Does travel insurance cover flight delays and cancellations caused by bad weather?

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November 11, 2026 / 8:17 AM EST / CBS News

A flight can be running on schedule when a traveler leaves for the airport, only for thunderstorms, high winds or another weather event to bring departures to a halt hours later. When that happens, the cost of the disruption can extend well beyond the original plane ticket. All it takes is an unexpected hotel stay, meals, transportation and a replacement flight to quickly add hundreds of dollars to the overall price of a trip.

Those types of disruptions aren't particularly unusual, either. Flight delays remain common enough, in fact, that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) tracks them as part of its monthly Air Travel Consumer Report. But what travelers generally receive as compensation from an airline after a weather disruption typically differs significantly from what they would receive when the airline itself causes the problem.

That's one reason travelers may consider buying travel insurance before a costly trip. A policy can provide another financial safety net when plans go off course. Weather-related coverage can be limited, though. So, what…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/moneywatch/