The Department of Transportation is working on new rules that would require airlines to compensate passengers for "controllable" flight cancelations or delays.
Currently, ten major airlines provide free rebooking on the same airline and meals if a flight is subject to a lengthy delay or is canceled. In addition, nine airlines will also guarantee to cover the costs of a hotel if necessary.
Under the proposed rules, airlines would have to give customers a "meal or meal voucher, overnight accommodations, ground transportation to and from the hotel, and rebooking for controllable delays or cancellations."
The push for new rules comes after a rough holiday season for airlines when thousands of flights a day were delayed or canceled due to bad weather, a lack of available flight crews, and a shortage of pilots. That left hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded at airports across the country, with many having to pay exorbitant prices to book new flights on different airlines to get home.
The new rules would provide clarity about what passengers are entitled to if their flight is delayed or canceled. To aid consumers during the rulemaking process, the DOT set up a website, FlightRights.Gov, which provides information about airlines' policies on delays and cancellations.
"When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "This rule would, for the first time in U.S. history, propose to require airlines to compensate passengers and cover expenses such as meals, hotels, and rebooking in cases where the airline has caused a cancellation or significant delay."