Southwest Ordered To Offer $75 Flight Vouchers for Flight Delays and Cancellations

Starting today, Southwest Airlines is required to provide $75 in compensation for controllable cancellations or delays that impact a passenger’s ability to reach their destination in a timely manner.

The new compensation requirement was announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) in a press release, which states that the airline must provide vouchers in cases where passengers, because of delays or cancellations, are unable to reach their destination within three or more hours of their originally scheduled arrival time.

The compensation is part of the DOT’s enforcement action aimed at holding Southwest Airlines accountable for its 2022 holiday fiasco, which left millions of passengers across the country stranded.

DOT provided a clear breakdown of exactly when the $75 voucher compensation must be provided by the airline. The rules state that Southwest is required to issue compensation if:

• A flight was cancelled or delayed within seven days of the scheduled departure date
• Passengers arrived at their destination three or more hours later than planned; and
• The delay or cancellation was caused by something that Southwest could control, such as a maintenance or staffing issue

It’s important to note that passengers will not be eligible for compensation if the cause of the disruption was not within the airline’s control, such as in the case of bad weather.

How To Obtain Compensation

DOT has also outlined the step-by-step process for passengers seeking to obtain the required compensation from Southwest Airlines. The process includes:

• Per the agreement with DOT, Southwest has created an easy-to-find online form (southwest.com/delayform) for passengers to request compensation.
• Passengers must submit requests within one year from the date of the delayed/cancelled flight.
• If passengers enter erroneous information on the form, they will get an error message, and a chance to edit and re-submit the required information.
• Southwest will respond to the customer via email within 30 days of receiving a voucher request form and if the consumer is eligible, Southwest will follow-up with a voucher for that consumer. 
• The vouchers will be transferrable and will be valid for at least one year after the date of issuance.
  
  

DOT said today that it will be “closely monitoring Southwest’s compensation program to ensure that passengers get the relief they are owed.”

Additionally, for the next three years Southwest will be required to submit an annual report to DOT every May detailing its voucher expenditures.

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