Airline fines fall to historic lows. Here’s what that means.

The government is on track to issue the lowest number of airline fines in history this year. Federal regulators insist they’re just doing their job and that the numbers represent an ebb in airline violations. But consumer advocates say it’s nothing short of a dereliction of duty.

The Aviation Consumer Protection Division of the Transportation Department (DOT), which enforces federal consumer protection regulations, has issued seven aviation enforcement orders totaling $2.2 million in civil penalties in 2019. The previous low for enforcement actions, set in 2000, was nine.

The DOT set a decade low for the dollar amount of fines last year, when it issued 16 enforcement orders totaling just $1.8 million in fines.

“Protecting consumers often involves various activities in addition to taking enforcement action,” says Blane Workie, DOT assistant general counsel for aviation enforcement and proceedings. Those activities include issuing guidance documents regarding consumer protection or civil rights rules or statutes. She points out that the DOT also issues a monthly Air Travel Consumer Report that contains information on the quality of services provided by airlines and ranks the carriers accordingly.