Trump is changing Biden-era airline rules that will affect stranded passengers
The Trump administration is changing how stranded passengers will be compensated, a move slammed by large parts of the travel industry.
When Sean Duffy was appointed transportation secretary by Donald Trump in January 2025, he promised to usher in a a 'golden age' of transportation.
Since then, the department has removed many airline rules introduced by Joe Biden, including rolling back passenger rights in areas such as compensation and hidden fees.
Right now, airlines across the US will be able to assist stranded passengers with meals, hotels, or other assistance for delays or cancellations based on the reason for such disruption.
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While fuel problems or maintenance issues are typically seen as being within the control of the airline, air traffic control issues and extreme weather is not.
But now, the Department of Transportation has recategorised ten travel events being moved from within the airline's control to outside the carrier's control.
Effective from October 19, airlines operating in the US will not be expected to provide compensation on the following issues:
- Aircraft cleaning necessitated by the death of a passenger
- Damage caused by extreme weather, foreign object debris (FOD), or sabotage.
- Third-party baggage outages
- Cybersecurity attacks, given the airline was fully compliant with federal cybersecurity regulations
- Government system failures
- Overheated brakes as a result of a safety incident leading to the use of emergency procedures
- Unscheduled maintenance that occurred outside a scheduled program
- Medical emergencies not caused by the airline
- Delays because of unruly passengers
- Airport closures caused specifically by volcanic ash, wind, or wind shear
While these changes are certainly monumental, what isn't changing is the right to refund if your flight is significantly delayed.
Regardless of whether the delay is the airline's fault or not, passengers are entitled to a refund if their flight is delayed by more than three hours domestically and more than six hours flying outside of the US.
The Department of Transportation told the New York Times that 'no passenger rights have been diminished' as a result of the latest changes, after some within the industry criticised the move.
William McGee, from the American Economic Liberties Project, said: "It’s a really dark period for airline passengers right now as far as consumer rights.
"Clearly, the big airlines have access. They have the ear of the department, and the interests of consumers are not being heard.”
Callum Jones