WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. (WTIC Radio)—U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal is calling on the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to take action against airlines that, he said, are refusing to give back cash refunds or to extend flight credit expiration dates for flights canceled due to the pandemic.
In a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, Blumenthal and U.S. Senator Edward Markey of Massachusetts urged the DOT to order airlines to offer a cash refund for all tickets canceled during the pandemic or, at the very least, make all pandemic-related fight credits indefinite.
According to Blumenthal, the airline industry will be getting billions of consumer dollars in unused flight credits.
"The airlines are sitting on $10 billion in credits that belong to consumers and they're about to cancel some of those credits because they've imposed expiration dates that are completely arbitrary and unrealistic," Blumenthal said.
Connecticut Chapter President of the American Society of Travel Advisors Valeri French explained that many airlines claim there is still time for people to use their flight credits.
However, many people are unable to travel in the near future for various different reasons, French said, so the chances that the credits will be forgotten or left unused will increase over time if the issue is not addressed.
"Most of the airlines have an expiration of May of 2022, so they're going to say there's still time to use them, but May of '22 is coming very quickly. People are already planning for next year and not everybody is ready to travel. Some people, their financial and their health situation has changed and they're not able to travel," French said.
French owns a Newington-based travel agency called French's Worldwide Travel. Her small agency is sitting on "a huge pile of vouchers," she said, with over 200 cancelations from last year.
In the letter sent to Buttigieg, Blumenthal and Markey noted that the DOT saw a 500% increase in passenger complaints driven mostly by refund-related concerns.
Those who find themselves in this situation should reach out to their travel agent or to the airline directly through customer service, French said. However, she warned that many airlines have made it difficult for customers to contact them, let alone to get refunds or flight credit extensions.
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