One positive thing to come from the pandemic is that most airlines in the United States no longer have change fees on most kinds of fares. That’s exciting, since it makes the process of booking a flight much lower stakes. It’s much easier to now speculatively book a ticket, especially if you frequently fly with an airline, and could use a voucher toward a future trip.
However, there’s often still confusion about under what circumstances you’re eligible for a cash refund in the event of an airline cancellation or delay (either in the form of a schedule change in advance, or even in the event of irregular operations day of). In this post I wanted to take a closer look at that.
US DOT policy on airline ticket refunds
The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) has rules regarding under what circumstances airlines are required to provide cash refunds to customers. While the DOT airline customer service dashboard is a generally helpful tool, let’s look specifically at refund policies regarding delays and cancellations, especially as these rules have been updated in recent times.
The DOT states that passengers are entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits. How is a “significantly changed” flight defined? It includes:
- When a departure or arrival time has been changed by more than three hours domestically, or by more than six hours internationally
- When a flight has been changed to a different departure or arrival airport
- When the number of connections on an itinerary has increased
- When passengers are downgraded to a lower class of service
As you can see, the DOT makes it clear that you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, regardless of how much of a delay it causes, and regardless of the cause of the cancellation. Meanwhile a departure or arrival time change of three hours for a domestic itinerary, or six hours for an international itinerary, would also make you eligible for a refund.
Let me emphasize that we’re talking here about real refunds (meaning to your original form of payment), rather than an airline voucher (which many people are nowadays entitled to even when voluntarily making changes).
These policies apply on all flights to and from the United States, regardless of which airlines operate them. Of course regulations will differ around the globe.
Airline policies on refunds for cancelled and delayed flights
As explained above, in the United States you’re always entitled to a refund to your original form of payment for cancelled flights. Meanwhile for flights with schedule changes, there needs to be either a three hour change for domestic flights, or a six hour change for international flights.
Some airline exactly follow DOT rules, while some airlines have policies that are more generous than those that are required, so I wanted to talk about that in this post. What are the policies of six of the biggest airlines in the United States?
Alaska refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to Alaska’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic flight, and by more than six hours on an international flight. The airline exactly follows the DOT requirements, and does nothing more.
American refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to American’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic flight, and by more than four hours on an international flight.
Delta refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to Delta’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic or international flight.
JetBlue refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to JetBlue’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic flight, and by more than six hours on an international flight. Much like Alaska, Southwest, and United, JetBlue exactly follows the DOT requirements.
Southwest refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to Southwest’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic flight, and by more than six hours on an international flight. Much like Alaska, JetBlue, and United, Southwest exactly follows the DOT requirements.
United refund policy for delayed and cancelled flights
According to United’s contract of carriage, you’re entitled to a refund if your flight is canceled, or if there’s a schedule change resulting in the arrival or departure time changing by more than three hours on a domestic flight, and by more than six hours on an international flight. Much like Alaska, JetBlue, and Southwest, United exactly follows the DOT requirements, and does nothing more.
What recourse do you have if airlines refuse refunds?
Post-pandemic, airlines are pretty good about following their published policies when it comes to refunds for cancellations or schedule changes. However, what happens if you do run into issues (this is probably more common with non-US airlines on flights to & from the United States)?
File a complaint with the DOT
This is unlikely to get you an immediate resolution, but if you are being denied a refund even though you’re legally entitled to one, I recommend filing a complaint with the US DOT.
These count against the airlines, and long term airlines might face fines for violating DOT regulations.
Dispute the charge on your credit card
Simply put, airlines are violating federal laws by refusing a refund if your flight is cancelled, and for the most part they’re also violating their own contracts of carriage. If you’ve tried every method for getting a refund but are denied, a credit card dispute might be the next logical step.
Bottom line
In the United States, you’re entitled to a refund to your original form of payment in the event that your flight is cancelled, whether that’s in advance (as part of a schedule change) or on the day of departure.
You’re also entitled to a cash refund in the case of a significant delay or schedule change. The DOT defines this as a schedule change (to arrival and/or departure) of three hours for domestic flights, and six hours for international flights. However, some airlines have more generous policies than what the DOT mandates.
What has your experience been with cash refunds for airline cancellations and delays?
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