Avoid Booking This Type Of Ticket If You Need To Travel During The Government Shutdown

As if government employees across America right now aren't stressed out enough not knowing when they'll be back at work, there's more stress coming down the pipeline it seems. In today's economy, we're all looking to save a buck whenever we can, even when choosing between all the airline classes available upon booking. If you plan on booking a vacation anytime soon, you might want to avoid booking a basic economy ticket if you need to travel during the government shutdown.

Travel agents may warn you about the hidden costs to booking basic economy, but with the recent government shutdown, FAA (including air traffic control and airport safety) and TSA employees can't do their jobs, therefore their jobs aren't the only thing halted right now:  your flight could be next. When booking a flight, it's very tempting to save money and choose basic economy tickets. You're only going for a few days, so maybe you'll skimp on other costs too, since you're not sure if travel insurance is worth buying for such a short duration.

In this scenario with the government shutdown, booking basic economy to save a few bucks could actually cost you more in the long-term. Recently, Hollywood Burbank Airport went to what is called "ATC Zero," meaning that nobody was working at that control tower. Flights were cancelled or redirected, and some customers were only given vouchers. Because the cancellation of the flight was not caused by the airline, they are not technically responsible for refunding anyone, especially those lacking travel insurance, or those that purchased a non-refundable basic economy ticket. Ouch.

So you may be asking yourself, "Am I entitled to a refund if my flight gets grounded during the government shutdown, but I booked basic economy?" The short answer is, maybe. According to the Department of Transportation's (DOT) official website, if a flight is canceled, a schedule change was made, or a significant delay occurs, due to the airline's fault, then you can be refunded, only if you decide not to travel. That said, the DOT hasn't clarified what it deems as a "significant delay," and deals with issues on a case-by-case basis.

When booking a basic economy ticket that's non-refundable, you are essentially gambling with your money. Throw in a lack of travel insurance and it's a recipe for lost money as well. Due to the shutdown, if a customer has made incremental expenses, such as hotels, car rentals, or tour bookings and your flight gets grounded, you'll not be reimbursed, since it's no fault of the airline. If TSA or ATC is not available, that's not the airline's issue to deal with.

The best way to avoid hassles with any air travel you do during the government shutdown is to always make sure you are taking out travel insurance that has a cancellation policy, as well as spending a few extra dollars and upgrading your ticket beyond basic economy. These tiny details will be big time and money savers if things don't go according to plan.