DOT postpones rule narrowing airline duty for maintenance delays

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has delayed a rule that will reduce the situations in which airlines must cover passenger expenses after certain unscheduled maintenance disruptions. According to The Points Guy, the change had been due to take effect on 19 October but is now planned for flights departing from 1 January 2027.

What the rule changes

The measure comes from a wide-ranging aviation bill passed by Congress in 2024, The Points Guy reports. At present, some airlines reimburse expenses when a maintenance problem causes a cancellation or long delay, because such disruptions have historically been treated as within the airline's control.

Under the new rules, certain unscheduled maintenance incidents will no longer count as "controllable". One example given is an unscheduled maintenance issue that cannot wait until after the flight to be addressed. In those cases, airlines may no longer be required to honour customer commitments such as paying for meals, hotel stays or ground transportation. In its final rule, the DOT wrote that "the number of delays and cancellations for which air carriers provide amenities and compensation to consumers is expected to be reduced."

Other disruptions affected

The Points Guy lists several other events that would also no longer be treated as within an airline's control:

• Aircraft cleaning following a passenger death
• Aircraft damage from extreme weather
• Cybersecurity attacks, if the airline complied with cyber regulations
• Removal of an unruly passenger
• An on-board medical emergency
• Airport closure due to volcanic ash, wind or wind shear
• Overheated brakes following a safety incident that required emergency procedures
• Baggage or cargo loading delays caused by an outage of a system not controlled by the airline or its contractor

What stays the same

Airlines will still be responsible for other controllable disruptions, such as crew scheduling problems, and not every maintenance issue will be exempt, according to The Points Guy. Weather and air traffic control problems have long been classed as uncontrollable, so passengers typically pay their own costs in those cases. The rule change does not alter federal refund rules: passengers are owed a refund if a flight is cancelled or significantly delayed, whatever the reason, if they choose not to travel.

The Points Guy included a photo of a United Airlines aircraft in its coverage, but the report does not single out any airline as affected differently from others.

What this means for travellers

Nothing changes immediately: the current approach continues until the new rules start in January 2027. After that, travellers stranded by an unscheduled maintenance fault may find it harder to have meals, hotels or ground transport paid for.

• Ask for reimbursement anyway; The Points Guy notes that not all maintenance issues will be exempt.
• Check each airline's commitments at FlightRights.gov, which lists the promises carriers have made.
• Check whether your credit card includes travel insurance, as some cards can offset costs the airline no longer has to cover.
• Remember that you can still claim a refund if you decide not to travel after a cancellation or significant delay.

It is not yet clear how individual airlines will adjust their own policies once the rule applies.

Sources: The Points Guy