absolutflying

I'm okay with airlines giving zero refund on a cheap ticket.

Scenario: I can't make the flight, can't standby on the same day, and the ticket becomes worthless. Fine with me, since I'm the one who fails to show up for the flight. However, why can't the airlines at least just give me the frequent flyer miles?

(or are they already doing this?)

freakflyer

No such luck. However, it would be nice if at least you got your taxes back!

Efrem

Their reason for not giving you the miles is that, if they did, people with a little money to burn could buy status by buying cheap tix to anywhere, any time there's a good special, and not using them. In other words, you could do a mileage run without doing the miles. As it is, the need to devote 200 hours to the cause (for a level that requires 100K miles; YMMV) minimizes that.

I must admit that, contrary to some other airline rules, this one makes some sense. I'm glad my status isn't diluted by everyone who can spare $3K or so for the same thing.

opus17

If the airlines figured there was money in selling tickets to people who didn't fly (and just took miles), they would do it in a second. Last time I looked, they were all losing billions of dollars.

tazi

When I saw this new rule, I emailed American airlines to let them know how I felt about it. In the email response I got they said the reason was that this was a 'perishable item' and if I didn't make the flight, they had no way to re-sell my seat.

Well, if that is the case, then how do they explain overbooked flights? It seems to me, they already re-sold my seat counting on me not showing up....at a premium price no less.

dogcanyon

I have read that they are required to refund the taxes and airport fees on an unused "non-refundable" ticket when requested, but they don't do it very often because so few people are aware of it. Can anybody here confirm whether this is true?
It seems only fair to me that I shouldn't have to pay government taxes or service/security fees for something that I didn't actually use. Plus, it would give me some satisfaction to show them that if they want to play hardball by making the tickets non-refundable, then they can share some of the pain by spending $20 or $30 in administrative/labor costs to refund my $15 or $20 in taxes and fees on a domestic ticket.

cordelli

You will only get miles if you fly, that will probably never change. if it did, as mentioned above, people would buy status and not take the flights, buying tickets for very little money, taking up a seat the airline could have sold the week before for five times what you paid.

Redhead

Would this be true on an unused mileage award too? I think I'm going to have to redeposit the miles for two transatlantic awards (and get hit with $200 in fees )
but I sure would like my $46 in taxes back on each. Make it a little easier to bear.


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I Love New York -- Viva España

Globaliser

It would seem right to me. Last year, I had to return a BA trans-Atlantic award ticket. It cost me GBP 35 or something like that for fees, but I got more than that back from the refunded taxes.

flytoeat

You will get the taxes back when you forfeit (reinstate) an award ticket.

freakflyer

Let me know if anybody has figured out a way to get the taxes back on an unused non-refundable ticket. Thanks!

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ff

fly co to see the yanks

very good point. there's no reasons we should pay the security fee if we aren't even being inspected, for example.

djcrooks

I had a flight delay on the first segment of an award ticket to S. America that was so sever, I gave up the whole trip. They gave me my miles back without any fees for redepositing them, and promised to refund my credit card for the $26.40 in taxes. That was over 2 months ago and no a penny back on my Mastercard yet. Don't get your hopes up!

skofarrell

Hold the phone, what exactly would be wrong with that? By definition, if someone does not fly enough to get status, they aren't diluting your status. They aren't on planes at all.

If I were UA, I'd sell 1K for $3 grand to anyone stupid enough to pay for it.

aisleorwindow

I gotta side with skofarrel on this one. If an airline is offering a special for a particular flight, then it probably means they aren't expecting to sell out the flight in the first place. Why would it be a problem for an airline to allow people to "buy" miles this way. They let you buy them on their websites? If anything, if the plane takes off with out that passenger, they at least save money on drinks, etc.

The argument that they are displacing a potential full fare paying passenger who books only 6 days in advance, is ultimately not valid. Airlines will most likely still sell this seat. If a guy paying $1000 bumps a guy paying $200 and the guy gets say $400 in compensation, the airline still makes more money.

I agree with others that this probably will not change anytime soon, but it could work to the airlines' advantage if they changed it, IMHO.

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"I just wanna wish you good luck, we're all counting on you"
-Dr. Rumack