Stormbel

Two of us have been claiming refunds and compensation. One went so smoothly, the other not so.
I phoned b a to refund the two flights, the outbound DUB-LHE which was cancelled on 27 May and the return which was no longer required on 29th May.
I filled in my EC261 on the same day.
My partner did exactly the same. The first as a second part of my phone call to refund and the second form immediately after me.
I got my claim confirmed within 4 days and the refund 10 working days later to my bank account.
My partner got the EC261 case number and that was it. No confirmation of success and no refund. In fact during my phone call for the refunds I tried to use my Third Party Nominee status to do both refunds but the Operator said it didnt exist! It does!

So the EC261 claim had to be followed up and has just been approved with an apologetic email, and when I phoned the EC to query the missing refund (Third Party Nominee status found this time) I was told that something must have gone wrong and the funds should come through in 10 days.

Two identical claims but not service.

suntravler

I am happy to be able to report that I have just received an email from BA stating that my claim for compensation for 2 passengers under EC261 has been APPROVED. We will be getting the equivalent of €600 each. Our flight from Atlanta to London on 27th May had been cancelled.

My claim was not for any travel expenses as BA put us up in a hotel and paid for meals with vouchers. We were rebooked to London the following day on AA. My claim with BA was strictly for the canceled flight.

To give you an idea of the timeline for processing my claim, I filed it on Saturday 10th June and have received my approval on Tuesday 20th June.

As for payment, the letter just says that they've "raised a cheque" which will be paid directly to me and that I will be receiving it "soon."

suntravler

I also want to add that these tickets were BA Visa 2-4-1 Award seats.

suntravler

To answer nesnith's question, according to the email it will be paid in US Dollars. So it appears BA is doing the conversion.

ORDPLATAA

That's correct - BA quoted the payments in USD and, when I popped the base amounts into an online currency converter they came out almost exactly the same (just off by a few cents). They also said that they have my bank details and will be wiring the funds in a few days.

Mergetrip

Two disappointing emails from BA this afternoon in response to my email w.r.t. the Amex Companion Voucher on the return leg.

Email 1 as follows:

Dear Mr XXXXX

Thank you for getting in touch with us in regards to your American Express Companion Voucher.

I have checked your booking and can see that you flew flight BA0644 on 20 May 2017. As you flew part of your booking, I'm afraid we are unable to reissue Companion Voucher XXXXX to your account.

I'm sorry I could not be more helpful but thank you for choosing British Airways.

Best regards

XXXXX XXXXX
British Airways Executive Club

Email 2 as follows:

Dear Mr XXXXX

Thanks for your emails.

As previously advised, if you have any further questions about your American Express Companion Voucher, I would advise you to speak with the Executive Club on 0844 493 0747. I'm afraid Customer Relations don't have access to the systems to address the problems with your voucher. I apologise for this.

I raised bank transfers for your expenses and EU compensation on 15 June. These can take 3-5 working days to clear into your account, excluding weekends.

Thanks again for taking the time to contact us. Please don't hesitate to use the blue link below if I can help with anything else.


Best regards

XXXXX XXXXX
British Airways Customer Relations Executive

So it looks like BA won't be crediting the Amex 241, nor providing the equivalent number of Avios (being 20k Avios).

Do the experts on here think that this is worth pursuing with MCOL (for the equivalent cash value of £335) and that I have a strong case?

corporate-wage-slave

Personally I think you do have a good, but not overwhelming case. I know that CEDR is not the route to go with this, but I would really like someone to make a case for the lost Avios to MCOL. It would have to be carefully written, and I'm happy to advise offline if you wish (though I am not a lawyer), but the focus would be on you not getting what you paid for. The reason I have to hesitate about the chances of winning is that I am not aware of a precedent here. Traditionally BA have been careful not to set them! It's also the case that EC261 does not directly refer to the use of a 2-4-1 voucher or anything like it. But my gut feel is that if you can persuade the judge that you are worse off due to the airline's actions then you should have a good chance.

One option, which I have not thought through properly, is to also demand some sort of refund from AMEX, since the voucher came from them. This could then lead to both BA and AMEX being named on the MCOL submission. Now I'm not experienced enough to know the legal ramifications of that, I know it's possible to have 2 defendants on MCOL, but I do know it will ensure your claim is handled at the very highest levels! This is thinking aloud on my part.

frandrake

As you suspected, BA got back to me and they only offer to pay once as they say EU 261 compensation is based only on distance travelled and delay on time of arrival.

I do think this is not fair as I was cancelled twice on two flights I was checked in, thus I in practice suffered a double disruption of my travel plans.

Any chance I can battle this somehow or shall I just settle for one compensation only?

corporate-wage-slave

You could take it to court, yes. I'm not sure how successful it would be, but a very literal reading of the law (assuming you were ticketed twice) would suggest you get Article 7 compensation for each reservation affected. I don't think it's a 100% certainty, but you would need to be pretty focused to get it. CEDR is your other option but I suspect less likely to work.

Mergetrip

Thank you CWS and I will certainly reach out to you.

I am a frequent user of Amex 241 flying out in Y and returning in F or J. I would be seriously annoyed if I had flown out in Y and then BA cancelled (or even downgraded) the companion voucher on the return leg - and then said that no refund (other than taxes and fees) was due to the companion as the value of the voucher was nil (as it had been part-flown) and consequently they won't recredit the voucher or reimburse the equivalent number of Avios.

While I have received EU261 compensation, disruption expenses and Avios we utilised for myself and my two infants, I have not received the RFS fees I paid. I have specifically requested for follow-up on this on the last two email correspondence with BA, but they have chosen not to reply on this point. I hope this is just an oversight, but I have now specifically requested if they will be refunding the RFS fees. Is there any basis why they wouldn't? Once I have a reply on this point we can take the case forward.

corporate-wage-slave

If you are getting a full refund of a cancelled service then the RFS is payable along with the Avios, I can't think of a reason why they would not pay them. Avios crediting is fairly swift, usually within a day or two, cash takes about a week, so there may not be an issue there. But the important thing is to set sensible deadlines for BA, I've advocated 16 days, and then to escalate if they are not met.

Jpsartre

I had an almost identical situation to yours that weekend (although it involved a cancellation and then a delay to the rebooked flight rather than 2 cancellations) and BA agreed to compensate me for both.

ConsultanSea

Hi all - I made a claim on 31st May but have not heard back still.

What's an appropriate amount of time to leave it before chasing as I know they'll be swamped.

I made a reimbursement claim the same day (separate reference) which was dealt with over a week ago.

Thanks!

corporate-wage-slave

After about a month I would suggest you should call up.

Sofa

I finally cracked and rang British airways tonight. I had been caught up in the May 27 disruption with my young family. Like many of you -long hours at airport etc. I posted a claim lettter with my receipts two weeks ago. I choose to go postal as I wanted to context my claim (hung around London for 3 days trying to get rebooked before giving up and leaving for the north of England where we live). Anyway, the receipt of the postal letter was not acknowledged Aftr two weeks so I was concerned it was lost. I separately entered thhe regulation claim online around the same date which was also not progressed although acknowledged.
The good news is they found both the claims and linked them. Said they will review tomorrow and email me with a settlement statement,
so expect to get agreement on the claim tomorrow.
Phrases like 'I have pulled you from the queue' and 'I will own this now and 'respond tomorrow' were used. So it sounds as if ringing can fast track the issue. Hope this helps others.