US Senator introduces 'Protect Your Points' rewards programme legislation

US Senator Dick Durbin introduced (26-Sep-2024) the Protect Your Points Act, aiming to strengthen consumer protections by requiring increased transparency from airline frequent flyer points and loyalty programmes. The legislation would provide the US Department of Transportation (DoT) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau with authority to:

• Prohibit airlines from including provisions in their frequent flyer programmes and co-branded credit card terms of service that reserve their right to make changes at any time without notice to customers, and instead require airlines to provide at least one year's notice of any changes to terms of service or any actions that would devalue or jeopardise accrued points;
• Require airlines to prominently display a disclosure of the financial value of one point/mile, updated in real time, within 90 days of enactment;
• Require carriers to display airfare and add-on pricing concurrently in dollar value and points/miles value so that consumers can easily compare the worth of their points, within one year of enactment;
• Ban junk fees related to points/miles by ensuring that consumers are allowed to transfer points to family members or other participants in the same programme and prohibiting airlines from charging fees to do so;
• Prohibit carriers from limiting the number of points/miles that can be transferred to another traveller's account and ensure that any points/miles remain of equal value once transferred;
• Prohibit accrued points/miles from expiring.

Senator Durbin stated: "Without adequate oversight, airlines are taking advantage of their customers by offering grandiose rewards, only to change the terms and conditions without consumers' knowledge… If these programs are as valuable to consumers as the airlines claim they are, the airlines should have no trouble taking these simple steps to make them more transparent". [more - original PR]