U.S. Department of Transportation officials have paused enforcement of four provisions in a sweeping Biden-era rule that conferred new air travel protections to disabled passengers including by strengthening the language around liability when wheelchairs are mishandled.

“[T]he U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is delaying enforcement of certain provisions of the final rule on ‘Ensuring Safe Accommodations for Air Travelers with Disabilities Using Wheelchairs’ while it engages in a new rulemaking that will consider whether to modify those provisions,” the DOT said of its decision to hit pause on four provisions in the Wheelchair Rule.

Importantly, the DOT’s decision does not affect the enforcement of other requirements in the rule beyond the identified provisions.

There is no shortage of horror stories about wheelchairs being destroyed in aircraft cargo holds. And after years of advocacy by disability rights groups including the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), the DOT issued its final rule in December 2024 to clarify and codify interpretations within the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986, and to strengthen protections.

The move was heralded by PVA as being “not only a win for the disability community, especially our nation’s veterans with catastrophic injuries and diseases, like MS and ALS, but also a testament to the power of collective advocacy.”

On 18 February, airline trade group A4A — representing American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines — filed a lawsuit against the DOT at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to stop the rule from being enacted in whole or in part, arguing that provisions “exceed the DOT’s statutory authority” and violate the law.

Individual requirements within the final rule had varying implementation times, ranging from 16 January 2025 to 17 June 2026. But two days after the A4A lawsuit dropped, the DOT under the new Trump Administration opted to delay enforcement of the rule until 20 March and again until 1 August to allow officials to review its contents and ensure it is consistent with the law.

In a 30 September notice announcing it would exercise its discretion to “temporarily pause enforcement” of four provisions in the Wheelchair Rule, the DOT explained that it will issue a new notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in August 2026 to address those provisions, though a determination is not expected before 31 December 2026.

Pausing enforcement on four provisions

The first of four provisions being reassessed is the portion of the rule addressing airlines’ liability when passengers’ wheelchairs or other assistive devices are not returned in a timely manner and in the condition they were received. Under the rule as written, there is a rebuttable presumption that the airline mishandled the device in violation of the ACAA.

Contesting the rebuttable presumption clause in its lawsuit, the A4A argues that the notion an airline is responsible for all mishandling of a checked wheelchair or other devices under all circumstances “is unfounded and violates the airlines’ rights to defend themselves against false allegations or acts that occurred due to events beyond their control.”

Another now-paused provision in the final rule would have required airlines to reimburse the difference between the fare on a flight a wheelchair user (or scooter user) took, and the fare on a flight they would have taken if their wheelchair had been able to fit in the cabin or cargo compartment of the aircraft.

The DOT said it will also review the “frequency” of the rule’s required refresher training of airline employees and contractors, as well as the protocol around pre-departure notifications to passengers who check wheelchairs or scooters concerning their right to contact a Complaint Resolution Official and file a claim.

On a positive note

Whilst the DOT has decided to pause and consider some of the more contested provisions of the Biden-era final rule, it has retained other provisions that will benefit wheelchair users.

“The wheelchair user rule changes ACAA regulations to improve the air travel experience for people who use wheelchairs and other assistive devices, including prompt and flexible repair or replacement options for damaged wheelchairs and annual hands-on training of airline employees and contractors who assist passengers with mobility disabilities,” PVA said in a published statement after leaders from the air travel accessibility community gathered in Redmond, Washington to attend PVA’s Access to the Skies Summit as co-presented by All Wheels Up.

There is little doubt in the mind of disability rights advocate and Flying Disabled founder Christopher Wood MBE that the global disabled community will continue to push for “safety, dignity and a more inclusive passenger experience.”

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Featured image credited to istock.com/YakobchukOlena