DOT Announces Rule Requiring Automatic Refunds of Airline Tickets and Service Fees for flights that are canceled or delayed more than 3 hours domestically and 6 hours internationally
Cash or original form of payment: Airlines and ticket agents must provide refunds in cash or whatever original payment method the individual used to make the purchase, such as credit card or airline miles. Airlines may not substitute vouchers, travel credits, or other forms of compensation unless the passenger affirmatively chooses to accept alternative compensation.
We have something similar in Canada. One of the budget airlines screwed us out of it by not declaring the delays past 2 hours 55 minutes. The flight ended up being delayed by 4 hours, but when I went for my refund they pulled out the declared delay.
So the flight was scheduled for 12:00. They kept announcing that it was delayed to 1:00, 2:00, and then at 2:55 they stopped announcing new delays. The flight ended up boarding at 3:30, but because they didn’t announce the delay every customer service rep said that I wasn’t entitled to compensation.
Why does it matter whether they announced it or not, if the flight took off more than 3 and a half hours after its scheduled departure, is that not more than a 3 hour delay by definition?
It is, but after spending like 5 hours arguing with different customer service reps about it I decided that it wasn’t worth my time. The company went out of business later anyways.
Canceled or significantly changed flights: Passengers will be entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered.
This is good also, that way passengers that just want to complete their journey can accept the delay or flight change.
It’s further good that it’s automatic, but you already know that airlines are going to push hard on passengers with notifications that say “accept [our preferred alternative] NOW while it’s still available” without mentioning that the refund is automatic, if they can get away with it.
Wait that wasn’t already the case? Unbelievable that it was ever possible for a company to wildly change what was agreed to and not be required to refund. This country is a shithole.
Add comment