US airlines are required to refund you for a canceled flight automatically

By Pete Muntean, CNN

(CNN) — Airlines in the United States are now required to give passengers cash refunds if their flight is significantly delayed or canceled, even if that person does not explicitly ask for a refund.

The Department of Transportation says the final federal rule requiring that airlines dole out refunds — not vouchers — went into effect Monday. The major change is being implemented only a month before the start of what is likely to be a huge holiday travel season.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg made the announcement on X after he first presented the proposed rule back in April. “Today, our automatic refund rule goes into full effect,” Buttigieg posted. “Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them—without headaches or haggling.”

The new rule mandates that refunds are automatically processed by an airline if a passenger’s flight is “canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept the significantly changed flight, rebooking on an alternative flight, or alternative compensation.”

The Department of Transportation says airlines must then refund a passenger within seven business days if they bought a ticket on a credit card and within 20 calendar days if they used another form of payment.

The move has faced pushback from the airline industry. In July, Buttigieg told airlines that they must make clear to passengers when they are entitled to a refund.

In a statement, industry lobby Airlines for America said, “we support the automatic refund rule and are happy to accommodate customers with a refund when they choose not to be rebooked.”

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