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Oh dear...I feel your frustration @Camino Chrissy..it comes through all too clearly! A circumstance with which many members can relate.
Yes..although an unparalleled situation & of no comfort...lesson learnt. I've been fortunate; my airline of choice is always Qatar & I book directly with them. They have been very proactive with the situation & offered full refunds through an online link...no phone calls, no 'negotiating'...done. They even apologise the refund may take several days to process!
With 8 flight legs in total on 3 different airlines, I'm so relieved the biggest outlay has been the least hassle.
Please keep us updated with how you go...your plight will unfortunately be echoed many times on the Forum alone.
Best wishes for a positive outcome.
I rang Qatar in the 48-72hour window prior to my intended departure (Tue 5/5) to clarify where I stood with the one flight segment which hadn't been cancelled by the airline.Tassie Kazrobbo... any luck with Qatar? Nothing this end!
Tut, tut, Camino Chrissy, you know how we live to read posts!Update #3
I am very frustrated and starting to feel helpless. I am sure this is what Expedia and Iberia want...to wear me down and give up trying for a refund. If I do give up, then I hope my party of 3 are able to accept vouchers as a last resort. I do not even know if the newbies would be able to plan to go again next year so vouchers are not really a good option for them.
I called Expedia today and only had a half hour being on hold this time. They had requested "waiver codes" for the flight refunds from Iberia through emails they sent on April 16th and again on April 23rd but they have received no response back from Iberia either time. (Iberia supposedly tells them they will not accept phone calls from them).
I then called Iberia myself (which I had done on the 16th) and they still say I must only go through Expedia. I then said "but you are not responding to their emails". I was then told that Expedia must not be providing the proper information to them. I know that they are as I have a copy of Expedia's email to Iberia. Every jot, tittle, correct itinerary and booking numbers, and all our names are included in the email.
So then I decided next to contact my credit card company. A recording said my wait time would be an hour, I waited with the music, only to be cut off and disconnected automatically after 40 minutes.
My next plan will be to contact my flight insurance through AIG. I had called them as soon as my flight was canceled and was told my request would be reviewed by an adjustor "case by case" and that I should find out from Expedia first before I fill out a form for a report. I think I know how that will go if I do..."Run around, run around"...it's a merry-go- round, but not any fun.
I am mainly sending this update for myself to let off some steam as I do not expect many forum members to bother reading through this lengthy negative, yet factual post.
I had my flights to & from Peru (Machu Picchu hike) cancelled by United. They gave me an option to use a voucher anywhere in the world until 2023. I took it.
Then, it was on to Orbitz to get my LATAM flights refunded...zzzzzzzzz
same run around as the others: wait until 3 days before.
So, I called LATAM direct. They answered immediately and had no problem refunding my flight as Peru is essentially closed. B U T...they didn't know what I paid for the flight. "Only Orbitz knows that. So, sorry, but they have to do the refund."
On to the BBB and FTC for resolution help! No response yet...
It sounds like you are trying to cancel. You need to wait for the airline to cancel, then you will be eligible for a 100% refund, less any fees owed to Orbitz that you agreed to when you purchased the ticket.UPDATE #1: BBB shook Orbitz awake, but Orbitz says LATAM will charge 70% of ticket price to cancel. I called LATAM again and they said not true, they are giving vouchers at 100% for one year. I pressed and the agent yielded two years. Orbitz repeated the 70% fine answer.
argghhh!!
Now, Orbitz says, "wait until a few days before. Then, apply again. Which is their standard dodge.
This is so frustrating.
i agree...from now on, I go directly to the airline to book!
‘The Tao of Pooh’ makes for excellent reading in these trying times also.I also suggest reading Winnie-the-Pooh while you are on hold! It keeps the spirits lifted and makes you realize things can be right with the world!
Original poster, here, with an update: About a month before my scheduled departure of May 15, I finally just decided to call United Airlines and ask for a refund. First miracle: no hours-long wait on hold; I was put right through to an agent. Second miracle: I was given a refund. Well, maybe not so miraculous -- although I had a non-refundable ticket, the agent put me on hold for a few minutes, then returned to announce my flight was "refund eligible." What that meant, I found out later, was that United at cancelled the flights, but had not yet posted/informed customers of that decision. Happy for the refund, but sad to know my walk is truly cancelled, at least for the near term.But better to get the run around directly from the airline than to get it from the airline and the "agent".
His flight was on British Airways, whereas the other three of us are on IBERIA...apparently they are the bigger problem.
Really? Both are owned by the same company? British Airways responded rather quickly to Expedia's email request for a refund...but Iberia has not replied to two or three attempts by Expedia to email them to get refund approval. I then called Iberia directly myself to see why they do not reply to Expedia and they bordered on rude and refused to help me...just saying.Same company.
