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LEGAL EASE
Your Flight Was
Just Cancelled
Now what?
By George F. “Rick” Evans, Jr.
General Counsel BCMS
Most of the articles I’ve written for San Antonio Medicine relate
to medicolegal issues of particular interest to physicians. I’m deviating of carriage has a section dealing with cancellations.
from that for the next few articles to talk about something that affects
everybody. I’m referring to the hassles of flying in today’s world. Lost
baggage, missed connections, overbookings, cancelled flights, and
prolonged delays are issues I’ll discuss in upcoming editions of SA
Medicine. Statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation
show that last year 14 percent of the flights were cancelled or delayed
so the odds are high, sooner or later, this is something you or your
family will experience.
So let’s begin the discussion with what happens when you hear the
gate agent announce your flight has been cancelled. Now what?
Maybe you’re stuck in Orlando trying to get back to San Antonio.
Maybe you’re trying to make it to a wedding, funeral, or a departing
cruise ship. Or you’re waiting for your kid to fly home from college
for a holiday when you hear she’s stuck in Denver. Your plans have
just been turned upside down. What can you legally demand? Spoiler
alert: this is one area in aviation law in which your rights are almost
worthless so you’re better off taking steps to avoid cancellation than
expect much if it happens. A fundamental principle here is that air-
lines do NOT guarantee their schedules. That means your rights are
pretty darn limited.
There are no universal laws in the U.S. that cover this situation.
There are federal laws that control other aspects of airline travel, in-
cluding tarmac delays, but not cancellations. Instead, your rights are
typically controlled by general contract principles which, most im-
portantly, include a very specific document called the “Contract of
Carriage.” Each airline has one. This document addresses everything
from carry-on baggage restrictions to travel by minors. It’s very
lengthy and may be 40 or more pages. Importantly, there’s no uni-
form contract of carriage that all airlines use. Each airline has their
36 San Antonio Medicine • April 2017
own, so your rights will vary from airline to airline. Every contract
That said, at the risk of generalization, most airlines provide you
with two rights, neither of which may be of much consolation. First,
you usually will have the right to demand a seat on the next flight IF
there’s an open seat available. Unfortunately, with planes packed to
the gills today, it may not be easy to get on that next flight out. Sec-
ond, you have the right to a refund of the unused portion of your
ticket. If you paid full fare, then buying a ticket on another airline
may be an option, but if you bought an advance fare discount ticket,
the refund won’t be enough to cover a new ticket bought at the last
minute.
Some airlines, in their discretion, may offer meal and hotel vouch-
ers, particularly if the cancellation was their fault rather than due to
weather or events beyond their control. Some may book you on an-
other airline. But, the operative word here is “discretion.” Unless the
contract of carriage provides for it (and few do), you have no right
to demand these things. Note: your rights will be different on inter-
national flights and are much more robust. This article only addresses
domestic flights.
Your rights may be expanded if the airline has engaged in some
wrongful conduct other than the mere cancellation of the flight. They
are still subject to general contract and tort laws which could give
you a claim beyond a ticket refund or a seat on the next flight. If an
agent makes promises or representations that were broken, false or
misleading, you may have a legal claim you can later pursue. For ex-
ample, if you’re told “for sure we’ll get you on this flight leaving in
two hours” and they don’t, you may have a breach of contract claim.
But, the sad truth is that you have very limited rights in the event
your flight is cancelled so your best strategy is avoiding it in the first
place. Here’s how.