There really is no "general airline policy"
It depends on :
The airline

The type of ticket you bought-first class, business, coach--and the fare type (coach may have 10 or more categories, each with its own cancellation and change policy)

When you have to cancel (far in advance, last minute,change the return after you've already left)

The least important factor, I think is WHY you have to cancel, though there is some discretion for airline employees to make exceptions based on reason

Look at travel insurance for situations like these, but check exactly what is or is not covered. Some cover only illness of the travelers, some cover cancellation due to family members illnesses, but may limit it to certain family members (e.g spouse, child parent, not aunt or cousin)

Trip Insurance can cover this issue if you have the right policy but there may be fine print that required you to buy the trip insurance within x days of ticket purchase.

A lot of them charge you $150 -$200 for a change(plus additional charge if the rate is higher). Southwest has never charged me anything. American and United- $150.
Delta- Good luck at getting them to help you with anything. Nyer is correct, there really are no set rules that you can truly go by.

Unfortunately Southwest doesn't fly to France.

The ticket change policy should be available when you make the purchase.

I would be surprised to hear about trip insurance that would cover a cancellation b/c of a family member's illness (someone who's not traveling). The only way to answer this question is to decide which airline/flights you want and contact the airline or read what it says about cancellation policies before you purchase.

On two different occasions I've been reimbursed by a travel insurance company for expenses related to a canceled trip due to a relative's illness.

I use www.insuremytrip.com to look at various policies; you can see the terms and conditions before you buy.

Otherwise it's a case of your individual airline's policies relative to the type of ticket purchased (specific fare class, not just "coach"). Fully refundable tickets are the most expensive, usually several times the cost of non-refundable ones. Devil = details.

If you're not going to make it, be sure to cancel before flight time. Most of them won't allow you to just not show up and then try to salvage your ticket afterwards, they want advance
notice of cancellation.

Also, besides the change fee you may have to pay the change in fare. In other words...if you buy a ticket to France for $800 and cancel, they'll charge you a $200 change fee so you now have $600 credit. If your new dates of travel only have tickets available at $1000...you have to come up with $400 in addition to the credit. This is especially bothersome if you're sick. You might cancel, but then want to travel in a few days. At that point there are no "advance purchase fares" available and the only available tickets are $2000. (Last minute tickets are often exorbitant).

In a nutshell, if you cancel or change, they will screw you. Southwest is not as bad but you still might cancel a $79 ticket and have only $400 tickets available on your new day of travel because you may not meet the new '21 day advance" fare requirement.

If you go the travel insurance way be sure to check the policy if an elderly relative is the one that is ill. Some have a cut off age of 75 or 80.

And it matters what type of relative - beloved aunt, not matter how close you are, rarely counts. Also, OP mentions "loved one" - and I doubt if it is not a relative any policy will cover you.

Hello,
If you Google "(insert airline here) Contract of Carriage", it will tell you via PDF file in great detail what it's changes, cancellation and refund policies are.
The verbage isn't too overwhelming, which is a plus. Most contracts can be a headache to read.
I would even suggest calling the airlines customer service number and explaining your situation to a live voice. They may be able to offer a solution as well.

Best regards, and I hope this helps

Southworst DOES NOT fly to France! What's the point talking about them?

If you really want to be protected, just buy a full fare ticket, which will be expensive, in most cases almost as expensive as a business class ticket, but you can change dates or cancel without any penalties.

Otherwise, check into insuring your trip, BUT make sure the insurance covers such an event.

Good luck.

"Southworst DOES NOT fly to France! What's the point talking about them?"

Based on the title of this topic, hundreds or thousands of people might someday click here to find out information about cancellations, both international and domestic.

Each airline is different. The information you are requesting is listed in the rules of the ticket when you first purchased your ticket. The rules should be on your airline's website.

Some airlines are more flexible (or less) than others. I will say this, if you have to make a change and you've already purchased the ticket, put on your 'sweet sweet sugary voice' and give 'em a call. Sweet kindness helps more when requesting special assistance with any airline. Also, if you have to change your ticket because of a death or illness, give a call to the customer relations office of your airline and see if they'll work with you regarding waiving or decreasing your ticket fee or change fee. They may require a signed document from your doctor or in the case of deaht, a copy of the death certificate.

btw~ you may have to pay to change the ticket and then contact customer relatios after you travel.

AAfrequentflyer,
Many people who spend two weeks in the US sometimes fly domestic. There are many people why fly into LAX or SFO and then to the Vegas/Grand Canyon. I didn't go back and read the posters previous posts, but thought I remembered them having a question about travel within the US a few weeks back. Plus, the OP wasn't specific on a carrier. Just sharing my experiences with various airlines. Just because you apparently are a heavy AA user and evidently not SW, doesn't mean everbody thinks like you.

There are many type of insurance coverages. I think some of them you can even cancel for any type of reason. Each case is different with each airlines. Sometimes I think it might just depend on what kind of mood and who answers the phone.

AAfrequentflyer,
Many people who spend two weeks in the US sometimes fly domestic. There are many people why fly into LAX or SFO and then to the Vegas/Grand Canyon. I didn't go back and read the posters previous posts, but thought I remembered them having a question about travel within the US a few weeks back. Plus, the OP wasn't specific on a carrier. Just sharing my experiences with various airlines. Just because you apparently are a heavy AA user and evidently not SW, doesn't mean everbody thinks like you.

There are many type of insurance coverages. I think some of them you can even cancel for any type of reason. Each case is different with each airlines. Sometimes I think it might just depend on what kind of mood and who answers the phone.