Every time a new chief resident enters the White House, the way the government is run changes. Under the Biden administration, the Department of Transportation has introduced a series of new consumer protections, including automatic refunds for canceled flights and policies around family seating, and stepped up enforcement against airlines that violate their own terms of service.
As Washington prepares for Trump’s second presidential term, travelers may wonder what will happen to these recently issued regulations. While it’s true that Republican administrations generally favor fewer regulations on businesses, experts say there are no guarantees the Trump administration will phase out these policies, which Americans across the political spectrum have responded to positively. Even if the new DOT secretary wants to get rid of it, it may not be easy to do so in many cases.
“There is a big difference between fighting for a new rule and trying to overturn an existing rule. I would caution anyone who might be thinking about trying to overturn the new automatic refund rule,” said William J. McGee, senior fellow for aviation and travel at the American Economic Liberties Project, told USA TODAY in an interview. “Once some of these rules are in place, there may be a perception that we can undo this with the stroke of a pen, but it’s not that simple, especially if it is codified by Congress.”
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Many of the recently enacted protections for air travelers have been ordered by Congress in one way or another, and many of them are required by the Federal Aviation Administration’s latest reauthorization legislation, which both houses of the Legislature passed with bipartisan support has adopted.
Here are some of the recently adopted and proposed regulations for airlines:
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Automatic refunds for canceled and delayed flights: required by the FAA reauthorization and fully implemented on October 28
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Complimentary adjacent seating for families: DOT has not yet finalized this rule, but the FAA reauthorization includes a requirement for it, so the new administration will likely need to complete the process already underway
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More transparency about additional costs: The final rule was issued in April, but airlines sued the DOT in May over the proposal
McGee said the auto-refund rule will have its first major test this year during the winter holidays, and is likely to quickly become popular among travelers.
“Customers are now aware of this,” he said. “I would say woe to anyone who wants to take that away, because they’re in for a huge battle, and I don’t just mean consumer advocates. I mean from the general public.”
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in New York. You can reach him at zwicher@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why automatic flight refunds will likely remain the rule under Trump
