odd situation with flexible fares
Aug 24, 2017, 6:33 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: AKL, YUL
Programs: NZ*GE, UA*G
Posts: 323
odd situation with flexible fares
Hi, I have a bit of an odd one coming up and wonder if anyone has any insight into how to best deal with it. We have a family member coming to visit us in Wellington from Canada, but her partner has some health issues that could flare up while she is in Wellington. If that happens she will need to hop on a flight back to Canada immediately.
I'm not sure if it is worth spending more than double the cost of the fare on a flexible ticket, or if there is some sort of travel insurance available that we could purchase to protect against the cost of change fees & fare differences, should she have to leave early.
Does anyone have any experience with this, ideally in Canada?
I'm not sure if it is worth spending more than double the cost of the fare on a flexible ticket, or if there is some sort of travel insurance available that we could purchase to protect against the cost of change fees & fare differences, should she have to leave early.
Does anyone have any experience with this, ideally in Canada?
Aug 24, 2017, 7:58 pm
#2
Join Date: Dec 2014
Programs: NZ*Elite *G, QF*G, SPG*Platinum, Accor*Platinum, Hilton*Gold
Posts: 1,006
If you already know of "some health issues that could flare up" I'm not sure if any insurer would actually take up a policy for this.
How much are you planning to avoid a fare change? How long is the family member visiting?
How much are you planning to avoid a fare change? How long is the family member visiting?
Aug 24, 2017, 9:59 pm
#4
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: New Zealand
Programs: NZ*S plus various hotel programs
Posts: 945
It's quite likely to be cheaper to just have a flexible ticket, assuming that if it does happen that they can fly normally.
Aug 25, 2017, 2:41 pm
#5
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: New Zealand
Programs: NZ Elite, QF Platinum (LTS), VA Platinum
Posts: 1,672
Are one way fares cheaper than flexi's??
Check out the airlines change of date and cancellation policy? I cancelled a trip with QR due to unforeseen circumstances - cheapest ticket in Y and J, process was EASY, filled out form online and done! Refund takes up to 28 days but I'm sure came in less than that.
Can check out change fees etc. Only flown Qantas TT but they have been good with change fee and fare difference. I think NZ may be lenient only if the gold or elite member is the person with the change of circumstance.
Check out the airlines change of date and cancellation policy? I cancelled a trip with QR due to unforeseen circumstances - cheapest ticket in Y and J, process was EASY, filled out form online and done! Refund takes up to 28 days but I'm sure came in less than that.
Can check out change fees etc. Only flown Qantas TT but they have been good with change fee and fare difference. I think NZ may be lenient only if the gold or elite member is the person with the change of circumstance.
Aug 25, 2017, 4:17 pm
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,406
Generally speaking, it's much better to buy the restricted ticket and change it if need be. Pulling up a random YVR-WLG fare (pretty much any Economy class fare Canada-NZ would be similar), it has a change fee of CAD 150.
If she needs to change the ticket, it would cost CAD 150 plus possibly an additional difference in fare (this is far from guaranteed). The only direct advantage of a flexible ticket is that it has no change fee. The "difference in fare" is frequently less or zero, but only because you paid it up front. Assuming that the maximum number of ticket changes is one, you pretty much always come out ahead paying the change fee.
If she needs to change the ticket, it would cost CAD 150 plus possibly an additional difference in fare (this is far from guaranteed). The only direct advantage of a flexible ticket is that it has no change fee. The "difference in fare" is frequently less or zero, but only because you paid it up front. Assuming that the maximum number of ticket changes is one, you pretty much always come out ahead paying the change fee.