Airlines have now been told they must give automatic refunds under a new Department of Transportation rule that went into effect this week. Flyers are now guaranteed their money back should a flight be delayed or cancelled, and they won’t need to file any paperwork. The new regulation is an attempt to incentivize airlines to minimize flight disruptions, delays and cancellations. When an airline knows that passengers are actually going to get their money back, it gives them a different set of reasons to schedule realistically, making delays and cancellations less likely to happen. With the new regulation comes a strict definition of what constitutes a “significant change.” Under the new law, a significant change will be defined as any change to a flight that includes a 3-hour or longer delay for domestic flights and at least a 6-hour delay on international flights. An automatic refund will also be issued if a passenger is downgraded to a lower class of service or to a plane that’s less accommodating to a passenger with disabilities. Any change to a flight’s departure or arrival airport, as well as if a passenger paid to select a particular seat but were forced to sit elsewhere, will result in an automatic refund. Should any checked luggage not be delivered within 12 hours of a domestic flight or within 15 to 30 hours of an international flight arriving at their gates, under the new regulation airlines must now refund any checked bag fees passengers have paid.
