American says that its new contract with customers doesn't let it strand passengers, despite ambiguous wording

• American Airlines updated its conditions of carriage in August with new language surrounding its obligations to passengers.
• One industry expert is concerned about the ambiguity of the new language regarding delayed passengers.
• American maintains that the new language doesn't reflect a change in policy.

American Airlines is pushing back on reports that its new conditions of carriage will make it harder for stranded travelers to reach their destinations.

The Fort Worth, Texas-based airline updated the document that outlines its responsibility to customers on August 27 with strengthened language on how it handles flight delays and cancellations, among other items. One line, in particular, appears to state that American isn't obligated to get customers to their destinations in the event of lengthy delays or cancellations.

"If we or our airline partner fails to operate or delays your arrival more than 4 hours, our sole obligation is to refund the remaining ticket value and any optional fees according to our involuntary refunds policy," states the conditions of carriage. The line isn't found in the previous version, which Insider used an archived webpage to view.

Despite the new language, American says that its underlying policies remain the same and that it will still work to help impacted travelers.

"We recently made updates to our contract of carriage to more accurately reflect our Customer Service Plan and practices we've had in place for a few years," American told Insider in a statement. "None of these updates reflect a change in policy, but instead provide more detail about what customers can expect during travel in accordance with domestic travel regulations."

An industry expert, however, is doubtful that the new wording paints the clearest picture of the airline's obligations, despite American's stated intentions.

"What concerns me about the wording in American's current contract of carriage is it creates the impression that if your flight is delayed by more than four hours, [the airline's] sole responsibility is to give you a refund," Henry Harteveldt, travel industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group, told Insider.

"The challenge for American is that the contract has to be able to be read and understood by the average American Airlines passenger," Harteveldt said. "And American serves an extremely diverse mix of people."

It's not just passengers that may need to refer to the conditions of carriage. Airline staff may refer to the document for clarity when serving travelers.

"The concern that I have is that an American Airlines employee who is not well-versed, well-trained, or may simply be feeling lazy, would tell a customer: 'I don't have to get you to your destination. All we have to do is give you your money back for your unused portion of your ticket,'" Harteveldt added. "What matters to people is how they are treated when the chips are down."

American maintains that this language won't affect the customer experience and it will still work to help impacted flyers when delays and cancellations strike.

"We always strive to provide our customers with the best service possible when they are traveling on American and support and assist them when travel does not go as smoothly as intended," American said. "Our hope with this written clarity is that customers who may have questions about their travel can more quickly find answers to their questions, rather than waiting in line or calling to speak with an agent."

Hartevelt notes that in trying to eliminate ambiguity American may have unintentionally created it.