A point of reference - I had premium economy (sale, non-refundable) tickets to Washington DC in June - Air NZ long haul with United domestic in the USA, via SFO outbound and LAX inbound. Purchased in NZ via Air NZ website. I am a New Zealand citizen. $4k total cost.
Last week I received a cancellation notice from Air NZ - “cancelled due to COVID-19” - with a notification that the cost of the tickets would automatically be put into credit.
I replied asking if a refund could be processed as per DOT rules - with my understanding being that flights to/from the USA are covered under this rule.
Air NZ’s response was:
”Air New Zealand's policy is also aligned with the US DoT law, in these instances the US DoT refund rule prevails (section1.2) over our position on uncontrollable changes (section 15.5) and customers are entitled to a refund should they request one. This refund only apply to sales in the US (or to US citizens when purchased outside the US) for flights to or from the US. If you are a US citizen you can send a copy of your US passport to us and we will be happy to process the refund of this ticket.”
i.e. according to Air NZ DOT rule trumps Conditions of Carriage, but only if you purchased the ticket in the USA or are a US citizen.
I replied asking if this position could be reviewed by Air NZ’s legal team, with reference to the fact that the DOT rule makes no reference to citizenship or point-of-sale being at all. To me the rule makes it quite clear that foreign carriers flying aircraft of more than 30 passengers to/from the USA are required to comply with DOT rules.
I received the following reply:
”Our policy has been reviewed by our legal team. However, you are free to seek legal advice if you chose to do so, however please note Air New Zealand does not have an independent Ombudsman or dispute body to help with this process. You will need to do this independently.
Thank you for taking the time to send us your feedback. I am sorry that we are unable to further assist in this matter.”