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Covid-19 BA Rebooking/Cancellation/Refund HELP & ADVICE *No Speculation etc*

Old Mar 14, 2020, 4:58 pm
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Last edit by: corporate-wage-slave
BA Covid-19 Rebooking / Cancellation / Refund Help & Advice

If your flight is cancelled by BA:
Commercial booking: Your options are: cash refund OR Future Travel Voucher (FTV) OR rebooking OR Avios credit
Redemption booking: Your options are: full refund of cash and Avios OR FTV OR rebooking.
BA Holidays booking: You should be given a refund pro-actively.

If your flight is cancelled by BA - any flight in the PNR - you can get a full refund so long as you booked directly with BA. You can only get a refund by telephoning BA. Refunds are taking between a few hours to a few weeks to be repaid, depending on the sort of booking made. If you don't wish to travel you can opt for an FTV or eVoucher valid for travel until 30 April 2022, though flights more than 355 days away are not currently bookable - flights are enabled at 355 days before departure. Vouchers such as 2-4-1 are also thereby extended. You can do this even if the flight is operating. The best advice we can give is to delay opting for an eVoucher options until the last moment, since if BA cancel your flight you have more options. BA have also adjusted the Standard Customer Guidelines so that if BA cancel the flight you can be rebooked to anytime in 12 months after you originally bought the ticket, so long as there is space in the cabin - there is no need to have a fare bucket available or Avios availability. If you choose the Avios credit you will get between 108 to 126 Avios per GBP of your fare. Note older posts in this thread may now be inaccuarate since the current policy has been amended several times.
===
If your flight is not cancelled but you don't wish to travel
Commercial booking: If you are eligible for Buy with Confidence, you can have an FTV valid until April 2022. Rebooking may lead to a fare recalculation but no change fee.
Redemption booking: Your can do the normal Avios refund, with the redeposit fee capped at GBP 35 per person. Alternatively for the same fee you can rebook to new dates subject to availability. Alternatively you can have an FTV.
BA Holidays booking: You may be get a refund proactively, otherwise you are looking at an FTV for at least the flight component of your trip, maybe for all components.

If all of the flights in your booking are still scheduled and you don't wish to travel then you best wait until a few days before departure in case there is a cancellation. As you can see above, a cancellation gives you better options. You are in scope with Buy with Confidence if you are flying between now and completing travel before 31 August 2021, also if you bought your ticket after 3 March and due to complete all flights before September 2021. The BA web page on this is:
ba.com/confidence
===
Below are some of the options / workarounds being suggested in order to obtain a refund as opposed to a Future Travel Voucher, but they probably no longer work:

Refund of Cancelled Flights:
  • Call BA (no longer a requirement to be travelling in the next 72 hours, you may need to make repeated calls to get through). Telephone numbers are in this thread, but you can also find them on BA.com at the bottom left of the website, under Help and Contacts.

Paid Seating Refund:
Bookings made using Lloyds Upgrade Voucher
You should expect to receive:
  • Full refund of Avios and money paid
  • A new voucher issued, which has validity for 6 months (from the date of issue, i.e. when you request the 'refund')

Lloyds Upgrade Voucher Notes
  • Flights can be used within 12 months, so it will be good for travel up until the end 6 months plus 12 months if you book just before the new expiry
  • It's been advised to take the voucher instead of rebooking as it gives me more flexibility.
  • The original expiry date of the voucher was irrelevant because the booking was cancelled.
  • You must book within 6 months of the voucher being issued and the ticket has 12 months validity so you can change flights after, provided the new flights are within the 12 month window.
  • You won't receive any email, only the refund and the miles.
How to find out the status of your voucher and the amount it contains Future Travel Vouchers versus eVouchers
  • See posts 3052 and 3151 to understand the difference. FTVs cannot be used online (and are not really vouchers), whereas eVouchers, issued for simple bookings, can be used online.
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Covid-19 BA Rebooking/Cancellation/Refund HELP & ADVICE *No Speculation etc*

Old Jun 2, 2020, 7:51 am
  #2566  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: BA Executive Club
Posts: 92
So, I have a 2-4-1 avios booking in CE, LHR - PRG on the 18th of June 2020.

The flight has of course been cancelled, not a problem. I am considering whether I want a refund of the ~15,500 avios, Ł70, and 2-4-1 voucher with a ~6 month extension, or whether I would want to take the future travel voucher.

If I take the voucher in full, with associated 2-4-1 attached and, to my understanding, therefore valid until April 2022, can I use this to rebook a long-haul 2-4-1 redemption instead? E.G: Could I book LHR-SFO in J and pay the difference in Avios and taxes/fees?

Basically I would normally take the refund (If I could get through to the call centre) but if the voucher genuinely extends until April 2022 then having the 2-4-1 extended is of more value to me.

Final question, is it flying before April 2022 or booking before April 2022? It says 'travel until' in the Wiki which I think means booked and flown before April 2022 but I'm not totally certain.