I do not think so but they are in an alliance network. By that I mean to fly from from A to B you may not be able on airline 1 but you can fly from A to C and from C to B on allied airline 2. Airline 1 can thus sell you a ticket for the full A to C to B flight and the airlines split the fare. In this case airline 1 should be able to refund the full fare even if airline 2 does not want this.Both are owned by the same company?
They are owned by the same company - International Airlines GroupI do not think so but they are in an alliance network. By that I mean to fly from from A to B you may not be able on airline 1 but you can fly from A to C and from C to B on allied airline 2. Airline 1 can thus sell you a ticket for the full A to C to B flight and the airlines split the fare. In this case airline 1 should be able to refund the full fare even if airline 2 does not want this.
Now, in another case, you may have booked from online facilitator company X. X may have bought your tickets from airline 1 separately from airline 2. So we have two allied airlines involved but the tickets were bought outside the alliance methods. You ask X for a refund and before giving you that refund they ask the airlines to refund them, X. Maybe only airline 1 wants to do this.
ABC...XYZ! Thanks Rick, for explaining. I kind of understand...I do not think so but they are in an alliance network. By that I mean to fly from from A to B you may not be able on airline 1 but you can fly from A to C and from C to B on allied airline 2. Airline 1 can thus sell you a ticket for the full A to C to B flight and the airlines split the fare. In this case airline 1 should be able to refund the full fare even if airline 2 does not want this.
Now, in another case, you may have booked from online facilitator company X. X may have bought your tickets from airline 1 separately from airline 2. So we have two allied airlines involved but the tickets were bought outside the alliance methods. You ask X for a refund and before giving you that refund they ask the airlines to refund them, X. Maybe only airline 1 wants to do this.
I have only used kayak for years, but will now rethink it. Often the main US airlines were often quite a bit more expensive on it, but in the future I will reconsider for sure!You are getting the timeless trick of it is the other guys fault.
Hang in there persistence usually wins out.
I usually do my search on Kayak or Google air and then book on the airline website if same price.
I have run into the situation of a delayed flight causing me to miss a connection. The issue was my connecting flight only occurred twice a week. So I ended up buying last minute ticket for a ridiculous price and a middle seat.
Crazy. National flag airlines joining. Are the British shareholders going to demand a Brexit?They are owned by the same company - International Airlines Group
British Airways and Iberia | About BA | British Airways
British Airways and Iberia merger completed the creation of Europe's third largest scheduled airline.www.britishairways.com
I’m sorry you’re having problems with Iberia. I have called twice to reschedule or request a refund. Took about less than five minutes each time to get through to a real person. Maybe that’s because I booked directly with them and not through a third-party.Update #3
I am very frustrated and starting to feel helpless. I am sure this is what Expedia and Iberia want...to wear me down and give up trying for a refund. If I do give up, then I hope my party of 3 are able to accept vouchers as a last resort. I do not even know if the newbies would be able to plan to go again next year so vouchers are not really a good option for them.
I called Expedia today and only had a half hour being on hold this time. They had requested "waiver codes" for the flight refunds from Iberia through emails they sent on April 16th and again on April 23rd but they have received no response back from Iberia either time. (Iberia supposedly tells them they will not accept phone calls from them).
I then called Iberia myself (which I had done on the 16th) and they still say I must only go through Expedia. I then said "but you are not responding to their emails". I was then told that Expedia must not be providing the proper information to them. I know that they are as I have a copy of Expedia's email to Iberia. Every jot, tittle, correct itinerary and booking numbers, and all our names are included in the email.
So then I decided next to contact my credit card company. A recording said my wait time would be an hour, I waited with the music, only to be cut off and disconnected automatically after 40 minutes.
My next plan will be to contact my flight insurance through AIG. I had called them as soon as my flight was canceled and was told my request would be reviewed by an adjustor "case by case" and that I should find out from Expedia first before I fill out a form for a report. I think I know how that will go if I do..."Run around, run around"...it's a merry-go- round, but not any fun.
I am mainly sending this update for myself to let off some steam as I do not expect many forum members to bother reading through this lengthy negative, yet factual post.
Yep, that's definately why. I have a friend who had good tesults with them too...booked directly. I think he paid for an upgraded seat.I’m sorry you’re having problems with Iberia. I have called twice to reschedule or request a refund. Took about less than five minutes each time to get through to a real person. Maybe that’s because I booked directly with them and not through a third-party.
NEWS FLASH!
Just this morning I had an email saying my credit card was reimbursed for one of our round trip international flights from Chicago to Madrid. It was booked on Expedia, so they did follow through. This particular flight was booked later for my brother in law as he was joining us later on. His flight was on British Airways, whereas the other three of us are on IBERIA...apparently they are the bigger problem.
When this is all over, we on this Forum may want to, a) collect our data on which airlines and booking companies were most/least helpful and note that information for everyone, b) double down and find some plain, ol' fashioned, dinosaur-era travel agents to help where available, c) compare notes on travel/flight insurance.
One thing I'm pretty sure about, the nature of reserving flights and of refund policies will be different from now on.
