How to get a refund from Southwest after the 2022 holiday travel disruption

Were your big holiday travel plans canceled, delayed or otherwise disrupted due to Southwest’s operational meltdown? If so, you’re not alone.

Dec. 30, 2022, marked the first day since Christmas that Southwest Airlines didn’t cancel a double-digit percentage of its flights, a number that CEO Bob Jordan attributed to “an unprecedented storm for all airlines” in an interview with “Good Morning America.” More than 15,000 Southwest flights were canceled, leaving thousands more travelers in the lurch during the year's busiest travel season.

Even so, Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg disputed this, tweeting that the Southwest cancellations were “not weather related,” and as such, the company is required to cover not only the cost of airfare but of meals, transportation and hotels if you were stranded away from home.

Despite its original statement, the Fort Worth, Texas-based airline has pledged to refund its customers for canceled flights and expenses such as rental cars, hotels and airfare booked through other airlines. Other costs will be handled on a case-by-case basis, per the airline.

If you were one of the thousands stranded, here’s how you can get your money back.

How do I get a refund from Southwest Airlines?

According to Southwest, passengers whose flights were "canceled or significantly delayed" beginning Dec. 24, 2022, through Jan. 2, 2023, are eligible to request a refund of their unused ticket to the original form of payment.

To do so, complete an online form with your name and reservation confirmation number, after which you should expect to promptly receive your refund.

“Under the law, Southwest must provide prompt refunds when a carrier cancels a passenger’s flight or makes a significant change in the flight, regardless of the reason, unless the passenger accepts rebooking,” Buttigieg said in a Dec. 29 letter to Southwest. “This means Southwest must provide refunds within seven business days if a passenger paid by credit card, and within 20 days if a passenger paid by cash, check, or other means.”

After Southwest canceled a Dec. 30 flight from Kahului Airport (OGG) to Kona International Airport (KOA), TPG senior aviation reporter Zach Griff submitted a reimbursement form to the airline for the $149 ticket he bought on a new flight.

Less than three hours later, Southwest refunded his alternate fare and also provided him with a $250 voucher to use for a future flight.

If you were separated from your luggage or other belongings during travel, you can also fill out a separate form to address that.

Additionally, Southwest is sending 25,000 bonus Rapid Rewards points to travelers affected by the meltdown. These points are included in an apology email with the subject line "A message from Southwest CEO Bob Jordan."

Be sure to monitor your email for your codes.

Request reimbursement for expenses

Southwest will also honor “reasonable requests for reimbursement for meals, hotel accommodations, and alternate transportation (for example: rental cars and tickets on other airlines)” incurred by cancellations, per its website. For those costs, email Southwest directly with your request and attach copies of your expenses for review.

How long for a Southwest refund?

We don't yet know how long it will take Southwest to process all the refunds, but we will update the story as we get more information.

If you've filed your complaint and are still waiting after a few weeks, you might consider filing a consumer complaint with the Department of Transportation. The DOT requires airlines to acknowledge consumer complaints within 30 days of receiving them and send consumers written responses within 60 days.

Check your credit card for travel protections

After you've communicated your issues to the airline directly, remember that several credit cards also offer travel insurance protections for trip delays, baggage delays, trip cancellations and trip interruptions for just these types of situations.

Should you run into issues receiving reimbursement for your expenses from Southwest, check to see if the credit card you used to book your flight offers any travel insurance protections.

Bottom line

If you were one of the thousands stranded by Southwest this holiday season, follow the above steps to ensure you get your money back.

After that: Sit tight. Southwest has said it’s experiencing a backlog of complaints, and it unfortunately could take a while for all issues to get sorted out.

For more advice on handling flight delays and cancelations, read:

• What you can ask from an airline after a delayed or canceled flight
• Winter is here: Your flight is canceled or delayed – here’s what you should do next
• Flight delayed or canceled? Here are the best credit cards with trip delay reimbursement
• Can I get flight delay compensation? These are the ways you qualify
• Flight delayed? Remember these 4 things if you want trip delay reimbursement from your credit card
• All the airlines' flight delay and compensation policies from DOT's customer service dashboard

Additional reporting by Caroline Tanner.