These Two Airlines Just Eliminated Change and Cancellation Fees

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Two major low-cost U.S. airlines, Frontier and Spirit, just eliminated nearly all flight change and cancellation fees, making it significantly easier for travelers to modify their itineraries. While passengers will still need to pay any fare differentials between their original and new flights,  they can avoid the hefty additional penalties that were previously charged. 

“Today marks the beginning of a new era for Frontier—one with transparency in our prices, no change fees and the lowest total price,” stated Barry Biffle, Frontier’s CEO.

Frontier Airlines rolled out a new fare class structure consisting of four tiers: basic, economy, premium, and business Change and cancellation fees have been eliminated for the three higher fare classes―economy, premium, and business. With these pricier ticket types, passengers can modify or cancel their flights without paying the extra fees that were previously charged, though they still must cover any fare difference when changing flights.

The cheapest fare, basic, is still subject to cancellation or change fees starting at $49 if a flight is changed 59 days or less before departure. However, if a passenger changes the flight 60 or more days before departure, there will be no fee even on the basic fare. 

Spirit Airlines went a step further and eliminated change and cancelation fees across all fare classes. “We have been listening to our guests and general airline passengers and have been reviewing the competitive set of products in the industry,” Spirit CEO Ted Christie said in an earnings call. “However, it is clear that we need to introduce some changes to reflect the new dynamics in the industry and to make Spirit a more compelling option for the traveling public.”

These new policies bring Frontier and Spirit more in line with major American airlines such as Delta, United, and American, which only charge change fees on their most restrictive basic economy class tickets. 

Both Frontier and Spirit are now also offering bundled packages, where you can add options like checked baggage or seat assignments to your fare at the start of the booking process. 

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