©Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A jet from American Eagle, a regional subsidiary of American Airlines (AA), taxis ahead of other AA planes at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., December 3, 2021. REUTERS/Chris Helgren /file Photo
By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) – American Airlines (NASDAQ:) was sued on Monday in a class action brought by two customers who said the airline deprived them of 1.1 million frequent flyer miles after doubling their credit cards that offered mileage bonuses.
Ari and Shanna Nachison said American falsely accused them of fraud for opening multiple AAdvantage accounts, with cards issued under co-branding deals with Citibank and Barclays.
Los Gatos, California, residents said that while some card applications prevented multiple mileage bonuses within a 48-month period, theirs did not, and it was unclear why American closed their accounts at the beginning of 2020.
Both said the Fort Worth, Texas-based airline cited violations “related to the accrual of ineligible miles and benefits; through fraud, misrepresentation and/or abuse of the AAdvantage program” in emails announcing terminations.
Ari Nachison said she lost 564,463 miles, while Shanna Nachison said she lost 550,664 miles.
The Nachisons argued they were exempt from applicable statutes of limitations because American’s “boilerplate” emails did not mention specific violations or the credit cards in question, delaying them from pursuing legal remedies.
American did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to similar requests.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in San Jose, California, seeks damages for people whose AAdvantage accounts were terminated due to alleged fraud in obtaining Citi-AAdvantage and Barclays-AAdvantage credit cards.
Some airlines, including American, have increased spending and mileage requirements in recent years for frequent flyers, who use their status to get tickets, better seats, early boarding and other perks.
Earlier this month, American said some flight benefits would be limited to AAdvantage members, including free same-day standby to upgrade to earlier U.S. flights.
The case is Nachison et al v. American Airlines Inc, United States District Court, Northern District of California, No. 24-00530.