United Air Waives Change Fees in March on Coronavirus Fear

(Bloomberg) -- United Airlines Holdings Inc. is nixing fees for reservations made this month, as the spread of coronavirus roils global travel.

The waiver applies to all tickets booked between March 3 and March 31, the carrier said in an email Tuesday. If customers cancel their flight, they can retain the ticket value for trips within the next 12 months.

“The coronavirus outbreak continues to create a high level of uncertainty around the globe,” United said in the statement. Delta Air Lines Inc. waived change fees for flights booked this month to its international destinations.

The policy change underscores the travel disruption with virus cases on the rise from the U.S. to Italy. Airlines around the world have already suspended flights to China, where the disease originated.

A Standard & Poor's index of major U.S. airlines fell 3.6% at the close in New York. Airlines have been the biggest laggard on the S&P 500 Index since Feb. 21 as concerns about the impact of the coronavirus intensified.

Airlines for America, a trade group of U.S. carriers, established a website, www.airlinestakeaction.com, to serve as a resource on the virus for travelers, the government and the public.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brendan Case in Dallas at bcase4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Case at bcase4@bloomberg.net, Susan Warren

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