Wednesday, 17 October 2012

US airline pays damages for levying extra charges


THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Indians facing harassment at US airports is nothing new and the list of those who got a taste of US hospitality includes former president Dr A P J Abdul Kalam and actor Shah Rukh Khan. An Indian has now won compensation from a US airline for collecting extra charges at a US airport.
Following a ruling from the district consumer court, Delta Airlines has paid a compensation of Rs 42,000 for levying extra charges from three passengers from here who had gone to attend a convention of Federation of Malayalee Associations of Americas in July 2008.
"The airline asked us to pay $70 for the second baggage though we can carry two bags each. When it was questioned, airline officials said the extra fee was owing to economic slowdown in the US. Hence me, my wife S Sreekala and friend Baby Krishna had to pay up," said P Sreekumar, a journalist who had to face the situation. They were allowed to carry two bags each from Mumbai to New York but were asked to leave them at the airport if they were willing to pay the extra charge when they were about to board a flight to Houston from there.
Though Sreekumar had planned to visit California, Florida and New York and had booked tickets in the airline for these journeys, he had to cut short his visit after attending the convention. He had filed a complaint with the court, seeking a compensation of Rs 10 lakh. "When the court sent a notice to the Delta airline, they repaid the extra money charged from three of us. However, I continued with the case as I considered it as an insult to the Indian citizen,'' Sreekumar said.
The court later ordered the airline to pay a compensation of Rs 10,000 each and repay the extra charged amount with interest.

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