---
title: "Check a passenger's refund after a carrier cancels or significantly changes a flight"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/aviation-drones-and-space/respond-to-a-passenger-s-claim-after-a-cancelled-or-delayed-flight/united-states"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A60-Q20261018-5-US"
practice_area: "Aviation, Drones & Space"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["US"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-22"
---

# Check a passenger's refund after a carrier cancels or significantly changes a flight

> From the ticket and the carrier's notice, extract the flight number, the scheduled departure, what changed, and whether the passenger accepted an alternative flight, a voucher, a credit or other compensation.…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/aviation-drones-and-space/respond-to-a-passenger-s-claim-after-a-cancelled-or-delayed-flight/united-states  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Aviation, Drones & Space](https://ailawframework.com/practice/aviation-drones-and-space.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | From the ticket and the carrier's notice, extract the flight number, the scheduled departure, what changed, and whether the passenger accepted an alternative flight, a voucher, a credit or other compensation. Do not calculate a refund amount. |
| What the lawyer must review | 14 CFR § 260.6 requires a covered carrier that is the merchant of record to provide a full and prompt refund of the airfare, including taxes and ancillary fees, to a consumer holding a nonrefundable ticket on a scheduled flight to, from or within the United States when the flight is cancelled or significantly delayed or changed and the consumer does not accept the changed flight, rebooking, or a voucher, credit or other compensation. Automatic-refund triggers are listed in § 260.6(a)(2), including a cancellation where no alternative or compensation is offered, a rejection, and a failure to respond by the departure timing the section states. You read the definitions of cancelled flight and significantly delayed or changed flight in § 260.2 before you apply them. This is not a fixed cash compensation scheme. |
| Written for | United States |
| Applies to | [Respond to a passenger’s claim after a cancelled or delayed flight](https://ailawframework.com/practice/aviation-drones-and-space/respond-to-a-passenger-s-claim-after-a-cancelled-or-delayed-flight.md) |

## Checking plan

- What the AI does: From the ticket and the carrier's notice, extract the flight number, the scheduled departure, what changed, and whether the passenger accepted an alternative flight, a voucher, a credit or other compensation. Do not calculate a refund amount.
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 22 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Notes

- Section 260.6(b) has separate refund rights for an individual with a disability in the situations that subsection lists.
- Baggage-fee refunds are in § 260.5. A significantly delayed checked bag is defined in the part, with different hour thresholds for domestic and international itineraries.

## Sources

- [14 CFR Part 260 (refunds for airline fare and ancillary service fees)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/part-260) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [ABA Formal Opinion 512, Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools (29 July 2024)](https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/professional_responsibility/ethics-opinions/aba-formal-opinion-512.pdf) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [ABA Model Rule 1.1, Comment 8 (maintaining competence, including technology)](https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_responsibility/publications/model_rules_of_professional_conduct/rule_1_1_competence/comment_on_rule_1_1/) (checked 2026-10-22)

## Forms and precedents for this task

| Form or precedent | Kind | AI level | Summary |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Carrier's response to a passenger delay or cancellation claim](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/aviation-drones-and-space/carrier-response-delay-or-cancellation.md) | Letter | Yellow | A letter for an airline answering a passenger's claim after a delay or cancellation, separating Australian Consumer Law guarantees from Montreal Convention delay limits.… |

Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*