Air Travel and Consumer Rights

As a dayslong winter storm threatens catastrophic ice, power outages and thousands of flight cancellations across roughly half the U.S. population, this piece explains what protections federal law actually gives stranded air travelers. Under U.S. Department of Transportation rules, if an airline cancels your flight for any reason and you choose not to travel, you are owed a full cash refund — even on a nonrefundable ticket — including bag fees and seat upgrades, which must be returned within seven business days if you paid by credit card. Airlines are not required to provide hotels or meal vouchers when bad weather is the cause, though some carriers will do more when disruptions stem from problems they control, such as crew shortages or IT failures; DOT now publishes a carrier-by-carrier comparison of those voluntary promises. The article notes that big airlines often issue preemptive 'travel waivers' to let passengers shift flights around storm windows without change fees and highlights American Airlines’ response — waiving change fees, pre-canceling more than 1,200 Saturday departures and adding over 3,200 extra seats into and out of Dallas–Fort Worth. It urges travelers to verify flight status via airline apps before heading to the airport, act quickly on rebooking, and research alternates while waiting for overwhelmed call centers and counter agents.