Skybus Refunds
Skybus airlines announced on April 4, 2008 that, after that Friday night’s flights, the company would cease operations. The company filed for bankruptcy on April 7, 2008, leaving some customers wondering what their options are, having paid for tickets and made reservations with a now-defunct airline. Here is some information from the Consumer Section of the Attorney General’s Office. It is offered merely as helpful suggestions, based on the data presented in the media, and is not intended to be - or substitute for - specific legal advice.
In general, anyone who purchased a ticket by credit card within 60 to 90 days before Skybus declared bankruptcy April 7, 2008 has a reasonable chance of recovering their money, thanks to rights provided by the Fair Credit Billing Act. This Act allows consumers to dispute charges to their credit card, for services not delivered as agreed. This possibility is acknowledged by the Skybus Web site, www.skybus.com. Consumers usually have a right to file disputes within 60 days of the first time the questionable charge appears on their credit card statement. Those who paid by credit card more than 90 days before the April 7, 2008 filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy, or who paid in some other manner (e.g. check, cash through a travel agent), may have to seek other relief. Those individuals and businesses likely will have to file a Proof of Claim in the Skybus Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
We encourage affected consumers to file credit card disputes if they are eligible, and to file a bankruptcy Proof of Claim if they are not.
Eligible consumers can file a dispute by writing to their credit card company at the address provided on their billing statement for “billing inquiries” (this address typically is different from the address to which payments are sent). For information on filing a proof of claim in the bankruptcy proceeding, contact the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, www.deb.uscourts.gov, where the bankruptcy is filed and where claims will be received.