Originally Posted by
Schmoo111
3. Called to change one leg. Everything was the same time, date, connection, price..just wanted to change it so the LHR to PHL was with BA and not AA (I wanted to depart from term 5…BA: ‘well sure but there’s a price change’ Me: why? Your site is showing the exact same fare? BA: No I recalculated the trip and it will cost you another $9745.00 Me: I’m dumbfounded
There is nothing to complain about here. You wanted to change your AA service out of T3 to a BA service out of T5. I understand where you're coming from with your frustration, but this is not an admin change at most, as you stated further down.
When searching for flights on the BA website, I will often see that some services are cheaper than others. At times, as you've found out, a service on AA at the same time as a BA flight to the same destination will be priced at a far cheaper rate. It also sometimes happens vice versa, where the BA flight will be much cheaper.
An admin change it is not, because each airline operates separately when it comes to revenue management and which fare buckets are available and at what price. Yes, they have a joint venture where they sell each others flights, but it does not mean, at all, that you can just switch flights on a whim. It's never been the case here and is not the case with any other airline either.
That being said, if you did see them on the website for the same price, then you should have cancelled within 24 hours and rebooked. Changes are often priced differently, as a lot depends on the fare rules.