Senators urge airlines to make flight credits valid indefinitely

Washington — Democratic Senators Ed Markey and Richard Blumenthal are pressuring airlines to make sure credits issued for flights canceled during the pandemic never expire, if they decline to offer full refunds.

The two lawmakers wrote to all major airlines on Monday, calling it "unconscionable" that airlines are often refusing to return passengers' money even as the industry sits on more than $10 billion in unused travel credits. Markey and Blumenthal, along with other Democratic senators including then-Senator Kamala Harris, previously asked airlines to issue refunds instead of credits for canceled flights.  Markey and Blumenthal said airlines should follow through with non-expiring credits or refunds regardless of whether the airline or the customer canceled the trip.