Chile! The Ministry of Transport does not play games with airlines and gives its customers cash refunds! The final details of the policy were finalized on Wednesday (April 25). Now airlines must pay out these cash refunds for canceled flights within a few days.
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More about the policy New policy for airlines and cash refunds
The new measure will reportedly also cover flights that experience “significant” delays.
According to the Associated Press, airlines must issue refunds “within days” of the affected date.
Under current regulations, airlines decide how long a delay must last before a refund is issued. The administration eliminates this flexibility by defining a significant delay as at least three hours for domestic flights and six hours for international flights.
To be clear, the new measure will still allow airlines to offer travel credits or other flight options. However, customers have the right to refuse this offer.
What else do customers receive refunds for?
This cash refund mandate also applies to the refund of checked baggage fees if customers do not receive their baggage within a certain time period. The time frame is 12 hours for domestic flights and 15 to 30 hours for international flights.
And that’s not the only W for customers. Airlines must also increase their efforts to disclose high baggage fees and cancel reservations.
The Transportation Department has issued a separate rule requiring airlines and ticket agents to disclose in advance what fees they charge for checked and carry-on baggage and for canceling or changing a reservation. Airline websites must display fees when customers first see a price and flight schedule.
If you pay for WiFi on the plane and it doesn’t work, you’ll get a refund.
And what about seat selection? Airlines must now guarantee passengers seats ahead of flights that do not require additional payment. However, airlines may still charge fees for selecting certain fees. This rule alone is expected to save passengers over $500 million per year, according to the Department of Transportation.
Why and when are these changes taking place?
So why these changes? According to the AP, complaints about refunds skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for cancellations. Even as airlines canceled flights, many people did not feel safe sharing an airplane cabin with other passengers.
The new rules will come into force in the next two years. They’re part of a broader government attack on what President Joe Biden calls “junk fees.”
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