When you’ve ever been stranded on the gate with a canceled flight and an apologetic agent, questioning in case you’re entitled to greater than imprecise guarantees that the airline will “make it proper,” there’s a software that may assist—and quick.
In September 2022, following a summer time of sweeping travel-related chaos, the U.S. Division of Transportation (DOT) launched a web site to higher arm vacationers with details about what they’re owed for flight cancellations and delays. Although there have been many modifications throughout the federal government for the reason that latest administration has taken workplace, this interactive dashboard, often called the Aviation Shopper Safety web site, stays. It gives vacationers somewhat transparency—and albeit, accountability—round how airways deal with delays and cancellations.
Right here’s how to determine what airways owe you for delayed or canceled flights, in 20 seconds or much less.
How the Aviation Shopper Safety web site works
The Airline Buyer Service Dashboard is obtainable on the Division of Transportation web site—although you possibly can attain it quickest by going to FlightRights.gov, the place you’ll mechanically be redirected. As soon as there, scroll down till you see Flight Delays & Cancellations and click on the icon.
The software is supposed to assist vacationers discover easy-to-read, comparative info on what sort of refunds or compensation their airline owes them when there’s a cancellation or delay, per a letter former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg despatched to the ten largest U.S. airways in mid-August 2022, earlier than the rollout of the dashboard.
The dashboard compares all the most important home airways’ insurance policies on varied points, together with which airways supply meals for delays of greater than three hours and which supply to rebook flights on the identical or totally different airways at no extra cost. As of the time of reporting, all 10 airways supply meal vouchers when a cancellation leads to passengers ready for 3 or extra hours, and all airways will rebook passengers on the identical airline at no extra price. Solely Alaska, American, Delta, Hawaiian, JetBlue, and United will rebook on a accomplice airline; Allegiant, Frontier, Southwest, and Spirit won’t.
Of all of the airways, Alaska and Hawaiian supply probably the most beneficiant commitments. Every grants complimentary resort lodging for passengers affected by an in a single day cancellation, transportation to and from that resort, and a journey voucher and/or frequent flyer miles when a cancellation leads to a passenger ready three or extra hours from the scheduled departure time. For its half, Frontier gives the least—only a meal voucher and a rebooking on the identical airline.
It’s price noting that the dashboard solely focuses on what it calls “controllable” cancellations or delays—that means these attributable to mechanical points, staffing shortages, or delays in cleansing, fueling, or baggage dealing with. Delays or cancellations attributable to climate or safety considerations don’t rely. Nonetheless, with this info, you may be totally armed with the information as you converse with an airline agent. No extra settling for $10 to make use of on overpriced granola bars at an airport Hudson Ebook while you’re entitled to a resort room.
Why was the Aviation Shopper Safety web site created?
The dashboard was solely lately launched within the U.S., whereas in Europe, air passenger protections have been in place for years. Below EU laws, vacationers are sometimes entitled to standardized compensation for delays, cancellations, or denied boarding—advantages that go effectively past what most U.S. airways are at the moment required to supply. Whereas the DOT’s dashboard didn’t create new authorized obligations, it’s a important shift towards transparency in a rustic the place passenger rights have lengthy been much less outlined.
The dashboard was a part of an prolonged stress marketing campaign from Buttigieg, who, throughout his tenure within the Biden administration, publicly challenged the most important carriers to enhance service and transparency—notably after a summer time marred by cancellations and flight delays.
Buttigieg referred to as the extent of disruption Individuals skilled that summer time of 2022 “unacceptable.” He cited knowledge for the primary half of the yr, noting that 24 % of flights originating in the USA had been delayed and one other 3.2 % had been canceled. For context, in the course of the entirety of 2022, 20.46 % of flights have been delayed by a minimum of quarter-hour, a quantity that elevated to twenty.48 % in 2024, in response to the most up-to-date Bureau of Transportation statistics. Canceled flights, nevertheless, dropped from 2.69 % in 2022 to 1.36 % in 2024, nearly the bottom quantity in a decade, which, on the time, the DOT attributed to elevated consideration from regulatory our bodies and a stronger emphasis on airline accountability.
The brand new software, Buttigieg mentioned in a press release in 2022, would assist vacationers “simply perceive their rights, evaluate airline practices, and make knowledgeable choices.”
Present DOT guidelines require home airways to supply clients refunds for canceled flights. Nevertheless, what clients are owed for delayed flights hasn’t all the time been straightforward to discern, although the knowledge is federally required to be part of airways’ Buyer Service Plans.
“When passengers do expertise cancellations and delays, they deserve clear and clear info on the providers that your airline will present, to handle the bills and inconveniences ensuing from these disruptions,” Buttigieg mentioned.
At a minimal, the DOT asks that airways present meal vouchers for delays of greater than three hours and lodging for passengers who’ve to attend in a single day at an airport due to disruptions inside a provider’s management.
“No matter the reason for the delays or cancellations, the Division expects airways to supply well timed and responsive customer support throughout and after intervals of flight disruptions,” Buttigieg mentioned.
This text was initially printed on September 1, 2022, and was up to date with new info on April 7, 2025.
