Air travel has been more finicky these days, with an uptick in flight cancellations and delays.
Now, President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will take a look at a new rule that will direct airlines to compensate and pay for customer expenses when there are “controllable airline cancellations” or delays, a White House official said via CNN.
“When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill,” Buttigieg said in a release. “This rule would, for the first time in U.S. history, propose to require airlines to compensate passengers and cover expenses such as meals, hotels, and rebooking in cases where the airline has caused a cancellation or significant delay.”
There are zero airlines that cover any of the aforementioned expenses when an easily avoidable cancellation or delay happens. Right now, only one airline ensures it will give out frequent flyer miles, and two give travel credits and vouchers to customers.
The guidelines would include what is considered a “controllable cancellation or delay.” Canada and the European Union have similar rules already in place.
In addition, the Department of Transportation will be introducing a redeveloped Airline Customer Service Dashboard on FlightRights.gov, where more information about airlines compensation and coverage can be found.
Biden and Buttigieg made the announcement in response to criticism over the enormous number of flight cancellations that happened at the end of 2022. Southwest Airlines alone canceled at least 5,500 scheduled flights in late December.
