US Airways Cannot Avoid Frequent Flier Class Action

A judge on Friday put a stop to US Airways Group Inc.’s opposition to a proposed class action filed in Illinois. The suit, which alleges that frequent flier members have had miles withheld because of ambiguous language in the contract, was approved by the judge after he agreed that language in the agreement between the company and consumers was open to interpretation.

The guide includes language in another section that states that the number of miles earned is based upon actual miles.

Annette Kwok filed the proposed class action after noticing that her mileage credit was lower than she’d been expecting. Looking for classification, she found that while the contract specifies that “mileage credit will be calculated based upon the distance from origin to the final destination,” it is the definition of ‘distance’ that’s up for debate. As far as US Airways is concerned, mileage is calculated as a straight line from take off to landing point, rather than a real-world flight path. The result, of course, is shorter than the amount of miles passengers have actually flown. As such, members may be receiving fewer credits than they had been expecting.

In their attempt to dismiss Kwok’s suit, US Airways asserted that the language was clear and unambiguous, but U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber wasn’t convinced. While the ‘as the crow flies’ calculation might always have been their intention, he ruled, “the [membership] guide never makes this specification and indeed includes language in another section that states that the number of miles earned is based upon ‘actual miles.’”

US Airways had also claimed it retained the right to alter the terms of the contract without consultation – a claim also rejected by Judge Leinenweber. As the contract states that frequent flier members were encouraged to visit the website for current updates, and this website had no mention of changes to mileage calculation, there were no grounds for dismissal, he ruled.

Under Arizona law, a contract cannot be modified without an offer and acceptance of the terms – and the judge held that Arizona law controls the case.

At the current stage, Kwok has no need to prove her intention upon entering the agreement – instead, she simply needed to make her allegations to put US Airways on notice of her claim. As such, the judge denied the motion to dismiss, ruling that Kwok had fulfilled all that was required of her. When the case continues, both sides will have the opportunity to argue their case and justify their interpretation of the mile credits to which frequent fliers are entitled.