Compensation for disrupted flights. Refunds for faulty services such as broken Wi-Fi. Transparent airfares, and certain protections for disabled travelers whose wheelchairs are damaged. All were airline passenger protections championed by the Biden administration. Now, it looks like the Trump administration is seeking to roll them back.
Recent filings by the Transportation Department indicate that it is looking to loosen the rules on the aviation industry — something the nation’s largest carriers have increasingly pushed for — undoing the policies of the previous administration.
While some rules covering passenger rights are set to be eliminated, others have been flagged for updates, according to the Transportation Department’s agenda of proposed regulatory changes, released last week.
The Transportation Department and Airlines for America, a trade group representing the country’s biggest carriers, argue that these rollbacks are course correcting from years of government overreach.
Nate Sizemore, a spokesman for the Transportation Department, said in a statement that the department would enforce all aviation consumer protection requirements mandated by Congress, including the requirement to refund tickets to passengers if flights are canceled or substantially delayed. But he said some of the rules proposed or adopted under the Biden administration went beyond what was required by law. “We intend to reconsider those extra-statutory requirements,” he said.
Pete Buttigieg, who served as transportation secretary during the Biden administration, said in a video statement posted on X that in dismantling rules protecting airline passengers, the Trump administration was choosing corporations over consumers.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The post The Trump Administration Wants to Roll Back Airline Passenger Rights appeared first on New York Times.
