House Transportation Committee To Airline Execs: Treat Customers Fairly Or Face The Consequences
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork) -- United Airlines chief executive officer Oscar Munoz and other airline executives found themselves in the hot seat Tuesday, forced to answer questions about customer service.
Several of them were called before the House Transportation Committee in the wake of the recent United fiasco involving a bumped passenger. The executives faced an ultimatum -- treat customers fairly or submit to congressional action.
"That should be the takeaway from today," Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania) said. "Seize this opportunity."
United's was among five airline executives summoned to Capitol Hill to explain his company's treatment of passengers.
United has been under fire after cell phone video last month showed a passenger being forcibly dragged off one of its flights. United Airlines has issued new guidelines following the incident and announced a settlement with the passenger last week.
At the hearing, Munoz took the fall for the fiasco.
"So at the end of the day, that is on me and this has to be a turning point," he said.
He admitted that his company failed by forgetting common sense. Instead, they used force to dump Dao so an extra United crew could fly at the last minute.
"You made your problem the customer's problem," Rep. Rick Larson (D-Washington) told Munoz.
Munoz conceded, "No customer, no individual, should ever be treated the way Mr. Dao was, ever. And we understand that."
Munoz was not alone getting grilled on Tuesday. The House Transportation Committee also went after American, Alaska, and Southwest Airline executives about their customer policies.
"I was going to ask how much you hate the American people," said Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-California).
"Essentially you represent four regional monopolies, so you've been able to do anything you want to do," added D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes.
CBS News Travel Editor Peter Greenberg says any rule change to help passengers would likely come from the Department of Transportation, not lawmakers.
"I've never seen a passenger rights bill introduced in Congress that ever got out of committee," he said. "So it dies a very slow death."
Many passengers say flying has become such a hassle, changes are more than necessary.
"Today, it's just a challenge," one customer said.
"It's just like customer service is gone. They feel like they have all the power," one customer said.
"They shouldn't just treat people like you know, animals," another said.
"It's important that for the meetings that we schedule months in advance that we're there on time and we can leave on time," passenger Scott Bonora said.
If the airlines do not make changes, Shuster said Congress is likely to step in.
"If we don't see meaningful results that improve customer service, the next time this committee meets to address the issue I assure you, you won't like the outcome," Shuster said.
Munoz said, "It is my mission to make sure we make changes."
United has already announced that it will no longer ask a customer to get off a plane once they're on board unless it's a safety issue. Some airlines have also announced policies to compensate passengers up to $10,000 for giving up their seats.
Despite recent controversies, airline industry profits have not taken a hit. CBS2's Ali Bauman reports the nation's airlines made $13.5 billion last year.
(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)