Winter weather\u00a0can upend even the best-laid travel plans, but one less thing to worry about is losing money if your flight is canceled: U.S. airlines are\u00a0required to provide refunds.<\/p>\n
A monster storm started to wreak havoc Saturday across parts of the country, with some areas already experiencing power outages. Forecasters warned that catastrophic damage, especially in areas pounded by ice, could rival that of a hurricane.<\/p>\n
Thousands of weekend flights have been canceled. Oklahoma\u2019s largest airport called off all of its flights Saturday.<\/p>\n
Keep an eye on weather forecasts<\/p>\n
When airlines expect bad weather to create problems for flights, they often give travelers a chance to postpone their trips by a few days without having to pay a fee. Airlines might also Search online for your airline\u2019s name and \u201ctravel alerts\u201d or similar phrases to look for possible rescheduling offers.<\/p>\n
American Airlines, for example, said it is waiving change fees for passengers impacted by the storm and adding extra flights around the country in an effort to help passengers reach their destination after the storm passes. The Texas-based airline has canceled more than 2,000 weekend flights, according to flight-tracking site FlightAware.<\/p>\n
Check before going to the airport<\/p>\n
Use the airline\u2019s app to make sure your flight is still on before heading to the airport. Cancellations can happen hours or even days before departure time.<\/p>\n
My flight was canceled, now what?<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re already at the airport, get in line to speak to a customer service representative. If you\u2019re still at home or at your hotel, call or go online to connect to your airline\u2019s reservations staff. Either way, it helps to also research alternate flights while you wait to talk to an agent.<\/p>\n
Most airlines will rebook you on a later flight for no additional charge, but it depends on the availability of open seats.<\/p>\n
Can I get booked on another airline?<\/p>\n
You can, but airlines aren\u2019t required to put you on another carrier\u2019s flight. Some airlines, including most of the biggest carriers, say they can put you on a partner airline, but even then it can be a hit or miss.<\/p>\n
Am I owed a refund?<\/p>\n
If your flight was canceled and you no longer want to take the trip, or you\u2019ve found another way to get to your destination, the airline is legally required to refund your money \u2014 even if you bought a non-refundable ticket. It doesn\u2019t matter why the flight was canceled.<\/p>\n
The airline might offer you a travel credit, but you are entitled to a full refund. You are also entitled to a refund of any bag fees, seat upgrades or other extras that you didn\u2019t get to use.<\/p>\n
When will I get my refund?<\/p>\n
If you paid with a credit card, a refund is due within seven business days after you decline an offer from the airline for another flight or a voucher, and within 20 calendar days if you paid for the ticket with a check or cash, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.<\/p>\n
What else will my airline cover?<\/p>\n
U.S. airlines\u00a0aren\u2019t required\u00a0by the Transportation Department to compensate passengers for meals or lodging when an airline cancels or significantly delays a flight during an \u201cuncontrollable\u201d event like bad weather.<\/p>\n
Each airline, however, does have its own policies for assisting passengers who are stranded by a so-called \u201ccontrollable\u201d flight cancellation or long delay. These include disruptions caused by maintenance issues, crew shortages or computer outages that halt operations. The Transportation Department can hold airlines accountable for these commitments and maintains a website that lets travelers see what each\u00a0airline promises\u00a0if a major disruption is their fault.<\/p>\n
Other tips<\/p>\n
If the weather forecast is troubling, Kyle Potter, executive editor of Thrifty Traveler, suggests looking into booking a backup flight. Some airlines stand out as potential backups, Potter says, because they let customers get a full refund as long as they cancel within 24 hours of booking.<\/p>\n
The customer service phone lines will be slammed if flight cancellations and delays start stacking up during a bad storm. If you\u2019re traveling with someone who has a higher frequent-flyer status, call the airline using their priority number. Another trick: Look up the airline\u2019s international support number. Those agents can often rebook you just the same.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Winter weather\u00a0can upend even the best-laid travel plans, but one less thing to worry about is losing money…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":427653,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,3,21,19,22,20,25,24],"class_list":{"0":"post-427652","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-united-states-of-america","12":"tag-unitedstates","13":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","14":"tag-us","15":"tag-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=427652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/427653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=427652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=427652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=427652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}