Ooops! Cancel same day Avios booking possible?
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 441
Ooops! Cancel same day Avios booking possible?
i’m currently in Paris, planning to return to London this evening by Eurostar. I received a message from Eurostar saying to expect very long delays due to French customs rehearsing post brexit scenarios and to only travel today if absolutely necessary.
I do need to get back so I thought I’d see how badly the trains throughout the day are delayed and I’d book an Avios ticket as an insurance policy because they can be cancelled with no penalty within 24 hours of booking. What I forgot is that you also can’t cancel within 24 hours of departure. So what’s the rule when you book a same day Avios booking - can you cancel it?
if not then I just may as well cancel Eurostar now!
many thanks
I do need to get back so I thought I’d see how badly the trains throughout the day are delayed and I’d book an Avios ticket as an insurance policy because they can be cancelled with no penalty within 24 hours of booking. What I forgot is that you also can’t cancel within 24 hours of departure. So what’s the rule when you book a same day Avios booking - can you cancel it?
if not then I just may as well cancel Eurostar now!
many thanks
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Brighton. UK
Programs: BA Gold / VS /IHG Diamond & Ambassador
Posts: 14,176
No. 24 hour rule still applies
see the 'making changes' section
https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb...reward-flights
see the 'making changes' section
https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb...reward-flights
#4
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire
Posts: 1,242
This is the current BA.com wording of the 24 hours rule on a cash ticket.
- If you notice a mistake with your booking after you have paid for your ticket(s), you can cancel your flight booking and claim a full refund without penalty (including any corporate card or PayPal fees), up to 24 hours from when you make the original booking
- Refunds under these circumstances can only be requested by calling our contact centres
- Some exceptions apply...
- The following bookings are not covered by this guarantee:
- Bookings made for travel within 24 hours of booking
- Bookings where immediate payment is not required
- Package bookings or flights booked with hotels, car hire, transfers or experiences
- South African domestic only services, operated by Comair.
#5
Join Date: Aug 2015
Programs: BA Gold/ Star Alliance Gold
Posts: 399
Officially. no - but I had several cases where they allowed me to cancel with a full refund in such scenarios - but mostly the tickets were booked more than 24 hours before the flight and then cancelled within the 24 hour window before the flight. It was always a gesture of good-will and exception to official rules as they stated.
#6
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,736
My understanding is that if a cash ticket:
- booked 50 hours before travel: you can be refunded until 26 hours before departure, so a 24 hour window.
- booked 26 hours before travel: you can refunded until 2 hours before travel (as on example), so a 24 hour window
- booked 23 hours before travel: cannot be refunded, no window.
Avios is non refundable 24 hours before departure.
- booked 50 hours before travel: you can be refunded until 26 hours before departure, so a 24 hour window.
- booked 26 hours before travel: you can refunded until 2 hours before travel (as on example), so a 24 hour window
- booked 23 hours before travel: cannot be refunded, no window.
Avios is non refundable 24 hours before departure.
#7
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Argentina
Posts: 40,200
Strange choice of day to be doing that I would have thought. I wonder what the post Brexit scenarios involve?
#10
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Argentina
Posts: 40,200
Thursday is a popular day for business travel...at least it used to be. So I would have thought a quieter day of the week would have been better for causing less disruption? If it had been BA doing something similar there would have been hell to pay.
#11
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: London Stratford, E7
Programs: BAEC Gold! Thanks to FT
Posts: 3,369
From tweets thst that I have seen people were being questioned for a couple of mins and having full bags searched whereas previously they would have only shown their passport.