The Biden administration has pushed for airlines to pay passengers cash compensation for flight cancellations and major delays as air travel is breaking records.
The administration already implemented a rule requiring airlines to pay ticket refunds, but this new proposal goes further.
What Is the Proposal?
With President Joe Biden’s term ending in less than seven weeks, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) said Thursday that it will seek public comment on requiring airlines to pay cash compensation, starting at $200, when their flight is canceled or significantly delayed because of a mechanical problem with the plane or an airline computer outage. DOT said it is considering cash compensation of up to $775 for delays of nine hours or more.
The department is also weighing allowing small airlines to pay less compensation than large ones.
Airlines passengers might also get to rebook on the next available flight at no additional cost, and free meals, overnight lodging and related transportation expenses when they get stranded. While many of the largest U.S. airlines already promise that kind of accommodation when a cancellation or delay is their fault, this would make it mandatory.
DOT will also seek public comment on how to differentiate between cancellations or delays that are within an airline’s control and those that are not.
Airlines Push Back
Airlines for America, an industry trade group, said the proposal would drive up the cost of airline tickets.
“In this highly competitive industry, carriers don’t need further incentive to provide quality service,” the trade group said in a statement. “This proposal is simply one in a long string of ill-conceived and rushed rules from an administration intent on reregulating the U.S. airline industry.”
Pete Buttigieg Discusses Transportation Under Trump
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Thursday that a “test” of President-elect Donald Trump’s 2024 election campaign, which he said ran on populist themes, will be if his incoming administration maintains the rules that President Biden’s administration put into place.
“One important test of that will be to see if the next administration follows through on what we have initiated and maintains the rules that we have created and the enforcement practices that we have created to hold airlines accountable,” Buttigieg said on MSNBC.
Buttigieg also said that protections for airline consumers have bipartisan support in Congress.
What Rules Has the Biden Administration Pushed?
In April, the DOT issued a new rule requiring airlines to automatically issue cash refunds to passengers within a few days for canceled flights and significant delays.
At the time, the DOT issued a rule requiring airlines to more clearly disclose fees when they advertise flight prices, prompting airlines to sue the DOT in an effort to kill the rule. Judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked enforcement of the rule in July while the case is litigated.
Airlines have also opposed a current DOT inquiry into their frequent-flyer programs.
Buttigieg wrote to the CEOs of Delta, Southwest, American Airlines and United Airlines in September, asking each for a report on policies, fees and other features of their loyalty programs.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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