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Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size passengers to buy extra seats when booking, a major shift from its previous policy of offering complimentary airport accommodations.
Southwest Airlines is preparing to overhaul several long-standing policies, and one of its most controversial changes concerns passengers who need more space than a single seat provides.
The airline says the update is meant to guarantee availability — but critics warn it may instead increase both costs and confusion.
The Independent reports that the rule takes effect on 27 January, the same day Southwest introduces assigned seating.
Changing expectations
According to The Independent, Southwest will now require any customer who cannot fit within their seat’s armrests to purchase an additional seat at the time of booking. Previously,
larger passengers could either pay in advance and later request a refund or obtain a complimentary extra seat at the airport if space allowed, Fox 2 Detroit noted.
The airline said it is notifying travelers who have used extra-seat accommodations before, telling them they “should purchase it at booking” to ensure availability.
Passengers may still apply for refunds on the second seat, The Independent adds, but only if the flight is not fully booked.
Critics speak out
The Associated Press, cited by The Independent, interviewed Jason Vaughn, a travel agent and founder of Fat Tested Travel — a platform aimed at plus-size travelers.
Vaughn argued the shift will complicate travel for everyone. “I think it’s going to make the flying experience worse for everybody,” he said, warning that some travelers may gamble on fitting into a single seat to avoid higher upfront costs, leaving both them and their seatmates uncomfortable.
Southwest insists customers who “encroach upon the neighboring seat(s)” should proactively buy the additional seats needed, and emphasized that “the armrest is considered to be the definitive boundary between seats,” according to reporting from Men’s Journal.
Who decides?
The Independent notes that Southwest retains wide discretion. The airline told Men’s Journal that “Southwest may determine, in its sole discretion, that an additional seat is necessary for safety purposes,” leaving open questions about how encroachment will be measured from case to case.
If a flight is already full when an extra seat is deemed necessary, Southwest will rebook the traveler on a later service.
Broader overhaul
The new seating rule is just one part of a broader series of policy shifts aimed at boosting revenue.
The Independent reports that Southwest has begun charging for seats with extra legroom, plans to offer red-eye flights, ended its long-running free checked-bag policy in May, and will soon introduce paid preferred seating.
Sources: The Independent, Associated Press, Fox 2 Detroit, Men’s Journal
