You will now automatically receive refunds for canceled flights and long delays

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Flight delays and cancellations are some of the most stressful issues you can face while traveling. More headaches? Trying to get flight cancellation compensation from the airline for your plane ticket or for any additional charges you paid for, e.g. checked baggage.

But now travelers have one less thing to worry about thanks to new automatic refund rules that officially went into effect on October 28, 2024. The Department of Transportation is now requiring airlines to provide automatic refunds to passengers if their flight is cancelled or changed significantly. This means that money will be automatically refunded if the passenger refuses the changed flight schedule, rebooking to an alternative flight or other compensation such as a flight voucher.

The DOT first announced the new federal rules on how – and when –airlines customers must pay back in April 2024. The new rules apply to flights to, from or within the United States on foreign or domestic carriersmaking them some of the most consumer-friendly regulations the industry has seen to date.

“Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them — without the headaches or haggling,” said Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. said on X. “Airlines are required to provide immediate refunds without passengers having to request them.”

Here’s an overview of the new rules and their impact on passengers:

Refunds for significant flight changes and cancellations

Under the new rules, passengers are entitled to automatic reimbursement of their travel costs to flee that have been cancelled, significantly postponed or undergoing “significant change”. whatever reason– including ‘uncontrollable’ factors such as the weather. This only applies if no alternative transport or travel vouchers are available or are rejected by the passenger. That is the most important condition. If an airline can book you on another flight (on the same day or even the next day) and you accept this, the new rules do not apply. But if you refuse the rebooking, you are entitled to an automatic refund.

Additionally, the new rule defines for the first time what the DOT considers a “significant change.” Adjustments to a flight itinerary that meet any of the following criteria will be considered significantly modified and therefore entitled to a full refund:

Changes in departure or arrival times exceeding 3 hours domestically and 6 hours internationally
Departure or arrival from another airport
Increase in the number of connections
Instances where passengers are downgraded to a lower class of service
Connections at different airports or flights on different aircraft that are less accessible or suitable for a person with disabilities

This is a big change – and a major problem for passenger rights – because the government previously left it up to the airlines to choose what they considered a delay long enough to warrant a refund. (This means they were given infrequently.)

In another win for travelers, the DOT has outlined how refunds should be issued. The refunds should be issued automatically “without passengers having to explicitly request them or jump through hoops.” They must also be submitted promptly, within seven business days for credit card purchases and within 20 calendar days for other payment methods. Refunds must be equal to the full amount a customer paid, including taxes and fees, minus any portion of the ticket used.

Late baggage refund

But it’s not just flight disruptions that are eligible for refunds under the new rules. This also applies to baggage delays. Flyers who file a mishandled baggage report with the airline and whose delayed baggage is not delivered to them within 12 hours of their domestic flight or 15 to 30 hours of their international flight (depending on flight duration) can receive a full refund of their baggage fees. And those costs can add up – as travelers well know – especially in light of widespread pricing this year Checked baggage fees are increasing. To file a mishandled baggage report, go to your airline’s baggage service office at the airport (usually right next to the baggage claim area) and request a ‘Property Irregularity Report’ (PIR) with a reference number that you can then use to complete the mishandled baggage report on the airline’s website.

Refunds for onboard services

Passengers are now also entitled to automatic refunds for in-flight services they paid for but were not provided by the airline. These costs include services such as seat selection, Wi-Fi during the flightAnd in-flight entertainment purchases. If you pay for one of these add-ons and it is not delivered (for example, if the WiFi not workingor you don’t get the seat you paid for), you will get your money back for those services.

Reimbursement if you are ill

The new regulations also provide a framework for protecting travelers if they cannot travel due to “a serious communicable disease” such as COVID-19. If a country or medical professional advises passengers not to travel to, from or within the US for this reason, airlines are entitled to a travel voucher or airline credit valid for at least five years. Unlike the reimbursement scenarios above, airlines may require passengers to provide additional documentation, such as a doctor’s note, to receive this compensation.

These protection measures are intended to prevent problems that arose during the pandemic from recurring. In 2020, many passengers whose flights were canceled due to travel restrictions struggled to get refunds from their airlines. Airlines were later collectively fined $7.5 million by the DOT for delaying refunds and forced to return $600 million to customers.

However, the new protection for sick travelers apply even if the U.S. government has not declared a public health emergency, as long as a qualified treating medical professional has advised you not to travel because you “have contracted (or are likely to contract) a serious communicable disease and an immediate would pose a threat to the health of others,” he said last line.

What else you need to know

Overall, the new rule is intended to streamline the refund process for all these services and flight disruptions. “Without this rule, consumers must navigate a patchwork of cumbersome processes to request and receive a refund – searching airline websites to figure out how to submit the request, filling out additional ‘digital paperwork’ or sometimes waiting on the phone for hours,” the DOTs statement say.

In addition, airlines must now issue notices to flyers affected by delays and cancellations stating their right to a refund of their ticket price and additional service fees.

If travelers believe their airline is not following the new refund rules, they can always do so file a consumer complaint with the DOT. These complaints contributed to the record amount of passenger refunds during the COVID pandemic, as well as the $164 million in fines Buttigieg imposed on airlines for consumer violations during his term. So you can be sure that the agency reads them and acts on them.

Originally published on Condé Nast Traveler

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