New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday issued a consumer alert aimed at holiday travelers, urging New Yorkers to understand—and use—their air-travel rights when flights are canceled, significantly delayed, overbooked or disrupted. She encouraged passengers to document problems and file complaints online with her office to pursue compensation or refunds.
“As New Yorkers head to the airport for the busiest travel days of the year, my office is going the extra mile to make sure they are treated fairly,” Ms. James said. “I urge all New York travelers to know their rights and file complaints with my office if they experience significant delays, flight cancellations, or are denied boarding after purchasing a ticket.”
The warning comes as federal policy is in flux. The Attorney General’s office noted that the U.S. Department of Transportation has recently announced rollbacks of certain prior policies that would have ensured compensation for some delayed or canceled flights. Even so, Ms. James said, travelers retain several clear protections—and should press airlines to honor them.
Among the key provisions:
- Significant disruptions. If a flight is significantly delayed, canceled, or a traveler is denied boarding despite holding a paid ticket, passengers may be entitled to compensation. Complaints should include booking and flight details—tickets, itineraries, invoices, flight numbers, city pairs—and any correspondence with the airline or ticket agent.
- 24-hour refunds. Travelers are eligible for a full refund within 24 hours of purchase if the ticket was bought more than seven days before departure. (Most discounted fares remain nonrefundable outside this window.)
- Cancellations. If an airline cancels a flight for any reason and the passenger chooses not to travel, the consumer is entitled to a refund—not merely a credit or voucher.
- Customer-service promises. Airlines must adhere to the commitments in their customer service plans, including care and amenities for controllable delays and cancellations. The DOT’s online dashboard details each carrier’s pledges on rebooking, meals, hotel rooms and compensation.
- Timely status updates. For flights scheduled within the next seven days, airlines must update status within 30 minutes of learning about a change—on their websites, reservation phone lines and airport displays they control.
- Overbooking. When a flight is oversold and volunteers are insufficient, airlines may involuntarily bump passengers. Those travelers may be entitled to compensation and must receive a written statement explaining their rights and how bumping decisions are made.
- Baggage refunds. Checked-bag fees must be refunded if baggage is declared lost or is late beyond federal thresholds: 12 hours after arrival for domestic flights; 15 hours for international flights under 12 hours; 30 hours for longer international flights.
New Yorkers can file air-travel complaints online or by calling the Office of the Attorney General at 1-800-771-7755.
Ms. James has staked out an activist posture on airline consumer issues. In May 2023, she supported DOT rules requiring airlines to compensate passengers for cancellations or significant delays, following her August 2022 call for a federal crackdown on carriers. Earlier, in March 2022, she secured $2.6 million from online travel agency Fareportal Inc. for misleading pricing practices, and in September 2021, she urged DOT to curb “slot-squatting,” in which airlines hoard takeoff and landing slots to block competitors.
Her message for the holidays is pragmatic: save your documents, know the timelines, check the DOT dashboard, and do not hesitate to seek refunds or compensation you are owed.
