Scott's Cheap Flights: Big News in Passenger Rights Issue 112

TOGETHER WITH   With rampant delays and cancellations, it’s been a tough summer for many travelers. But a new proposal from the Department of Transportation could finally make some headway in bolstering travelers’ rights.

Passengers’ rights today Under federal law, if an airline cancels or significantly changes your flight, you are entitled to a full cash refund. Period. It does not matter if: Your ticket is marked as non-refundable (e.g. basic economy) It’s on a foreign airline flying into/out of a US airport It’s not the airline’s fault (e.g. a global pandemic or bad weather) You bought your ticket through a third party (though they may charge you a processing fee) Your flight is on Spirit Even if the airline’s cancellation email only mentions a flight voucher (as many do!), the Department of Transportation rule is crystal clear: If there’s a cancellation or significant change and you no longer wish to travel, you’re entitled to your money back. The problem: how significant is “significant”? This lack of definition not only makes it confusing what your rights are, but it also allows airlines to change their policies on a whim. (Take United Airlines which, in March 2020, quietly changed their policy to claim that any delay less than 25 hours was not significant, and thus not refund-eligible.) Separately, if you booked a flight in 2021 but didn’t feel safe traveling amidst a new variant, you were usually only eligible for a voucher if the flight still operated. And on some airlines, those vouchers had expiration dates as little as 2 or 3 months down the line. Both those facts could soon change.

Proposed rule Earlier this month, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg proposed new regulations that, if enacted, would be the largest boost to traveler protections in years. First, the DOT would finally define “significant.” Under the proposal, a “significant” delay is 3+ hours on a domestic flight or 6+ hours on an international flight. Second, the DOT would require airlines to provide non-expiring vouchers for pandemic-related disruptions. This would include things like closed borders, stay-at-home orders, or even just if you didn’t feel safe to travel because of a serious communicable disease. And if an airline takes a bailout—as US airlines did to the tune of tens of billions of dollars—those passengers would be entitled to refunds rather than non-expiring vouchers.

Make your voice heard The proposed rule is currently in its required 90-day public comment period, after which the DOT will weigh feedback and finalize what final regulation (if any) to put forth. I guarantee airlines and their lobbyists will be registering their feedback in the hopes of watering down or even defeating this proposal. I’ve left a comment, and I’d encourage you to as well. (You can do so here in under 60 seconds.) Don’t let the “proposed” nature of the rule fool you; it’s quite likely to become law. It doesn’t need to pass Congress, it just needs to complete the agency rulemaking process. While it will likely take over a year to be finalized, Buttigieg has been an outspoken advocate of travelers’ rights, and I would be surprised if the proposal ultimately fails.

This is not the EU passenger protection law When I posted about this proposed rule on Twitter, many folks likened it to EC 261, the EU law that mandates up to 600 euros of compensation for delays or cancellations. There’s a big difference. The EU regulation gives you compensation and lets you keep your flight. This proposed rule only gives you a cash refund if you choose not to keep your flight. I’d love to see EC 261-style traveler protections in the US someday, but this isn’t it.

More to come? Also this month, Buttigieg sent notice to the airlines of possible further action if they don’t voluntarily improve operations. He singled out two things that airlines should currently be expected to provide: That airlines provide passengers with airport meal vouchers during 3+ hour delays. That airlines provide passengers with hotel vouchers when flight disruptions strand travelers overnight. While some airlines currently do this, it’s spotty at best and varies widely airline to airline and day to day. Though these two are not yet formally proposed regulations, if airlines don’t improve service, that could change.