Originally Posted by
joeypore
Been reading through all of the terms and conditions and much of this thread, so I think I have a handle on them now...
Trying to be prepared in case this weather cancels / delays my flight on Saturday, to know what I can and can't get reimbursed for.
If anyone wants to so kindly double check my work, here's my scenario:
Purchased outbound on AA tickets (bought with Avios, paid the taxes via AMEX Plat. I know others have DPs that this does qualify).
Purchased return on Southwest (outright cash ticket, Amex Plat)
Purchased hotels via Amex Travel (prepaid options, Amex Plat)
A) My understanding is if the flight is delayed by 6+ hours due to weather, the delay coverage kicks in, but I canNOT purchase a new ticket. Have to stick with the delay / getting re-accommodated on AA. Can use the credit for meals during the delay. (What about minute suites?)
B) If instead the flight is outright cancelled due to weather (do you call the airline to confirm the reason?), then instead trip cancellation / interruption kicks in.
I then CAN pay for a new economy ticket on another airline to get me there to "re-join" the trip, correct? Since the original ticket will refund the avios + $10 or whatever it is, will the difference be between the $10 and the new ticket?
If for some reason I couldn't make it to my destination on Saturday, but instead got there Sunday and had to burn the first night at the hotel, they would reimburse me for the prepaid amount equivalent to that 1st night, correct?
Some bonus questions:
If in scenario B I need to switch airports, they would reimburse that Uber I assume as well?
If I decide to change my return flight on Southwest, say to either another day or cancel / rebook on AA, will that screw me up? If I do that after I'm already at my destination? My understanding is as long as your round trip or multi-segment is booked before the trip commences / any events occur, you're good, right? Just concerned since we often change our minds if we want to stay somewhere longer or come home early, don't want that invalidate coverage if we need to use it.
Lastly, can you preemptively book a refundable backup flight and use that as the new economy ticket to re-join the trip? Or is it better just to wait for the incident to occur?
Hopefully I don't need any of this and DFW get's their snow together. :P
Scenario A is correct. Not sure about minute suite but if you can justify why it’s essential, perhaps.
Scenario B would normally still fall under trip delay. If the flight is cancelled, the airline would put you in a later flight. As long as you continue the journey, it’s really just a delay. In the event of a delay, they would not cover the cost of a prepaid night that you are not able to stay due to the delay since they are covering the hotel you would be staying at.
However, if you decide to forgo travel because of the weather and flight cancellation, then flight interruption would kick in. And cover the cost of prepaid hotel and new transportation.