American Airlines' Recent Changes Could Make You Feel Lost

 American Airlines has changed the legal contract to which flyers must agree when they book a flight. Yes, that is a very boring sentence. It's understandable that no one really wants to read the terms and conditions before booking a flight.

It is important that flyers understand the policies of their airline before they make a decision. They will determine how you are treated if things do not go according to plan.

American's recent changes remove travel protections that flyers might expect from a full-service airline. American's policies are now closer to legacy airlines Delta and United, with Frontier and Spirit being the most affordable. Let's look at what has changed.

When you plan to visit here, book flights with American Airlines. If by any chance you wish to cancel your ticket, make sure to thoroughly read the American Airlines cancellation and refund policy. Also make sure to learn about the airline’s other guidelines to avoid unnecessary chaos.

American Airlines - What are you liable for cancellations or delays

The most significant change in American Airlines' responsibilities is when there's more than four hours delay or cancellation. American Airlines generally rebooked passengers on later flights in these instances, sometimes even on partners airlines.

American Airlines clarifies, however, that it owes passengers a refund for the portion of their tickets not flown.

Our sole obligation is to reimburse the ticket value, as well as any optional fees, if we or our airline partner fail to operate or delay your arrival for more than four hours.

Although it may sound reasonable, this can prove to be quite frustrating in practice. American Airlines can legally strand you at a location and/or force your travel agent to book last-minute flights to get you there.

Let's say you book a round-trip, $200 flight to Cabo San Luis, Mexico. You fly down without incident. Unfortunately, American Airlines cancels your flight home due to mechanical problems. American Airlines will simply give you $100 back, and you'll be stuck in Cabo. You would need to purchase a one-way international flight, which is likely to cost more than $100. Or you could use your points and miles to get around the costs.

Although it may seem unlikely, a similar scenario occurred in 2018. Sun Country Airlines decided not to fly rescue flights after two flights were cancelled by a blizzard. This left 250 passengers stranded in Mexico. Sun Country Airlines refunded the passengers the return portion of their flights as required by their Contract of Carriage. They worked to find another route home and flyers were responsible for their own meals, transport, and lodging expenses.

American Airlines will likely not create such a headline, even if it is for PR purposes. However, AA does have the right to strand passengers as per its agreement with flyers.

American's Rebooking Policy Changes

American Airlines' Conditions Of Carriage have another notable change. It now covers what the airline will do "when you are unable to connect due to cancellation or delay."

American Airlines used to say that they would "rebook" you on the next flight with available seating. Now, American Airlines will only commit to rebooking your flight on the next American Airlines flight or partner flight.

If your flight is cancelled or delayed, we will rebook you on an American Airlines flight or American partner flight that has available seats.

This policy can lead to a slight delay for routes that have multiple American Airlines flights per day. This may not apply to routes that have only one flight per day. This can make the difference between getting to a meeting or attending a special event.

Is that unacceptable? American Airlines clarified in this instance that it would only be obligated to refund any unused portion of the ticket.

If your flight is delayed or cancelled, and you refuse to accept our alternate arrangements or none were possible, we will refund any ticket value and optional fees as per our policy on involuntary refunds. We are not legally bound to any further obligations beyond that.

Book a Flight when You're Upgraded

American Airlines clarified that those who have received upgrades are affected by the changes to their Conditions of Carriage.

We will rebook you in the cabin or class that you originally booked with your original payment.

This may sound plausible in theory. American Airlines has no obligation to rebook an elite passenger who received a complimentary upgrade for a domestic flight.

Not all upgrades come with free. A traveler might have used an American Airlines miles upgrade to go from business to economy class. Upgrades on long-haul international flights cost 25,000 miles plus $350 per way.

American Airlines will most likely refund any miles, cash, and/or upgrade vouchers applied to a flight when rebooking a traveler who was originally booked in a cabin.

However, this could still cause problems. American Airlines elite flyers might have applied for a system-wide upgrade to their flight. Travelers can now request upgrades to travel after the expiration date has been shortened. An upgrade could have expired when you are downgraded. This could result in you losing your upgrade certificate.

There are new requirements for lodging when AA delays you

American Airlines clarified how passengers can get lodging coverage if there is a delay. American Airlines is responsible for any delay or disruption that results from such things as: American Airlines will offer lodging for passengers who "don't board by 11:59 PM local time on the day of your scheduled arrival."

American Airlines will not book your lodging until you wait. AA has added a clarification in its Conditions of Carriage to say that we don't guarantee reimbursement for hotel costs if you book directly with American Airlines without authorization.

