Thanksgiving travel will see millions flying heres how airline refund rules can help when flights are canceled, delayed

Over the next month, there will be millions of travelers passing through airports around the nation.Unfortunately, the holidays are synonymous with travel disruptions, including delayed or canceled flights.But this year, before the 2024 holiday season kicked off, the Biden administration’s new rules, which require automatic cash refunds for canceled or significantly delayed flights, took effect. The new automatic refund rule, first laid out in April by the Department of Transportation (DOT), created a universal standard for when airline passengers on flights to, from or within the U.S.are owed refunds. Prior to the rule taking effect, airlines set their own standards for what flight changes warranted a refund.Passengers then had to “navigate a patchwork of cumbersome processes to request refunds owed to them,” the DOT said.The rule was established to “address persistent issues reported by airline passengers who were trying to obtain refunds they were owed,” the DOT said.For the first time, travelers will know the types of flight changes that warrant a refund if the passenger chooses not to continue with booked travel. The rules also specify that a canceled flight would entitle a passenger to a refund if the passenger does not continue with their booked trip.

It will also require airlines to provide automatic refunds to passengers when refunds are owed. A passenger is entitled to a refund if: 1.A flight is canceled for any reason and the airline does not rebook the passenger on another flight or the passenger does not proactively accept alternative compensation such as a flight voucher or miles. 2.

A flight is canceled and the passenger does not accept the airline’s offer to rebook them or provide alternative compensation. 3.A flight is “significantly changed” and the passenger does not accept the changed itinerary or any offers of rebooking or other types of compensation. According to the DOT, a “significant change” is defined as a s...