Credit for airfare not used: who may redeem
 

A colleague purchased nonrefundable tickets for her parents from Burbank to Las Vegas. The trip had to be canceled, but, as was customary, my colleage received credit for the value of the tickets.

Now, she would like to use that credit, but on trip(s) for herself, not her parents, who travel infrequently. SWA advised her that only her parents can redeem that credit.

Is that correct? Is my colleague out of luck?

The credit can only be used by the person's whose name was on the ticket. This was put into effect about a year or two ago.

If she waits until the credit expires (one year from date of purchase) she can ask to have it reissued as a Luv voucher, usable by anyone, for a cost of $75, which will be deduced from the balance. She has 6 months after expiration in which to request this, and the voucher will be good for 6 months from the date of issue.

She can also just have her parents use the points to buy her a ticket..or ask them for access to their RR acct and just do it herself..

This appears to be a cash booking, not with points, in which case the money is tied specifically to the person.

This situation illustrates why it is generally better to use points to reserve for people who seldom fly.

Southwest's official line is that non-transferability of travel credits was always Southwest's policy, but enforcement of that restriction was delayed for 14 years due to software limitations. So it's not a devaluation, just expiration of a very long grace period. :rolleyes:

On the bright side, Southwest gave more than adequate notice that this change was coming. The exact timing was a surprise, perhaps as a trap for fraudsters.

And this illustrates why it is a good idea to visit this forum and get the up-to-date travel knowledge. :p
Or, you will just have to learn from your own mistakes (like what I have done).

Good advice!

After the expiration date of the credit, you can call customer relations and they will issue a LUV voucher for total - 75 fee and anyone can use it. I believe the expiration of the voucher will be 6 months. Of course, once you but the a ticket for a new person, the funds then get locked into that person's name.

Also, any ticket which has any portion of the ticket paid for with the LUV voucher cannot be further extended.