American Airlines: American’s waiver allows travelers who purchase tickets between March 1 and March 16 to change or cancel them without paying fees that start at $200 per person. The new policy covers tickets purchased for travel through late January 2021.
On American, the fee will be waived for changes made up to 14 days prior to travel. So if you buy a ticket for a summer trip and need to change it for lingering coronavirus concerns or any reason, you just have to change it at least two weeks before departure to avoid the fee.
Fare differences will apply: If you nab a $250 round-trip ticket from Chicago to Orlando and the going rate is $400 when you change the ticket to another date, you’ll pay an extra $150.
Delta Airlines: Delta’s waiver covers travelers who buy tickets between March 1 and March 31 for international travel, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Flights within the U.S are not covered. Tickets can be purchased for travel as far out as February 2021. Fare differences apply to changed tickets.
United Airlines: United’s waiver covers travelers who buy tickets between March 3 and March 31 for travel to any destination. Travelers can change their ticket to another flight (fare differences apply) or cancel the trip and receive a credit that is good for a year from the date the ticket was purchased.
JetBlue Airways: JetBlue’s temporary change fee waiver, which applies to tickets purchased between Feb. 27 and March 11, covers travel through June 1. Travelers will receive credit for a future flight. Fare differences will apply on the new tickets.
Alaska Airlines: Alaska’s waiver covers tickets purchased Feb. 27 through March 12 for travel through June 1. Fare differences will be apply on any changes.
Frontier Airlines: Customers with existing reservations for travel between March 3 and March 16 will be able to make a one-time change to their reservation without incurring a fee. Customers will be responsible for any differences in fare.
The new travel must be completed by June 1. Customers have the option of changing the origin and/or destination city when they alter their reservation.
People who want to cancel their reservation will be able to do so without paying a cancellation fee and will receive a refund in the form of a credit valid for 90 days. The company said it will continue to monitor the situation going forward.
British Airways: British Airways’ “Book with Confidence” policy covers tickets purchased between March 3 and March 16. Changes can be made any time before departure, but any fare difference will apply.
Hawaiian Airlines: Hawaiian Airlines has suspended service between Honolulu and Incheon, South Korea, through April 30. Those who rebook for new travel on or before Oct. 31 will have change fees and fare differences waived, so long as the new booking is in the same department and there are no changes to the ticket’s origin and departure.
After Oct. 31, rebooked flights won’t incur change fees, but could require travelers pay the difference in fares.
Hawaiian is also waiving cancellation fees and providing refunds for affected flights.
Spirit Airlines: Unlike other airlines, Spirit has not announced a widespread fee-waiver policy. Instead, it’s “been offering flexible travel options to our guests who reach out with concerns about the COVID-19 coronavirus” since late January. The company said travelers can reach out if they have questions.
Lufthansa: Lufthansa Group has cancelled flights to mainland China until April 24, reduced flights to Hong Kong and expects to further reduce short- and medium-haul flights in the coming weeks as the coronavirus spreads in Europe.
Customers whose flights are affected by these changes can request a refund free of charge. When flights are cancelled, Lufthansa will rebook customers at no additional charge, in most cases automatically.
El Al Airlines: They will waive the change and handling fees on flights traveling to and from Europe thru March 31st. You can change your flights now for travel thru July 31st or freeze your ticket until you’re ready to travel. You will be subject to paying the ticket fare difference.
KLM: KLM is waiving change fees for customers currently booked on flights to China, South Korea, Singapore and Italy, depending on when their original flights were booked for. Applicable dates vary for each region.
For those who have flights booked for China and Singapore, they are also entitled to a full refund if they did not travel or choose not to. For Singapore and Italy, travelers will only receive a full refund if their flight is cancelled or delayed for more than three hours, in accordance with European Union law.
Air France: Air France travelers can modify planned trips to China and Italy. In the case of flights to China, for flights booked on or before Feb. 19 for dates through May 31, consumers can postpone trips at no additional cost until June 30. Alternatively, they can cancel their trip for a full refund.
For flights to Italy scheduled between Feb. 25 and April 30, travelers can postpone their trip to a later flight until May 31 at no additional charge if their original ticket was issued on or before Feb. 27. If they choose to cancel instead, they will receive a voucher valid for one year for Air France and KLM flights.
[Source: USA Today and Market Watch]