Thanks in advance for the help.
GabrielExea is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 8:04 am
  #2567  
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: 63,476
Originally Posted by GabrielExea
If I take the voucher in full, with associated 2-4-1 attached and, to my understanding, therefore valid until April 2022, can I use this to rebook a long-haul 2-4-1 redemption instead? E.G: Could I book LHR-SFO in J and pay the difference in Avios and taxes/fees?

Basically I would normally take the refund (If I could get through to the call centre) but if the voucher genuinely extends until April 2022 then having the 2-4-1 extended is of more value to me.

Final question, is it flying before April 2022 or booking before April 2022? It says 'travel until' in the Wiki which I think means booked and flown before April 2022 but I'm not totally certain.
Yes, the FTV can be used with the 2-4-1 on a longer or shorter trip - you can pay more if it's a more expensive booking. Travel has to be completed before April 2022.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 8:07 am
  #2568  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,709
Originally Posted by GabrielExea
So, I have a 2-4-1 avios booking in CE, LHR - PRG on the 18th of June 2020.

The flight has of course been cancelled, not a problem. I am considering whether I want a refund of the ~15,500 avios, Ł70, and 2-4-1 voucher with a ~6 month extension, or whether I would want to take the future travel voucher.

If I take the voucher in full, with associated 2-4-1 attached and, to my understanding, therefore valid until April 2022, can I use this to rebook a long-haul 2-4-1 redemption instead? E.G: Could I book LHR-SFO in J and pay the difference in Avios and taxes/fees?

Basically I would normally take the refund (If I could get through to the call centre) but if the voucher genuinely extends until April 2022 then having the 2-4-1 extended is of more value to me.

Final question, is it flying before April 2022 or booking before April 2022? It says 'travel until' in the Wiki which I think means booked and flown before April 2022 but I'm not totally certain.

Thanks in advance for the help.
Yes, that is probably the only advantage of a FTV which is your 2-4-1 will remain valid until April 2022, so if it is due to expire well before you want to travel the FTV is the way to go. And yes you are correct with your example, you would just pay the additional taxes/fees/charges and avios.

For a booking made with a FTV all travel (outbound & inbound) must be completed by 30 April 2022.
KARFA is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 8:20 am
  #2569  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Vancouver
Programs: BA
Posts: 1,140
Preparing for a cancellation TLV to LHR to YVR and a possible booking on BA to LHR then AA to Dallas on on to YVR. The current flight to Dallas would arrive at the same time the one flight a day that leaves for YVR meaning that I would have to wait for the next flight at 130 pm following afternoon. I cannot leave the airport so does that mean I sit and wait 24 hours for the next flight or...does that make the connection one that BA would not consider. I suppose BA could place me on a different carrier that might be flying directly to YVR such as AC. Would BA try to accommodate me?
testycal is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 8:58 am
  #2570  
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver. London Cycling Campaign. TfL Oyster
Posts: 712
MMB not allowing me to cancel my Avios boooking

I’m sorry, 172 pages in this thread and I’m sure this has been covered. I consulted wiki to confirm what I thought would be process for cancelling an Avios booking because I do not want to travel [LHR-LIS flight will operate in July at this point].

As per wiki, I would have thought that in MMB I could just cancel this and get a refund of my Avios. When I attempt to do this I am immediately taken to a FTV request page. Do I really have to call up? Haven’t straight forward Avios bookings always been able to be cancelled in MMB? Thank you.
NoTiersForMe is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 9:03 am
  #2571  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,709
Originally Posted by NoTiersForMe
I’m sorry, 172 pages in this thread and I’m sure this has been covered. I consulted wiki to confirm what I thought would be process for cancelling an Avios booking because I do not want to travel [LHR-LIS flight will operate in July at this point].

As per wiki, I would have thought that in MMB I could just cancel this and get a refund of my Avios. When I attempt to do this I am immediately taken to a FTV request page. Do I really have to call up? Haven’t straight forward Avios bookings always been able to be cancelled in MMB? Thank you.
Yes you need to call atm - this is the same whether your flights have been cancelled or not. Clicking on cancel in MMB will take you to the FTV page only.
NoTiersForMe likes this.
KARFA is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 12:27 pm
  #2572  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Programs: BA
Posts: 102
Reward bookinG

Hi
my flight to Bilbao has been expectedly cancelled.
it was a Reward flight.
will I automatically be refunded the taxes and fare and points or do I have to call BA.
i tried to call them this morning but got the king delay and then phone cut-off.
Thanks in advance
tedmak is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 12:32 pm
  #2573  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,709
Originally Posted by tedmak
Hi
my flight to Bilbao has been expectedly cancelled.
it was a Reward flight.
will I automatically be refunded the taxes and fare and points or do I have to call BA.
i tried to call them this morning but got the king delay and then phone cut-off.
Thanks in advance
you will need to call to request a full refund, there isn't any automatic refund or a way to do it online atm
KARFA is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 2:15 pm
  #2574  
 
Join Date: Sep 2012
Programs: BA Exec
Posts: 1
I might have missed 2-4-1 bookings in this mighty and detailed thread so apologies in advance...

I've got a rewards booking for 4 people on LHR-->LCA on 16th July. This includes the use of an 2-4-1 companion voucher. Ideally we'd like to postpone for 12 months.

