Originally Posted by
PLeblond
Yup, I understand your confusion, though I wouldn't go so far as say 'bait and switch' as this mimics most other airline policies.
I understand how they operate very well and that their websites are among the most inconsistent ones out there and that you always need to double check before hitting purchase. But saying one thing on page 1 and 2, and then changing it on page 3 - where you can only see it if you actually click on the fare itself and look at the rules! - is misleading at best and malicious at worst. Naive travelers will take the initial information and then purchase the fare based on that and I cannot blame them at all for it.
Basic however is pretty much set in stone. The fee for changing or cancelling is basically most of the price of the ticket. Last time I tried to change a basic fare for a friend to a credit to be used on another flight. An $1,100 ticket ended up getting a potential refund of $98.
Which is why I double checked how basic basic was. The eventual refund you quoted was probably just taxes and airport fees which the airline is not allowed to keep - not that some might even try to keep those.