Southwest Breaks Its Silence on Customer Complaints After Major Policy Change

Last month, Southwest Airlines officially ditched its longstanding open-seating policy as it embraced an assigned seating model. However, a few weeks into the change, the airline has run into some major problems that are impacting customer experience.

Southwest had already been having problems with handling the surge in carry-on luggage after ending its "bags fly free" policy for checked luggage back in May. However, the recent change to assigned seating appears to have only made things worse.

New Problem Emerges

On Jan. 27, Southwest Airlines officially instituted an assigned seating model, ditching its longstanding open seating policy. However, things have not exactly gone smoothly thus far.

Since passengers at the front of the plane do not necessarily board first and could board as late as boarding group 5 in some cases, some passengers in the front of the plane have boarded, only to find that all of the overhead bin space was already taken. As a result, they then have to go toward the back of the plane, place their carry-on in the overhead bin space, and then work against the crowd back through the aisle to their seats.

Gary Leff of View From the Wing called the entire process "far more chaotic than the other airlines" as he described the issues.

"So people would stop at their seat, see no bin space available, and have to head back in the aircraft to stow bags – only to return down the aisle to their seats. This was far more chaotic than other airlines," Leff wrote.

This has all been exacerbated by Southwest's decision to begin charging for checked bags, resulting in more carry-on luggage on aircraft that were not designed with enough overhead bin space.

Southwest Addresses the Issues

It's been a few weeks since the airline moved toward open seating, and it sounds like they are aware that everything isn't exactly going smoothly and customers are not happy.

Southwest Airlines spokesperson Chris Perry said the company is aware of some of the complaints as it moves forward with "a series of early adjustments."

“Since launch, we’ve been closely monitoring input and real-world behaviors to validate our assumptions and identify where we can refine the experience,” Perry said in a statement via the San Antonio Express News. “Those insights are now informing a series of early adjustments designed to smooth operations and reduce friction as Customers adapt to the new boarding and seating process.”

Southwest has also been replying to customers on social media, informing them that they are reviewing their concerns.