Hey, Bob, I see your point about trying to hold someone/thing accountable for what they did or didn't do during unprecedented times. Might not be fair.While I believe this could be a helpful thing for all of us, I believe the biggest variable would be this once in a lifetime pandemic we are all part of. I would hate to single out compan(ies) who were alleged to have been most/least helpful and hurt them anymore than this pandemic already has done to them.
On an extended trip to Italy I took a side trip to Oviedo so my wife could do some research and we could walk about 10 miles on the Primitivo route as it left Oviedo. The flight was on Vueling from Naples, to Barcelona, to Oviedo returning on the same route. On the return they decided they would have a strike and wanted to reroute us to Madrid with no flight returning us to Naples. We opted to cancel the return and rebook through Iberia. This worked for us as we made all the connecting flights and were not stranded. But after applying for refunds, filing complaints with first Vueling, then IAG, then the proper EU authorities our airfare seemed to vaporize. This was 2 years ago and we still have not heard a peep and have no hope of getting our money back. Needless to say Vueling is permanently OFF our list of airlines to use.It seems I am not alone in this quest for a flight refund. Vueling offered me the option of voucher or refund for a flight from Vienna to San Sebastion via Barcelona. I chose "refund" as who knows what the future will bring!
I then received an email saying they were offering me a "voucher" and to do this online as phones were plugged. I tried on line and was told that because I didn't do the booking, I had to go through my travel agent. I made the booking myself, it was not through a travel agent!!! Dead end. I tried calling the number in Spain, message said to call during business hours. I set my alarm for 4:30 AM because of the time difference, called and they are open Monday to Friday. It was Saturday morning that I called
It seems I am not alone in this quest for a flight refund. Vueling offered me the option of voucher or refund for a flight from Vienna to San Sebastion via Barcelona. I chose "refund" as who knows what the future will bring!
I then received an email saying they were offering me a "voucher" and to do this online as phones were plugged. I tried on line and was told that because I didn't do the booking, I had to go through my travel agent. I made the booking myself, it was not through a travel agent!!! Dead end. I tried calling the number in Spain, message said to call during business hours. I set my alarm for 4:30 AM because of the time difference, called and they are open Monday to Friday. It was Saturday morning that I called
Oh dear...I feel your frustration @Camino Chrissy..it comes through all too clearly! A circumstance with which many members can relate.
Yes..although an unparalleled situation & of no comfort...lesson learnt. I've been fortunate; my airline of choice is always Qatar & I book directly with them. They have been very proactive with the situation & offered full refunds through an online link...no phone calls, no 'negotiating'...done. They even apologise the refund may take several days to process!
With 8 flight legs in total on 3 different airlines, I'm so relieved the biggest outlay has been the least hassle.
Please keep us updated with how you go...your plight will unfortunately be echoed many times on the Forum alone.
Best wishes for a positive outcome.
28 Days Latter, wasn't that a movie about 28 days after a zombie virus hit the world? Just sayinToday 19 May 2020 I managed to talk to Qatar Airways. First they told me I was to get a Voucher. I said I had already requested a Refund. Long story short they said I would get a Refund in 28 days.
I now have my full refund from Qatar too...just minus the credit card fee. I'm so relieved but like others, it's still a little disappointing to see where I should have been on this day...23 May20. Email from Qatar Airways stating that my Full Airfare ☺ is being refunded.
Yes, I will rebook direct with Qatar when it is Covid-19 safe.
Buen Camino
Have you tried contacting them through Twitter? I have found support via Twitter to be much more effective than via phone call. Plus you aren't hanging there on hold.Update #4 & #5
I never reported on #4 as it was more of the same...run around...merry go round.
Today I alled Expedia again and was on hold for nearly three hours...seriously! Then when I finally got a human he looked up my itinerary number (it took him at least five minutes on hold). When he came back to the phone he said he needed to put me through to the department that could "help" me, so he put me on hold again. I waited on hold for an additiinal ten minutes and then the call...disconnected.
I booked these international flights on Iberia airlines for three family members so it is no small change.
I'm losing my resolve. I don't think I'll even try to work on getting refunds for our additional six "in Spain" flights through Orbitz.
No, I do not use Twitter, but it's a good idea.Have you tried contacting them through Twitter? I have found support via Twitter to be much more effective than via phone call. Plus you aren't hanging there on hold.
Were all of these flights cancelled by the airline?
It's worth it to get a Twitter account just for these purposes. I just resolved an issue that I was having with DirecTV/ATT via Twitter after a couple of long phone calls that got me nowhere.No, I do not use Twitter, but it's a good idea.
When I call Expedia they do give an option right away to have them call you back and it says you will not lose your "place" in its order. I think I will start choosing that option (if I can trust it). I think I'll also go in to their website and see if they have a robotic chatbox I can correspond with... better than nothing.
Now I'm just waiting for a few less expensive, shorter flights within Spain to be refunded.
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