First confirm whether your specific flight is cancelled: an airline bankruptcy filing does not automatically mean flights have stopped. Check the airline’s official messages and booking, then contact the airline or ticket agent before heading to the airport. If the flight is cancelled, decide whether your priority is a refund or reaching your destination; the options and rights depend on the route, booking and applicable law. If the airline has ceased flying while you are away from home, contact your insurer and other airlines promptly, and keep records of every cost and communication.
What should you do first?
- Verify the flight. Check the flight number and itinerary in the airline’s app, website or messages. Contact the airline or ticket agent to confirm whether it is cancelled, changed or still scheduled. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) cautions that an airline or ticket-agent bankruptcy does not necessarily mean a flight has been cancelled.
- Save your records. Keep the booking confirmation, ticket, payment record, cancellation or schedule-change notices, proposed alternatives, messages and reference numbers. Save receipts for necessary replacement transport, meals, accommodation and communication. If you arrange care yourself under UK guidance, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says to keep every receipt and spend reasonably.
- Choose what you need: money back or another way to travel. A refund and a replacement itinerary are different remedies. Before accepting a voucher or alternative, check the rule for your route and understand how accepting or taking the alternative may affect refund eligibility.
- If stranded, contact help before paying for a replacement where possible. Call your insurer and ask about coverage and any steps required before you incur costs. Ask other airlines serving your destination whether they will accept your ticket or offer a confirmed, standby or discounted replacement. Confirm the price and whether a seat is actually secured; do not assume another carrier must honor the failed airline’s ticket.
- Contact the party that sold or organized the trip. If you booked through a ticket agent, contact it as well as the operating airline. If the flight is part of a package holiday, contact the package organizer promptly.
- Make requests in writing. Submit a refund or reimbursement request, save the response and reference number, and then consider contacting your card issuer, insurer, complaint body or regulator. Deadlines and procedures vary by route, payment method, policy and complaint process.
Which passenger rights may apply?
There is no single worldwide cancellation rule. The relevant law can depend on where the flight departs and arrives, the operating carrier, whether connecting flights are on one reservation, and whether the booking is part of a package. Nationality alone does not determine coverage. The table summarizes official U.S., UK and EU guidance; it is not a complete guide to every country or a decision about an individual ticket.
| Jurisdiction | What official guidance says | Important limits and distinctions |
|---|---|---|
| United States | DOT says a passenger can choose a ticket refund if the airline cancels, regardless of the reason, and the passenger does not accept the alternative, voucher, credit or other offered compensation. DOT’s current refund page specifies seven business days for credit-card purchases and 20 business days for other payment methods in the circumstances it describes. | DOT’s refund rules do not require an airline to rebook a passenger, although airlines often offer alternatives. Accepting and taking a significantly changed or replacement flight generally removes entitlement to a ticket refund under the DOT rule. The current DOT page describes which significant changes may qualify, including certain arrival delays, airport changes, additional connections and involuntary downgrades. Check the exact circumstances against that page. |
| United Kingdom | CAA guidance generally covers flights departing a UK airport on any airline, arriving at a UK airport on a UK or EU airline, and arriving at an EU airport on a UK airline. For a covered cancellation, the passenger can choose a refund or rerouting under comparable conditions. While waiting for an alternative, the passenger may be entitled to reasonable food and drink, communication, overnight accommodation if needed, and transport to that accommodation. | Compensation is separate from refund and care rights. Eligibility depends on factors including notice and cause; extraordinary circumstances such as extreme weather or air-traffic-control disruption may rule it out. If the airline does not arrange required care, CAA guidance says passengers may arrange reasonable care and claim the cost later; luxury hotels and alcohol are examples of unreasonable expenses. |
| European Union | European Commission guidance says a passenger whose flight is cancelled may choose reimbursement, rerouting at the earliest opportunity, or rerouting at a later convenient date subject to seat availability, and may be entitled to assistance. | Compensation is a separate question and depends on notice and circumstances, including whether extraordinary circumstances caused the cancellation. For journeys with multiple carriers or bookings, check the reservation and applicable official guidance. On 28 July 2026, the Commission reported that revised EU air-passenger rules had been adopted and were expected to enter into force the following summer; it said existing rules remain applicable until the new rules enter into force. Verify which version applies at the time of travel. |
Refund, rerouting, care and compensation are not interchangeable
- Refund: Return of the ticket price when the governing rule and your choice allow it. In the U.S., accepting an offered alternative can affect refund eligibility.
