I posted this elsewhere and moving it here...
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Experts - I used secure fare option to hold a EWR-MAA business class fare (P) for 2 adults/ 1 kid and ended up making the reservation eventually. Within 3 hours I decided to cancel this and switch to JFK-MAA itinerary instead. I had called the LH online help desk prior to cancellation to check if a full refund will be issued. They said yes and asked me to cancel online to get the refund faster.

Both the $6800 charge and a $350 refund were posted to my card earlier today. $350 is the refundable amount outside of 24hr window. My question - is it normal that the $350 refund amount shows up first and rest will take some time to process? I called LH again and they said they cannot see what refund is being issued and when but that it can take upto 8 weeks.

Any advice on how long this process takes? Should i be concerned and dispute the charge through Amex? Much appreciate any help.

Thank you.
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I don't have a screenshot but I don't remember seeing this message on my cancellation screen although within 24hrs of completing the reservation. are there exceptions to the rule i missed?

"The last couple of times I have cancelled a ticket, I did it through the website (button Cancel below the reservation). The website automatically noticed the booking was made less than 24 hours before and mentioned the cancellation will be free of charge. The amount for the ticket never got charged to my credit card at all, so I did not have to wait for a refund"