Denver-based Frontier Airlines faces lawsuit alleging “hidden” baggage fees, false advertising

Frontier Airlines markets itself as having the lowest fares, but a new lawsuit alleges the Denver-based carrier makes up the difference with hidden, inflated fees.

Florida resident Amira Hamad filed the 21-page lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in late June, seeking a refund of the fees and $100 million in punitive damages for herself and others.

A spokesperson for Frontier said the airline doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

Hamad said in the lawsuit that she booked a round-trip flight with Frontier after seeing an “attractive” price online and reading on the company’s website that passengers are allowed one free personal item no larger than 14 inches tall, 18 inches wide and 8 inches deep.

According to the lawsuit, when Hamad arrived at her gate, Frontier’s bag sizer was smaller than the dimensions advertised on the website. When her bag wouldn’t fit into the bag sizer, the airline charged Hamad $100 for her personal item — nearly four times the price of checking a bag.

Hamad said in the lawsuit that before taking off on her return flight, she measured her personal item using the bag checker at a Spirit Airlines gate — with the same dimensions Frontier claims to have online — and it fit perfectly.

In the lawsuit, Hamad said Frontier is intentionally hiding fees and obscuring fee structures from customers “in order to fraudulently induce sales.”