What to Consider Before You Cancel Your Flight?

Uncertain circumstances can occur at any time in between your plans and force you to make modifications to your schedule. Much akin to this, while you book your flights, it could be possible that you would have to cancel your flights even after you have confirmed flight reservations. The airlines understand such scenarios and make their cancellation processes quite lenient. Yet, you should be well-versed with the cancellation policy of the airline on which your reservations are made.

Most of the major airlines (and many minor) have the policy of free cancellation within 24 hours of flight booking. Past which, the cancellation fees differ as per the airlines and their policies. This article consists of the details on various airlines’ cancellation policies. First, we’ll look into the airlines of North America and then proceed on to the airlines flying over Europe.

The Cancellation Policies of North American Airlines

American Airlines cancellation policy:

American Airlines also specifies a free 24-hour hold on some of its flights in its cancellation policy. The flight must be at least 7 days out at the time of booking for this to apply. If you decide not to buy the ticket, after all, you can cancel your reservation within 24 hours of making it without paying any further fees. Once you go to the "Review and Pay" tab, a "hold" label will appear if your flight qualifies.

United Airlines cancellation policy:

The "24-hour reservation requirement" was established by the US Department of Transportation (DOT), which mandates that "Carriers should retain a reservation at the indicated fare for 24 hours without payment or shall permit a reservation to be cancelled within 24 hours without penalty."

United Airlines' cancellation policy does not offer any further benefits over this restriction, in contrast to those of other US airlines. If you cancel your ticket within 24 hours of booking it, you won't be charged a fee as long as your flight is at least 7 days away.

However, we have outlined a method that enables you to cancel for free for up to 48 hours in our piece on travel cancellation reimbursements. United's FarLock will hold the cost of your ticket for a charge. You can decide to keep it for three to seven days.

Spirit Airlines cancellation policy:

The standards established by the DOT were not improved by Spirit. You can only cancel your flight for a full refund if you do so 24 hours after booking and provided that your departure is at least 7 days away.

According to Spirit's cancellation policy, the fee for modifying or canceling your ticket outside of this time frame varies based on whether you wait past the 24-hour mark, whether your departure is fewer than seven days away, or both.

Delta Air Lines cancellation policy:

The DOT's reservation criterion is not met by Delta's cancellation policy since it did away with the condition that the flight is at least seven days out.

Instead, Delta offers free ticket cancellation "by midnight of the day following the eTicket is purchased or midnight of the first flight, whichever comes first".

Frontier Airlines cancellation policy:

Again, Frontier's cancellation policy complies with DOT regulations. Only if your flight is more than 7 days away and you canceled your ticket no later than 24 hours after making the reservation will you be eligible for a full refund.

However, keep in mind that if you purchased the WORKS, the value of your ticket can be used for a different reservation at no additional cost for a period of up to a year following the cancellation.

Alaska Airlines cancellation policy:

Alaska Airlines lowered the advance purchase minimum from seven days to just twenty-four hours in their cancellation policy. In other words, as long as your flight was scheduled to leave in more than a day, you are entitled to a full refund of your ticket if you cancel it within 24 hours.

Cancellation policy for WestJet:

The full cost of your flight will be refunded to you in the original form of payment if you cancel your flight within 24 hours of the original booking, with the exception of flights that are scheduled to depart within 24 hours of the time of booking (i.e., same-day flights), in which case a cancellation fee per person will be charged.

Outside of 24 hours after making the reservation, you run the risk of being charged fees that are different depending on the flight class of the ticket you bought. The amount increases with the higher the class; for instance, you'll be charged $600 CAD/USD if you cancel a Business fare more than 24 hours after booking.

JetBlue Airlines cancellation policy:

JetBlue did not change the DOT's regulation either. If you cancel more than 24 hours after the initial booking, you may be charged costs that exceed $200 for some tickets, according to their cancellation policy.

The Cancellation Policies of European Airlines

Ryanair cancellation policy:

One of the worst cancellation procedures in the business is offered by Ryanair. When booking a ticket with a low-cost carrier, travelers should feel quite secure about their travel arrangements because flights cannot be changed. There is no provision in Ryanair's cancellation policy that permits you to change your flight and receive a refund.

You can only change your flight up to 2.5 hours before takeoff, which is the only option available to you. Note that Ryanair's cancellation policy requires that you still pay a fee in order to do so.

Air France cancellation policy:

The following three conditions must be met, per Air France's cancellation policy, in order to receive your full ticket refund:

• You must have a refundable ticket (potentially at an extra cost)
• You bought the ticket at least two days or up to twelve months before the day you ask for a refund.
• No boarding pass had been issued for you.

The second condition's language is somewhat convoluted, but it appears that, unlike other airlines, you must wait at least two days to cancel a flight after placing the reservation. This appears counter-intuitive and may be an error on the Air France website; the actual policy may be that cancellations are permitted up to 48 hours after booking.

British Airways cancellation policy:

According to British Airways, if you cancel your reservation up to 24 hours before the scheduled departure, you will receive a full refund. There is no indication of a restriction based on the day of your flight.

Additionally, according to British Airways' cancellation policy, if the call center is closed when you make the call, the 24-hour window can be extended to 48 hours. If your flight is less than a week away from the time of purchase, however, this rule does not apply.

The amount of the refund will depend on the type of ticket you bought if you cancel your flight more than 24 hours after booking, and a cancellation fee can also be applied.

Lufthansa cancellation policy:

The Lufthansa cancellation policy simply specifies a very broad rule—that your flight may be canceled and refunded up to 24 hours before departure—while the specifics of the refund and/or cancellation policies vary depending on the kind of ticket you bought.

This suggests that based on the specifics of your ticket, you might be eligible for a full refund or a partial one and might or might not be required to pay a cancellation charge.

Conclusion on the Cancellation Policy of various Airlines

Each airline has its own cancellation procedures. In the US, the overarching regulation put in place by the DOT establishes a common foundation that guarantees fundamental rights for travelers who want to alter their itinerary. While some US airlines adhere to these regulations, others go above and beyond to make them better for their customers.

There are several different flight cancellation regulations in Europe. The primary factor determining your access to a full or partial refund, whether there is a cancellation charge or not, and how much you must pay to modify your ticket depends on the type of ticket you purchased.

The EU Regulation 261/2004 serves as the standard when it comes to compensation for flight cancellations, despite the fact that there are no unified regulations addressing cancellation policies in the EU. If the airline cancels your flight, you may be entitled to compensation of up to EUR 600.

So, keeping this information is sure to get you a head start when you are considering canceling your flight tickets. If you have any queries or doubt then you can contact us any time of the day, you can get our assistance 24x7.