My wife and I booked a United round trip economy plus flight to Kona, Hawaii. The return trip consisted of three legs, the first of which was on Island Air. Island Air went out of business the day before our departure, but we figured UA would work things out. We checked in with UA when we arrived in Kona and our return flight was rebooked with economy seats. While still in Hawaii, we contacted UA to get a refund on the economy plus premium we had paid. Something apparently got lost in the translation and UA refunded the entire cost of the tickets, thus cancelling our return flight. We didn't realize this until we tried to check in. At this point we had to purchase full price tickets on the flight.
We contacted UA customer service and asked for a refund on the difference on the ticket prices, about $600. They replied:
I am very sorry to hear about your recent ticketing experience.
Unfortunately Customer Care Department does not negotiate fares. All ticketing issues are to be resolved prior to travel. It is possible that when submitting a refund request, you entered the document number for your original ticket and it was refunded in full due to the Island Air cease of operation.
Any suggestions on pursuing this further?