~ passengers ~~check personal~~ bags at airport gates===

===Incentivizing gate agents to squeeze passengers on bag fees===

It is a common practice for ULCC airlines staff to audit passengers' bag dimensions while they queue for boarding at airport gates. However, Frontier Airlines is arguably a great deal more predatory in this practice. In a 2024 U.S. Senate Committee Meeting where several major airline executives were present, Senator Josh Hawley raised a question about whether the airlines paid a "bounty" to their employees for catching passengers with bags that were too big at airport gates. Bobby Schroeter, who is the officer in charge of Frontier Airlines' commercial operations, states: "We charge them an incentive... we recognize this [gate-side baggage auditing] is a hard job and therefore, we incentivize them to do that... '''$10 per bag."'''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=December 4, 2024 |title=Sen. Josh Hawley to Airline Executives: "Flying on your airlines is horrible." |url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5144527/sen-josh-hawley-airline-executives-flying-airlines-horrible |url-status=live |website=C-Span}}</ref> According to a Frontier Airlines spokesperson, the commision-based bonus is "simply an incentive for our airport customer service agents to help ensure compliance with our policies and that all customers are treated equally.”<ref>{{Cite news |last=Whitehead |first=Joanna |date=March 13, 2023 |title=Frontier Airlines admits it pays agents a bonus for charging passengers for oversized baggage |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/frontier-airlines-baggage-policy-airport-b2299842.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250116201224/https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/frontier-airlines-baggage-policy-airport-b2299842.html |archive-date=January 16, 2025 |access-date=June 10, 2025 |work=The Independent}}</ref> Many customers argue that the incentives create financial motivation to not treat passengers "equally," but rather to be overly critical, and even aggressive in some circumstances over enforcing bag size limits.

Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines cumulatively spent $26 million between 2022 and 2023 paying gate agents incentives to catch passengers with bags that did not fit in the airlines' gate-side sizers.<ref name=":0" />

Frontier Airlines tends to be more predatory in bag auditing at airport gates because they target passengers at the moment before boarding. Not only are passengers caught off guard at this moment, the fees they pay at this time are a great deal higher, sometimes $99 compared to a lower fees when paid earlier.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 17, 2025 |title=Frontier Airlines Begins Charging for Carry on Bags |url=https://www.cheapair.com/blog/frontier-airlines-begins-charging-for-carry-on-bags/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250425230421/https://www.cheapair.com/blog/frontier-airlines-begins-charging-for-carry-on-bags/ |archive-date=April 25, 2025 |website=CheapAir}}</ref> In addition, a class-action lawsuit alleges that Frontier gate agents utilized the gate-side bag-sizers smaller than the posted size to mislead passengers into paying fees for bags that were actually within size limits.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pradelli |first=Chad |date=November 21, 2023 |title=Lawsuit accuses Frontier Airlines of bogus baggage fees {{!}} Investigation |url=https://6abc.com/frontier-airlines-bag-policy-class-action-lawsuit-flight-fees/14085587/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250326031459/https://6abc.com/frontier-airlines-bag-policy-class-action-lawsuit-flight-fees/14085587/ |archive-date=March 26, 2025 |access-date=Junie 10, 2025 |work=6abc Action News}}</ref> To further push Frontier's budget-focused business model, the bag fee incentives, coupled with their bait-and-switch practice of cheap tickets, and multiple fees, appears to be an overarching strategy to exploit their customers as much as possible so that the airline can make as much money as possible.

