If an airline goes bankrupt....

[travelplanner70]

I have lived through 2 airline bankruptcies in the past year - ATA and Aloha. I thought when I bought tickets, it was the kiss of death for an airline. In any case, MasterCard made good on all my reservations and refunded my tickets.

Now I am faced with booking on 2 airlines who are on the list of financially strapped companies. Do you think MasterCard will still be generous and refund all money if the airlines go belly up - considering today's economy? Also, one of the tickets is booked on Discover card because I received 5% back. (Does Discover Card have the same generous policy as MasterCard?)Also, last year the airlines went bankrupt within 2 months of my purchase. The tickets this year would be purchased 5 months before takeoff.

What do you think? Thanks for your thoughts.

[Talent312]

Under the "Fair Credit Billing Act," you have 60 days after receipt of the statement on which a charge appears to dispute the charge. Technically, a charge-back request received after that time does not have to be honored, even if service was promised for a later date.

Would the CC companies allow a later charge-back? Perhaps. My 2 cents: Do not purchase service from an unreliable vendor that is due more than 60 days after the billing date on which the charge appears.