United Airlines has just settled the David Dao lawsuit. Moreover, the American airline company does not want people to know how much it paid the passenger who was dragged off its flight earlier this month.
On April 9, a video showed Dao being dragged off a flight. This action from United Airlines was met with instant outburst. The incident became such a huge point of discussion that United eventually announced that it would no longer ask law enforcement officer to take passengers off its flights overbooking problems. It also announced that crew members would, from now on, be booked into seats minimum an hour before the departure.
United Airlines reaches settlement for an undisclosed sum with passenger dragged from plane: https://t.co/E7U95WSRWx pic.twitter.com/8Ccn7iUUl3
— Reuters Business (@ReutersBiz) April 27, 2017
David Dao became a well-known personality overnight. He became the face of those who face injustice from United Airlines. Now, Dao has reportedly reached a settlement with the airline company. However, the deal has been sealed for an undisclosed amount. The Vietnamese-American doctor refused to give up his seat to accommodate four United Airlines staff members, as he had patients to see the next day.
United CEO Oscar Munoz: I’m sorry. We will fix this. https://t.co/v8EPGsiDCi pic.twitter.com/eOPiYcagvo
— United (@united) April 11, 2017
United CEO response to United Express Flight 3411. pic.twitter.com/rF5gNIvVd0
— United (@united) April 10, 2017
Law enforcement officers violently removed him from his seat. The video that featured a bleeding Dao caused international outrage. Dao suffered a broken nose and a concussion during the incident. He also lost two of his front teeth. Dao’s lawyers described the incident as more horrifying than what he experienced during the fall of Saigon in 1975.
One of Dao’s lawyers, Thomas A. Demetrio, said United CEO Oscar Munoz had promised to “do the right thing,” and he kept his promise. According to Demetrio, the airline company has taken complete responsibility for what happened to Dao on that flight. The company did not try to blame anybody else for the incident.
“For this acceptance of corporate accountability, United is to be applauded.”
The confirmation of the settlement also comes from United spokesman Charles Hobart. The New York Times reported that Hobart said in an email that the company was pleased with the “amicable resolution” between David Dao and United Airlines.
“We look forward to implementing the improvements we have announced, which will put our customers at the center of everything we do,” Hobart said. “Every customer deserves to be treated with the highest levels of service and the deepest sense of dignity and respect.”
United Airlines has announced a number of moves to prevent any such incident to happen again. According to the company, passengers who arrive on the flight do not have to give up their seats. The new check-in process is going to allow passengers to give up seats for a compensation of $10,000. The limit of the compensation earlier was $1,350.
“Two weeks ago, we failed to meet that standard and we profoundly apologize,” Munoz said.
The lawyers representing David Dao, a doctor from Kentucky, have said that the company does not want anybody to know how much it paid for the “amicable” settlement. According to them, one of the conditions of the financial settlement is that the “amount remain confidential,” the BBC reported .
According to Demetrio, his client said the new changes by the airline company would surely help improve flying experiences for millions of travelers. He said that his client became “the unintended champion,” who eventually made the new changes happen.
We let policies get ahead of our values. We’re taking steps to change. https://t.co/a7J0ZzcbrE pic.twitter.com/Hsag45geex
— United (@united) April 27, 2017
The United Airlines incident caused changes in other airline companies as well. Southwest Airlines has declared that it would not overbook flights anymore. Just like United, Delta Airlines also increased the highest limit of payout to $9,950.
[Featured Image by Scott Olson/Getty Images]