==References==

[[Category:Frontier Airlines]]

@@ Line 61: / Line 61: @@
 On more than one occasion, Frontier has mishandled mobility aids.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Boey |first=Valerie |date=July 28, 2023 |title=Frontier Airlines returns missing wheelchair to paralyzed Florida man who went without it for 3 days |url=https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/another-person-says-frontier-airlines-lost-their-wheelchair |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241107012825/https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/another-person-says-frontier-airlines-lost-their-wheelchair |archive-date=November 7, 2024 |access-date=June 10, 2025 |work=Fox 35 Orlando}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wakeman |first=Lauren |date=November 14, 2023 |title=Lawsuit filed against Frontier Airlines for losing, damaging disabled woman’s custom wheelchair |url=https://www.salvilaw.com/press-release/lawsuit-filed-against-frontier-airlines-for-losing-damaging-disabled-womans-custom-wheelchair/ |url-status=live |website=Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.}}</ref>
-===Paying incentives to employees for forcing passengers check personal bags at airport gates===
+===Incentivizing gate agents to squeeze passengers on bag fees===
+It is a common practice for ULCC airlines staff to audit passengers' bag dimensions while they queue for boarding at airport gates. However, Frontier Airlines is arguably a great deal more predatory in this practice. In a 2024 U.S. Senate Committee Meeting where several major airline executives were present, Senator Josh Hawley raised a question about whether the airlines paid a "bounty" to their employees for catching passengers with bags that were too big at airport gates. Bobby Schroeter, who is the officer in charge of Frontier Airlines' commercial operations, states: "We charge them an incentive... we recognize this [gate-side baggage auditing] is a hard job and therefore, we incentivize them to do that... '''$10 per bag."'''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=December 4, 2024 |title=Sen. Josh Hawley to Airline Executives: "Flying on your airlines is horrible." |url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5144527/sen-josh-hawley-airline-executives-flying-airlines-horrible |url-status=live |website=C-Span}}</ref> According to a Frontier Airlines spokesperson, the commision-based bonus is "simply an incentive for our airport customer service agents to help ensure compliance with our policies and that all customers are treated equally.”<ref>{{Cite news |last=Whitehead |first=Joanna |date=March 13, 2023 |title=Frontier Airlines admits it pays agents a bonus for charging passengers for oversized baggage |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/frontier-airlines-baggage-policy-airport-b2299842.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250116201224/https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/frontier-airlines-baggage-policy-airport-b2299842.html |archive-date=January 16, 2025 |access-date=June 10, 2025 |work=The Independent}}</ref> Many customers argue that the incentives create financial motivation to not treat passengers "equally," but rather to be overly critical, and even aggressive in some circumstances over enforcing bag size limits.
+Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines cumulatively spent $26 million between 2022 and 2023 paying gate agents incentives to catch passengers with bags that did not fit in the airlines' gate-side sizers.<ref name=":0" />
+Frontier Airlines tends to be more predatory in bag auditing at airport gates because they target passengers at the moment before boarding. Not only are passengers caught off guard at this moment, the fees they pay at this time are a great deal higher, sometimes $99 compared to a lower fees when paid earlier.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 17, 2025 |title=Frontier Airlines Begins Charging for Carry on Bags |url=https://www.cheapair.com/blog/frontier-airlines-begins-charging-for-carry-on-bags/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250425230421/https://www.cheapair.com/blog/frontier-airlines-begins-charging-for-carry-on-bags/ |archive-date=April 25, 2025 |website=CheapAir}}</ref> In addition, a class-action lawsuit alleges that Frontier gate agents utilized the gate-side bag-sizers smaller than the posted size to mislead passengers into paying fees for bags that were actually within size limits.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pradelli |first=Chad |date=November 21, 2023 |title=Lawsuit accuses Frontier Airlines of bogus baggage fees {{!}} Investigation |url=https://6abc.com/frontier-airlines-bag-policy-class-action-lawsuit-flight-fees/14085587/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250326031459/https://6abc.com/frontier-airlines-bag-policy-class-action-lawsuit-flight-fees/14085587/ |archive-date=March 26, 2025 |access-date=Junie 10, 2025 |work=6abc Action News}}</ref> To further push Frontier's budget-focused business model, the bag fee incentives, coupled with their bait-and-switch practice of cheap tickets, and multiple fees, appears to be an overarching strategy to exploit their customers as much as possible so that the airline can make as much money as possible.
 ==References==
 <references />
 [[Category:Frontier Airlines]]