Southwest Airlines has been hit with a $200,000 fine for false advertising, including ads that ran in Atlanta touting $59 fares.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said Southwest last October ran television ads on eight networks in the Atlanta area with a narrator saying: “Book now only at Southwest.com with $59 sale fares to places like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.”
But the DOT investigated and found Southwest did not have any $59 fares to those three cities on the advertised dates.
Southwest said it was a mistake. New York, Los Angeles and Chicago “were never intended to be part of the $59 sale,” the airline said in a written statement. “As soon as we became aware of our mistake, we pulled all incorrect advertisements off the air.”
Still, some people won out.
Southwest emphasized its sale offered discounts for flights to many other cities. And the airline said once it discovered the error in the ad citing New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, “we did honor the $59 fare for those customers who called reservations requesting the $59 price point for those three markets.”
The DOT had already cited Southwest last July for advertising fares with no seats available at the promoted price. It was ordered to pay $100,000 at that time, with another $100,000 due if it failed to cease and desist from further violations.
On Thursday, the DOT said Southwest violated the cease and desist provision and ordered the carrier to pay the additional $100,000.
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