Members of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Subcommittee on Aviation Tuesday urged U.S. airlines to relax cancellation policies for the safety of airline workers and passengers who travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a letter to Airlines for American, an airline industry organization, Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; Sam Graves (R-MO), ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; Rick Larson (D-WA), chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation; and Garret Graves (R-LA), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Aviation, wrote the airlines should adopt the most flexible cancellation and rescheduling policies practical.
The letter comes after a DOT notification to airlines that if the carrier is forced to cancel a flight, they should offer prompt refunds to passengers and that that standard applies even if the carrier had to cancel the flight for reasons out of its control. The DOTs notification came after increased complaints from passengers, the Representative’s letter said.
“We acknowledge the indisputable fact that a requirement for refunds of all tickets would effectively bankrupt the industry, putting hundreds of thousands of workers’ jobs in jeopardy. But we believe carriers should adopt the most liberal policies practicable to accommodate passengers who have cancelled their travel plans,” the letter said. “For example, because some analysts do not forecast the airline industry will recover for two to five years, we encourage airlines to consider extending all electronic travel credits or vouchers for such passengers beyond the next year or making such credits or vouchers transferable. Further, we do not believe change fees should be charged to those passengers. Finally, airlines should permit maximum flexibility for passengers to change their itineraries and their refund policies should take into account the needs of certain passenger demographics who may be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, including senior citizens and travelers with disabilities.”
Noting that some travelers do not have the luxury of knowing when or if they’ll be able to rebook their travel, the lawmakers urged airlines to adopt the most flexible policies practicable, including extending the expiration date for travel credit and vouchers; making travel credit and vouchers transferable; waiving change fees; and taking into account the particular needs of certain passenger demographics particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, including senior citizens and travelers with disabilities.”
The letter also stressed airlines need to ensure that they implement measures to limit the spread of COVID-19 for travelers and airline employees.
“We strongly urge that, during this public health emergency, your airline members ensure strict adherence to public health guidance regarding physical distancing as passengers board and when they are seated in the airplane, regardless of their fare class. . . ,” the letter said. “We would also urge your airline members to adopt clear, enforceable policies, accompanied by clear guidance to frontline workers, such as crewmembers and airport customer service agents, that require flight attendants and passengers to wear masks or other face coverings for the entirety of their air travel during this public health emergency.”