Wow Air’s sudden shuttering has stranded travelers on both sides of the Atlantic. In a rare move, the airline gave no warning, leaving people to figure out for themselves how they will get home, and many more in a lurch with faraway travel plans but no flight — and card already swiped.

This is the second time in six months this has happened. In October 2018, Primera Air stranded its passengers around the world and rendered all purchased tickets useless.

Buying an airline ticket always comes with some measure of risk (there might be a blizzard on the day you’re supposed to fly, for instance), but one move can make things much easier should something happen — using a credit card to buy the tickets.

The fact that what was previously a rare occurrence — Air Berlin, for example, gave a few weeks notice before it shut down in 2017 — appears to be happening more often now, adds another dimension to this, especially if using a less-established airline: buy with the right credit card.

Though many people, especially older millennials, prefer debit cards over credit cards, credit cards offer more consumer protection in cases where services cannot be rendered, like a flight on a canceled airline. This mitigates the (already low) risk a person takes if they choose to save money by flying a low-cost carrier.

If you purchased a flight on Wow to Europe, you can call your credit card company — or go online — and ask to refund the payment because you won’t be able to fly. Even if you already paid off your statement, this can work, and quickly. This is usually not possible with a debit card, because the money has already been debited directly from your account.

In that situation, you would be likely left asking the airline for your money back — money that may not exist, given the dire financial situation that led to the collapse.

If that doesn’t work, or if you find yourself stranded, the credit card you use may determine how difficult your situation is.

“The best chance consumers have for getting their money back hinges on whether they purchased travel insurance, or purchased their tickets with a credit card that offers travel insurance,” says NerdWallet’s personal finance expert Arielle O’Shea.

If you have a few cards in your wallet for different reasons, consider using the one that offers you travel insurance benefits if you have one. Financial issues are often covered, so if you have to pay for a rescue fare — which are still pricey, as they’re still airline tickets — you can get reimbursed.

The process is not always simple or easy, but if you have your receipts, it’s a good way to get your money back.

Many credit cards offer travel insurance, and many of them even have no annual fee.

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Ethan Wolff-Mann is a writer at Yahoo Finance focusing on consumer issues, personal finance, retail, airlines, and more. Follow him on Twitter @ewolffmann.

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