- Rerouting: A replacement journey to your destination. UK and EU guidance provide rerouting choices for covered cancellations; DOT’s U.S. refund rule does not itself require rebooking.
- Care: Food, communication, accommodation or related transport while waiting, where the applicable law or airline commitment provides for it. Coverage depends on the relevant rules and circumstances.
- Compensation: Additional payment that may be available under some regimes, often depending on notice, arrival impact and the reason for cancellation. A refund does not automatically mean compensation is due.
What if the airline has stopped operating?
Distinguish an airline that has ceased flying from one that has filed for bankruptcy but continues operating. A bankruptcy filing may involve reorganization; it does not, by itself, establish that your flight is cancelled. Confirm your itinerary’s status through official airline communications or the ticket agent before making plans.
If you are still at home
- Ask the airline or ticket agent to confirm the flight status and explain the refund process.
- If the airline will not refund an unprovided flight, contact your card issuer promptly to ask what records and deadlines apply. DOT says a credit-card buyer may be entitled to a credit under the Fair Credit Billing Act when an airline has filed for bankruptcy or stopped flying and refuses a refund. Some debit-card issuers may voluntarily reimburse for an unprovided service, but protections vary.
- Check your travel-insurance policy and, for a package booking, the package protection documents. A passenger may file a proof of claim in bankruptcy, but DOT warns that other creditors may have priority and an unsecured passenger may receive only a small fraction of the amount owed.
If you are away from home
- Contact airlines serving your destination and ask about ticket acceptance, confirmed seats, standby travel and discounted replacement fares. Get the terms and total cost in writing when possible.
- Contact your insurer before buying a replacement if practicable; coverage and required steps depend on the policy.
- Contact the booking agent and package organizer, if applicable, and keep receipts for necessary expenses and records of your conversations.
If the booking was part of a UK package holiday
Tell the package organizer immediately so it can manage the rest of the booking. If a qualifying ATOL-protected organizer fails, travelers who have not departed may be able to apply to the CAA for a refund, while travelers already abroad may receive help returning to the UK. The UK government guide says a credit-card purchase over £100 without ATOL protection may have Consumer Credit Act protection, and insurance may also apply. Check the booking documents and any ATOL certificate: a scheduled airline ticket alone should not be treated as automatically protected by ATOL.
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Compare the actual options before committing. A replacement ticket may get you there sooner but cost more; waiting for a refund may leave you to arrange and pay for onward travel yourself. Consider:
- Whether you need to reach the destination or prefer to recover the ticket price.
- Whether the original airline is still operating and whether any alternative seat is confirmed.
- The replacement’s total price, arrival time, connections, baggage arrangements and risk of missing onward travel.
- Which country’s rules apply to the itinerary, and whether accepting or taking the proposed alternative affects your refund choice.
- Whether you booked directly, through an agent or as part of a package, and whether your card issuer or insurer requires contact before replacement costs are incurred.
What evidence should you keep?
Keep the documents that establish what you bought, what changed and what you paid to respond. Store copies somewhere accessible even if you lose access to the airline app or email account.
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- Booking confirmation, ticket and payment statement.
- Flight-status screens or notices, cancellation and schedule-change messages, and alternatives offered.
- Written refund, rerouting or reimbursement requests, replies, call reference numbers and the names or departments you contacted.
- Insurance policy and claim instructions, package booking documents and any protection certificate.
- Itemized receipts for necessary transport, meals, accommodation and communication, along with a short note explaining why each expense was needed.
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