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Comment by stavros | Hacker News Reader

Wait wait wait. Requires airlines to refund? Not to compensate, but to give you your money back? What did they do before?!

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You have long been entitled to a refund for canceled flights. The new rules regard “substantial delays”.

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/money-flight-cance...

Vouchers or tell you that they are not required by law to compensate you, like United told me. (United would have owed me at least five refunds under the new rules)

How is it possible that you pay me to provide a service, I don't provide the service, and just keep your money? This sounds outrageous.

They would book you on another flight. They wouldn't necessarily compensate you for the delayed/canceled flight.

What if I don't want/can't make the other flight? If I book a hotel for the 20th, and they overbooked and can only give me a room on the 25th, they don't get to keep my money even if I don't want the 25th.

Right, that's where they should refund you, and now they would be required to.

Before, I think it was a matter where once the airlines had your cash, they were loathe to give it back.

The analogy isn’t really fair. Honestly, getting the date right on a hotel stay is often more important than getting it right on a flight. Both are an inconvenience, and a good chance that both are major, but really…it’s different. If I get back from my holiday or business trip a day late, it sucks, but it’s workable. If I get to my hotel, they tell me they oversold, but not to worry they’ll fit me in tomorrow…well, I still need somewhere to stay.

This really needs to be considered on its own merits. And, in my view, it still happens to warrant a refund, when asked, when the delay is significant.

I don't see it that way. Most of my travel (and what I assume is true for the majority) is that they are traveling to a location because of an event, be it work or personal. If I am delayed a day, then there is no longer any reason to travel, because I've missed the meeting or event. Every time this has occurred it is quite problematic.

Conversely, with a hotel, if they overbooked and I cannot stay there, there are usually quite a few locations nearby where I can get a room for a night. I've had this happen a few times and it's never been more than a minor inconvenience.

Cancelled/delayed flights can mess with visa/immigration, mess with events (imagine being the speaker to a conference/doing a tour and then not being able to show up because your flight was delayed or cancelled), and even hotel rooms (some places will void your reservation if you don't show up). Also if you get stuck in an area for an extra day it's effectively the same as having gotten the date wrong on a hotel. I've gotten screwed due to a soccer playoff in the EU once happening the same weekend I was supposed to crash at a friend's place

IDK, they both suck.

Rebooking onto another flight is often going to be the most economical option, since flights tend to be a lot more expensive on/near the date of travel.

its part of the carraige agreement you "sign" when you buy a ticket

Yes, when regulations don’t protect consumers, the outcome is generally considered ridiculous.

the problem is republicans don't like consumer rights, they like business rights. it's like the age old US vs EU difference of "freedom TO" vs "freedom FROM", or positive vs negative freedoms.

If you're a big company that's effectively business as usual.

shitty voucher system

Wow

Vouchers are fine but Airlines should be forced to pay 200% in vouchers or 100% cash and the choice should be very clear to the customer.

Often they would provide you vouchers or something that were attached to some confirmation number that was never listed anywhere.

>Requires airlines to refund?

No. The headline is a lie. See the article:

>The DOT rules lay out that passengers will be "entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered."

In other words, evermore useless travel credits will be accepted and nothing will have fundamentally changed.

I’m reading the sentence you quote and I don’t understand how you’re arriving at that understanding.

If my flight is cancelled I’m entitled to a refund if I refuse any other compensatory measures?

Are you not interpreting the "and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered" clause to mean that the customers have a choice to take the refund?

The wording definitely implies that customers may be offered alternative transportation or travel credits, but that they have the right to not accept those, and take a refund instead.

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