No matter how long-awaited your trip is, sometimes you may be faced with the need to cancel it. A sudden recall from vacation, illness, change in financial situation and other force majeure circumstances confuse tourists and make them think about how to return a plane ticket. Today we will look into this issue and tell you what needs to be done for this and what part of the air ticket price you can count on.
Subtleties of negotiations
Immediately, we note that each airline establishes its own rules for canceling purchased tickets. This is due to the fact that at the legislative level this issue is practically not regulated and enables carriers to independently establish the “rules of the game”.
Experienced customers are advised to negotiate a return policy at the time of purchase. For example, some carriers sell the so-called. "Non-refundable travel passes", it is always problematic to return even part of the cost of which. The only exception to this rule is the passenger's refusal to fly through the fault of the company, which may be in such cases as flight cancellation or delay, inconsistency in the level of service declared earlier, aircraft replacement, etc.
In all other cases, the delivery of the document is carried out according to the rules prescribed in the tariff. A full refund can be counted on in rare cases if you are the owner of a first or business class ticket, excursion or annual pass. But it is not worth counting on reimbursement of the full cost of the unused pass, which was purchased at discounted rates.
Features of the procedure
Before going to the airport ticket office, you should be aware of the existing time restrictions on the return of purchased tickets. Most companies are ready to return the money paid for the flight, provided that the refund is made:
- at least 7 days before departure
- no later than 24 hours before departure
- before the plane takes off
In some cases, you can get your money back even after the plane is in the sky. But those passengers who paid for the flight at a reduced fare should not rely on the company's leniency.
As soon as you understand that you will not be able to take off on a scheduled flight, you should immediately contact the airport ticket office. Please note that you need to contact the representative of the carrier company on which you planned to fly. In addition to the document itself, you need to have a passport and be ready to explain the reason for your refusal. For the return of an unused ticket, you are required to return either the entire cost minus the fine, or up to 50% of the price (it all depends on the type of ticket and the timing of its return). Although some airlines value their reputation and do not apply such sanctions.
If you paid for the flight through the website, then you should try to get your money back through this web resource, and not seek the truth from the airline.
Pay attention to the document itself. As a rule, it contains information on the procedure and timing of the return. If the necessary information was not there, try to get an answer on the official website of the carrier. You can also contact the company by phone.
In the event that you bought a ticket from an agent, you should send him a statement, in which you inform about your intention to cancel the flight. If the agent refuses to reimburse you for the cost of the document, contact the carrier directly.
How to return a ticket purchased online on the website
If you decide to buy a ticket online on the site, you need to know about some of the nuances of such a return. First, you won't be able to get the full refund. Secondly, the process of reverse transfer of the money spent can take up to 3 months, and the money will go to the bank card with which the payment was made.
To avoid additional problems and not lose your money in the event of force majeure, we advise you to use those online ticket offices that always go to meet customers and are ready to replace the ticket (for example, Aviakassy.com). Although even here it will not be possible to avoid paying mandatory fines.
From personal experience, I can add that it is always easier to negotiate with airlines directly about refunds for a ticket, but then you should buy tickets not through intermediaries or aggregator sites, but on the website of the air carrier itself. The reason for the return of funds in 100% of the volume must naturally be valid and supported by documents (for example, a certificate from a doctor if the trip is impossible in case of illness).
Correspondence
You can also use the service of correspondence of air tickets, the essence of which is that instead of returning the ticket to the client, the cost of the ticket is credited to the account of another document.
So we figured out how to return a plane ticket. We hope that our information will allow you to avoid problems with air carriers and not lose your money.
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