FAA Reauthorization law spearheaded by Cantwell requires refunds for canceled or significantly delayed flights and 24/7 access to real-time assistance; Delta is falling short in wake of IT outage

Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, sent a letter to Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian regarding the airline’s operational and customer communications problems in the wake of Friday’s CrowdStrike IT outage.

In her letter, Sen. Cantwell noted that Delta’s customer service page doesn’t give customers accurate information about their refund rights under the FAA Reauthorization law spearheaded by the Senator. Section 503 of the new law requires airlines to provide passengers with refunds for any flights that are canceled or experience significant delays or changes.

Sen. Cantwell also noted that Delta appears to fall short of Section 505 of the FAA law, which says “customers should be able to access real-time assistance from customer service agents of air carriers without an excessive wait time, particularly during times of mass disruptions.” Multiple news reports indicate extremely excessive wait times for Delta passengers. On Friday, a Delta passenger whose flight from Amsterdam to Seattle was canceled told the Seattle Times that “the phone number I tried to call said it would be 11 and a half hours before I could speak with somebody.”

“Delta must make clear to all its customers subjected to cancellations and significant delays and changes, including as a result of the technology outage, that they are entitled to refunds as a matter of law,” Sen. Cantwell wrote. “Delta should invest significant resources into its customer service operations to ensure that customers are made whole in short order.”

The full text of the letter is available HERE.

On May 31, Sen. Cantwell joined Coach Mike Bethea of the Rainier Beach High School Varsity Boys Basketball team to celebrate new consumer protections for fliers. Over the 2022 holiday season, Coach Bethea and his team were stranded in Las Vegas during Winter Storm Elliott due to Southwest Airlines’ operational meltdown. Sen. Cantwell personally helped Coach Bethea and his wife secure a full refund and other reimbursements from the company. The stories of travelers like Coach Bethea and his team inspired Sen. Cantwell to push for stronger consumer protections for airline passengers in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024.

Sen. Cantwell first introduced the Senate FAA Reauthorization bill on June 12, 2023, along with Sens. Cruz, Duckworth and Moran, and the Committee passed the legislation with bipartisan support on February 8, 2024. Sen. Cantwell led the passage of the bill in the full Senate on May 9, including a passenger right to a hassle-free refund when an airline cancels or significantly delays a flight. President Joe Biden signed the act into law on May 16, 2024.