Getting a refund on a non-refundable airline ticket?

December 20, 2004 1:32 PM

I bought a roundtrip plane ticket from the US to the UK for the end of January that I now wish I could get rid of. British Airways is telling me that it's non refundable. Is there anything that I can try to do to get my money back? (i.e. constant nagging, lies about extenuating circumstance, etc, etc).
posted by TurkishGolds to shopping (13 comments total)

A medical reason with supporting documentation from a medical doctor will get you a full refund.
posted by Sheppagus at 1:40 PM on December 20, 2004

Most airlines will let you cancel & get a refund if you or a close family member is ill. In my case, I was able to cancel tickets on Delta last year because I am the primary caretaker for my grandparents and my grandmother took a turn for the worse a few days before I was to depart to Italy. I had to take a letter from my grandmother's doctor to the ticket counter at the airport and I was given the choice to rebook for up to one year at the same cost ($282 rt) or to get a full refund.
posted by Juicylicious at 1:41 PM on December 20, 2004

Eye surgery is a good excuse, as is any pressure-unfriendly recuperation, if you want to get out of flying.
posted by AlexReynolds at 1:49 PM on December 20, 2004

Won't help you get rid of them, but you can probably transfer them to a later date within 365 days of the original date of travel.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 2:26 PM on December 20, 2004

If they change your schedule at all, you have grounds to request a refund. And what NotMyselfRightNowSaid.

The folks at Flyertalk will get you the best answers to these kinds of questions...
posted by grouse at 2:56 PM on December 20, 2004

Although changing the date isn't going to be cheap either.
posted by smackfu at 4:10 PM on December 20, 2004

I've tried to get them to change my flights before, even where you're happy to move to more expensive seats with the same airline (and it was BA in my case) they won't go for it, they claim they're not allowed to do so under consumer law, and that might even be true.
posted by biffa at 4:21 PM on December 20, 2004

Biffa - It's probably luck if they'll do it or not. I've had about 50 BA flights this year, switched on a number of occasions, and never had a problem...
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 4:57 PM on December 20, 2004

I did some more research. You need to find out what the fare rules for your ticket are. For the U.S. majors you can generally change any ticket with a change fee, but BA has decided to be an ass (or asses, to use British grammar) for their cheapest N fares: "CANCELLATIONS ANY TIME TICKET IS NON-REFUNDABLE. NOTE - WHERE THIS FARE IS COMBINED WITH ANOTHER FARE THE MOST RESTRICTIVE CONDITIONS APPLY TO THE ENTIRE JOURNEY. CHANGES ANY TIME CHANGES NOT PERMITTED."

However, their second-cheapest V fares do allow changes with a USD 100 fee:

"CANCELLATIONS BEFORE DEPARTURE CHARGE USD 200.00 FOR CANCEL/REFUND. NOTE - CHARGE APPLIES TO ADULT AND CHILDREN FOR CANCELLATION PRIOR TO TICKETED DEPARTURE TIME OF OUTBOUND FLIGHT. THE APPLICABLE INFANT DISCOUNT MAY BE APPLIED TO INFANTS UNDER TWO TRAVELLING WITHOUT A SEAT. --- PASSENGERS WHO NO-SHOW FOR A FLIGHT WILL BE CONSIDERED AS CANCELLING AFTER DEPARTURE AND WILL RECEIVE NO REFUND. --- WHERE THIS FARE IS COMBINED WITH ANOTHER FARE THE MOST RESTRICTIVE CONDITIONS APPLY TO THE ENTIRE JOURNEY. AFTER DEPARTURE TICKET IS NON-REFUNDABLE. NOTE - WHERE THIS FARE IS COMBINED WITH ANOTHER FARE THE MOST RESTRICITVE CONDITIONS APPLY TO THE ENTIRE JOURNEY. CHANGES ANY TIME CHARGE USD 100.00 FOR REISSUE/REVALIDATION. NOTE - THE USD100 FEE APPLIES TO ADULTS AND CHILDREN. APPLICABLE INFANT DISCOUNT MAY BE APPLIED TO INFANTS UNDER TWO TRAVELLING WITHOUT A SEAT. --- CHANGES ARE PERMITTED PRIOR TO THE TICKETED DEPARTURE TIME OF EACH FLIGHT. CHANGES ARE NOT PERMITTED AFTER THE FLIGHT/S SCHEDULED DEPARTURE TIME AND THE TICKET HAS NO VALUE TOWARDS FURTHER TRANSPORTATION. --- A. CHANGES BEFORE DEPARTURE OF THE OUTBOUND TRANSATLANTICK FLIGHT- THE ITINERARY MUST BE RE-PRICED USING FARES IN EFFECT ON THE DATE THE TICKET IS REISSUED. THE NEW ITINERARY MUST MEET ALL RULE PROVISIONS OF THE NEWLY TICKETED FARE I.E. ADVANCE RESERVATIONS/TICKETING DEADLINE/MINIMUM/MAXIMUM STAY/BOOKING CLASS/SEASONALITY ETC. --- B. CHANGES AFTER DEPARTURE OF THE OUTBOUND TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT- FARES IN EFFECT ON THE DATE OF ORIGINAL TICKET ISSUE MUST BE APPLIED. THE NEW ITINERARY MUST MEET ALL THE RULE PROVISIONS OF THE NEWLY TICKETED FARES SUCH THAT THE RECALCULATED FARE COULD HAVE BEEN USED FOR THE NEW ITINERARY IF PURCHASED ON THE ORIGINAL TICKET ISSUED DATE. --- --- IN BOTH CASES THE ORIGINAL CANCELLATION CHARGE WILL BE CARRIED FORWARD TO ANY REISSUED TICKET. --- WHEN THE ITINERARY RESULTS IN A HIGHER FARE THE DIFFERENCE WILL BE COLLECTED - AND- THE USD100 FEE WILL BE APPLIED. --- WHEN THE NEW ITINERAY RESULTS IN A LOWER FARE THE USD100 CHANGE FEE WILL BE APPLIED AND NO REFUND WILL BE MADE. --- WHERE THIS FAE IS COMBINED WITH ANOTHER FARE THE MOST RESTRICTIVE CONDITIONS APPLY TO THE ENTIRE JOURNEY. ---"

(all via Travelocity fare listings)
posted by grouse at 5:02 PM on December 20, 2004

BA has decided to be an ass (or asses, to use British grammar)

Arses.
posted by kindall at 7:49 PM on December 20, 2004

kindall: I stand corrected.
posted by grouse at 2:26 AM on December 21, 2004

NotMyselfRightNow: where they specified as non-refundable/non-transferable?
posted by biffa at 3:18 AM on December 21, 2004

ass / asses -> arse / arses
posted by nthdegx at 8:18 AM on December 21, 2004