Flying rights: Protect air travellers from opaque and exploitative seat selection charges

Air fares vary by cabin class—such as economy, premium economy, business or first—with no distinction between window, aisle, middle, front-row, rear-row or extra-legroom seats within the same class. Airlines treat all seats in a class as identical for fare displays, yet present seat selection as a paid-for service.

What began as an extra charge for a few preferred seats has morphed into a system that places a price tag on most, leaving only a handful free of charge—usually at the back of the plane or particularly cramped ones.

This practice is a blatant violation of consumer rights. Once an airline accepts payment for a flight ticket, seat allocation should be its obligation, not an add-on service. If the vast bulk of seats are priced extra, as is often the case, then the practice amounts to price masking—and can even be viewed as extortion to pad up revenues.

Competition theory suggests that off-putting practices will be squeezed out by consumer choice. People will opt for an airline with fair and transparent fares. But if the market lacks competition, as in India, then competitive pressure does not come to bear and passengers are treated shabbily.

Some services can legitimately be counted as extras for which airlines may charge a fee. Class upgrades, for example. In the case of no-frill airlines—whose stated promise is efficient transport and not warm hospitality—meals and baggage could be chargeable, so long as the deal is well outlined. Seat allotment, however, is not the same. After all, safety rules do not allow a standing passenger.

Charging for a seat after a flight is booked, then, is like charging for air supply once an aircraft gains altitude and the air outside thins.

The what-if scenario: Take a fully booked economy cabin of around 180 seats. The airline has collected the full published fare, amount X, from all 180 passengers. If no one pays for seat selection, revenue remains X. Having charged them, the carrier must transport all 180 passengers. It cannot deny anyone a seat.

While it is true that passengers may prefer to be seated closer to exit doors and may be willing to pay a premium to disembark sooner, pricing nearly every seat is plainly unfair. It may well be possible that a majority of passengers do not want to pay extra for a seat, but the implicit signal of this artificial scarcity is that paying more is the only way to avoid the very worst seats.

This punishes budget-bound families, couples, people with medical needs and senior citizens. People who suffer from flight anxiety, claustrophobia or mobility constraints can feel extorted by this system.

Sometimes, if paying customers are too few, many paid seats magically become available free a few hours before departure. This ‘bait and switch’ tactic, involving hidden price fragmentation, turns a basic necessity into a paid privilege.

Buckle up for change: Globally, regulators are acting. EU transparency rules and 2025 reforms ban charges for seating children under 12–13 with accompanying adults and mandate full fee disclosure at booking. American rules prohibit family-separation fees and ensure refunds if paid seats are not provided. Passenger rights groups worldwide hail these as major victories for consumers. Indian travellers deserve the same protection.

Airlines must either abolish seat-selection fees and assign seats on first-come first-serve basis or standardize seat preferences through a revised system of upfront fares for sub-classes, so that a passenger is clear about the cost of an economy window seat in the cabin’s front quarter, for example.

Full transparency is non-negotiable. As the DGCA examines the failures of India’s aviation market, it should also push for an end to price opacity and exploitation. Passenger rights should not be flouted so brazenly.

The author is deputy commissioner of police, Delhi Police.