Given the 2-4-1 was due to expire in early Aug, is the best bet to go down the FTV route? I'm assuming its best to wait to see if its cancelled to avoid fees.

cheers!
RazzleMcDazzle is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 2:48 pm
  #2575  
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Gold, Accor Live Limitless Gold, Hilton Honours Gold, Avis Preferred Plus
Posts: 1,806
Originally Posted by RazzleMcDazzle
I might have missed 2-4-1 bookings in this mighty and detailed thread so apologies in advance...

I've got a rewards booking for 4 people on LHR-->LCA on 16th July. This includes the use of an 2-4-1 companion voucher. Ideally we'd like to postpone for 12 months.

Given the 2-4-1 was due to expire in early Aug, is the best bet to go down the FTV route? I'm assuming its best to wait to see if its cancelled to avoid fees.

cheers!
Hi RazzleMcDazzle, congratulations on your first post after nearly 8 years of membership!

If you still want the use of your 2-4-1 voucher in 12 months time then I would have thought that you would be better off taking an FTV as it will keep the voucher valid until April 2022. If you wait for a cancellation then you might end up with the voucher back but it will expire in August (or 6 months after given that there has been a 6 month extension).
wilsnunn is offline  
Old Jun 2, 2020, 5:46 pm
  #2576  
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Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 264
I have a flight to Japan Booked for Late July. It looks like Japan won't be open to tourists until after July. I want to push the trip back a month, but my Avios booking was made the date the award reservations opened. I am trying to cancel my reservation online and rebook, but the only option when you go to cancel online is to apply for a voucher (which my reservation gets rejected on). Is there anyway to cancel the reservation online and not have to pay the extra fee for cancelling through the phone?
kbooks66 is offline  
Old Jun 3, 2020, 12:44 am
  #2577  
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: KSA
Programs: BA LTG, UA Gold, EK Silver, Hilton LT Diamond, Marriott LT Titanium, IHG Plat
Posts: 1,240
I booked a flight via Travelpack as they are one of the few that allow you to book mixed class itineries with relative ease. My flights have been cancelled and I don't want to reschedule so I asked for a refund. Bit surprised they want to charge Ł25 per person as an admin fee (Even though their terms and conditions state it is per booking) and they want to charge me Ł4.50 in non refundable taxes which they state as being Ł 2.50 collected as ATOL fee (non-refundable collected by CAA) and Ł 2.00 collected as SAFI (Airline Insurance , Non-refundable). In their defence it does say in their refunds T&C's that these fees may be non-refundable which I wouldn't have an issue with if I had cancelled but I didn't. Also, as they state in their T&C's, as this is just a straight forward ticket then it is not ATOL protected so I don't see why I would be charged Ł2.50 ATOl fee.

It's not a lot of money but don't see why I should pay all this when it was the airline that canceled my booking.
moral_low_ground is offline  
Old Jun 3, 2020, 1:24 am
  #2578  
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: 63,476
Originally Posted by kbooks66
I have a flight to Japan Booked for Late July. It looks like Japan won't be open to tourists until after July. I want to push the trip back a month, but my Avios booking was made the date the award reservations opened. I am trying to cancel my reservation online and rebook, but the only option when you go to cancel online is to apply for a voucher (which my reservation gets rejected on). Is there anyway to cancel the reservation online and not have to pay the extra fee for cancelling through the phone?
As mentioned in the replies just above, the only way to get a refund, whether it is a redemption or a commercial ticket, is by calling up. It can't be done online, zero exceptions. The Contact Centres have minimal queues from late afternoon onwards, UK time.

For redemptions there is no point having a FTV unless your Avios were about to expire (even then I suspect they would be extended) or there is a Companion Voucher.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Jun 3, 2020, 1:28 am
  #2579  
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: 63,476
Originally Posted by moral_low_ground
It's not a lot of money but don't see why I should pay all this when it was the airline that canceled my booking.
It's legally iffy, and not in the spirit of EC261. It's your travel agent doing this, so that's who you need to follow up with MCOL in extremis. The TravelUp thread will show how bad it gets, you've done relatively well there. You can make mixed class bookings via Contact Centres.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Jun 3, 2020, 1:53 am
  #2580  
IMH
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Berlin
Programs: BA Gold; IHG Diamond-Amb; Accor & Meliá & HH & Marriott Gold
Posts: 5,435
A quick data point: I just called You First and requested refunds on two cancelled itineraries. The total call time (including dialling and waiting to get through) was under three minutes. So if one or more of your cancelled flights is in F this is currently a fast option.

@ moral_low_ground: I've often made mixed class bookings on the BA website. If I search for CW on routes with F then I'll usually have at least one opportunity to choose F instead, and doing so on the outbound doesn't reduce my return options. The same applies to ET and CE. This probably wouldn't allow me to mix cabins more radically, but as c-w-s says that can be done on the phone.

Many of us have learned in recent weeks that the advantages a TA can bring have to be weighed against a potentially very large hassle factor in turbulent times.

Last edited by IMH; Jun 3, 2020 at 5:04 am Reason: typographical tidying and redundancy reduction
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