Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are widening the window in which travelers can rebook itineraries that have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Delta Air Lines recently updated its waiver policy to allow passengers to rebook travel without any change fees through the end of May, 2022.
Only flights booked for travel in April or May of 2020 are so far eligible for the full waiver. That also includes flights that are purchased now through the end of May, which may allay some travelers’ fears of booking itineraries with close-in departure dates.
In addition to being able to change the date of travel, passengers can also change the destination and apply credit from the canceled fare. Delta’s full terms of service of the waiver are now available on its website.
United Airlines followed suit with Delta with nearly identical terms. Its website containing waiver information has also been updated.
Typically, when an airline changes or cancels a flight and when a credit goes back to a traveler that person has a full year in which to make use of the voucher. In light of current unknowns around when the coronavirus threat will pass, however, airlines are starting to build more flexibility into waivers.
In broadening the waivers, the airlines are also helping the ticket credit stay within the airline’s ecosystem rather than escaping into a full-fledged refund. Over the past several weeks, airlines have come under increased pressure to offer the option for refunds instead of credits for any flights canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Recently, the Department of Transportation issued an enforcement notice to carriers, underscoring “that U.S. and foreign airlines remain obligated to provide a prompt refund to passengers for flights to, within, or from the United States when the carrier cancels the passenger’s scheduled flight or makes a significant schedule change and the passenger chooses not to accept the alternative offered by the carrier.”
Offering full refunds, however, creates the risk that travelers won’t return to book travel at a later date — so from an air carrier’s perspective its preferable to issue credit rather than a full of refund.
That extra flexibility may be the tenor that defines the airline industry’s strategies for the next several weeks as uncertainty around the long term impact of coronavirus continues. Last month, several air carriers extended loyalty program benefits for frequent flyers through the entirety of 2021 knowing that many travelers may not be able to re qualify; so far, no domestic carrier has followed suit.
With long term travel forecasts still in the air though, the best that many carriers can do is try to stay flexible and hold tight until a long term strategy can be built. Until then, concessions from airlines to travelers may have to be fluid as the travel landscape daily.