You will need to wait in line at the airport in order to be approved for lodging by an agent. This can take some time. View From The Wing's Gary Leff recently reported that American Airlines' lodging booking platform had experienced so many problems recently that the airline issued an advisory telling agents to make a call or use the Chat function of Travelliance (TA Connection), to find and load more options when there isn't enough.

Airlines are not required to offer lodging if there is a flight cancellation or delay due to circumstances beyond their control, such as bad weather or strikes by air traffic controllers. Book your flights with a credit-card that offers trip delay coverage to protect yourself from these circumstances.

Related: What Qualifies for Travel Delay Insurance Coverage

Changes to Policy vs. Practice

These changes to American Airlines' Conditions Of Carriage reflect some of the changes American Airlines has made in practice.

American Airlines, for example, sent an internal memo to its reservation agents in October 2018 clarifying its policies regarding rebooking passengers. AA's Conditions Of Carriage stated that it would "rebook" you on the next flight with seats available, but that was not going to be the case.

American Airlines will rebook passengers only on American Airlines if they are an elite of American Airlines or Oneworld partners, and have been booked in first or lower-tier class, if there is a delay of more than five hours.

However, AA didn't honor the revised policy. My wife and I, both American Airlines Executive Platinum elites, were scheduled to fly on American Airlines in July 2021 from Atlanta (ATL), to Athens (ATH) via Chicago, (ORD). AA cancelled our flight from Atlanta, Chicago due to a crew shortage. United, Spirit and Delta all have flights that fly between Atlanta and Chicago and could have brought us to Chicago in the time we needed to make our connection.

American Airlines refused to rebook us "on a next flight with available seats." Instead, AA would only rebook our tickets on the next American Airlines itinerary. We lost one day of our trip from Greece because of the 24-hour delay.

American Airlines' New Policies: Exceptions

American Airlines has now disclaimed responsibility for cancellations and delays. However, AA does not assume responsibility for flight cancellations and delays. Certain passenger protections have been enshrined into law.

The most popular of these protections for travelers is EC Regulation 261/2004, also known as EU261. This regulation requires European Union airlines as well as airlines departing from Europe to compensate for cancellations and delays that are not within their control.

Flyers who travel over 3,500 km (2,175 miles) are entitled to EUR600 ($712 at the current exchange rate) as compensation if they don't arrive at their destination within four hours. American Airlines cannot just modify its Conditions of Carriage in order to meet EU26's requirements.

Airlines are not required to pay delay compensation for delays due to bad weather, strikes or other security circumstances. These rights do not apply to non-EU airlines, such as AA, when they leave the EU. This means that you won't be covered for flights between the U.S. and Europe unless your flight is on an EU-affiliated airline.

Comparison of AA's Policies with Other Airlines

Recall AA's Changes in Conditions of Carriage: If AA cancels, delays or cancels a flight, the airline's sole obligation is to reimburse the unused portion. Let's compare this policy to two other U.S-based airlines.

Delta

Delta passengers may request a refund if their flight is cancelled, diverted, delayed for more than 120 minutes or that causes them to miss connecting flights, according to Rule 19 of the Contract of Carriage.

But that's not all that travelers have. Delta promises to transport the passenger to their destination on the next Delta flight, provided that there are still seats available in the original class of service.

If Delta does not have a suitable flight, and it's "acceptable for the passenger", Delta may "arrange to the passenger to travel with another Carrier or via ground transport." Delta will also upgrade you "if there is space on the next flight available in a higher category of service than the one purchased."

Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines is one of the most well-known low-cost carriers. It wouldn't surprise that they don't have a generous policy for rebooking. Spirit Airlines' policy doesn't just allow passengers to be stranded or refunded.

Spirit will instead rebook the guest on Spirit’s first flight on which seats remain available to the guest's original destination if there is a "schedule error" (such as a cancellation, missed connection, etc.). The customer also has the option of obtaining a refund.

Bottom line

American Airlines has changed its contract without notice to flyers in order to remove any protections that flyers might have come to expect.

AA clearly states that it will not rebook passengers if AA or its partners cancel a flight or route. If AA does rebook, it only promises to rebook you on the next American Airlines flight or American partner flight with seats available.

These policies, however bad they sound, better reflect American Airlines' actual practice based on recent experience. Although AA's route network is typical of a major airline, their customer-unfriendly approach now closely resembles that of a budget carrier. These changes are now known.

Moreover, Delta Airlines has created a cancellation and refund policy to cater all the travel requirements of the passengers.