- With the first rule that we're announcing today,
the Biden-Harris administration is now requiring
that if an airline cancels
or significantly delays your flight, within seven days,
they will be required to provide an automatic refund
to the credit card that you used to book it
without you having to call or wait on hold
or sort through digital paperwork or haggle
with that airline.
Importantly, we are also changing the refund
to clarify that it must be in cash by default
unless a passenger actively chooses another form
of compensation, rather than the other way around.
No more defaulting to vouchers or credits
when consumers may not even realize
that they are entitled to cash.
We're also putting another rule on the books
protecting airline passengers from being surprised by fees.
These charges can really add up for things
like a checked bag, carry-on bag,
change fees, cancellation fees.
Healthy competition requires that, as a consumer,
you comparison shop, which means knowing the real price
of a trip before, and not after, you buy.
So airlines will now be required
to show you these costs upfront
so you have all the information you need to decide
what travel option is best for you.