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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 Nov 24, 2020, 12:31 pm
  #4741  
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 106
Hey guys

Would anyone be able to answer a question about an F Avios booking I have made for next April, I booked LHR-SIN return when BA did the 50% discount on reward bookings.

If I wanted to change the dates would they charge the whole 238,000 Avios instead of the original 119,000, or would they just charge me the 35.00 change fee?

Cheers
barboyz is offline  
Old Nov 24, 2020, 1:14 pm
  #4742  
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 barboyz
Would anyone be able to answer a question about an F Avios booking I have made for next April, I booked LHR-SIN return when BA did the 50% discount on reward bookings.

If I wanted to change the dates would they charge the whole 238,000 Avios instead of the original 119,000, or would they just charge me the 35.00 change fee?
Formally you pay both the change fee and the extra Avios. There are some reports of the Manage My Booking allowing straightforward moves more cost effectively.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Nov 24, 2020, 1:25 pm
  #4743  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: UK
Programs: BA Silver, IHG Diamond, Hilton Diamond,
Posts: 556
I have a single cash flight, which was purchased when the flight was cheap, which was cancelled by BA and should have flown last Saturday. I did not request the refund or change dates as I thought i would be able to make a selection after the flight date. The flight has disappeared from my BA account - I thought I might see it as a past flight or one to choose alternative re-booking or cancellation. I hope I can still choose a future date or refund. Any advice would be appreciated..
flyoff is offline  
Old Nov 24, 2020, 1:32 pm
  #4744  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,706
Originally Posted by flyoff
I have a single cash flight, which was purchased when the flight was cheap, which was cancelled by BA and should have flown last Saturday. I did not request the refund or change dates as I thought i would be able to make a selection after the flight date. The flight has disappeared from my BA account - I thought I might see it as a past flight or one to choose alternative re-booking or cancellation. I hope I can still choose a future date or refund. Any advice would be appreciated..
nothing to worry about. you will have to call to do anything with it, so rebook or refund.
KARFA is offline  
Old Nov 24, 2020, 2:50 pm
  #4745  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: UK
Programs: BA Silver, IHG Diamond, Hilton Diamond,
Posts: 556
Thank you Karfa for the guidance and reassurance. I will wait until it is clear when I can use the flight for another date.
flyoff is offline  
Old Nov 24, 2020, 6:41 pm
  #4746  
 
Join Date: Nov 2020
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 18
Hello

A few weeks ago I made a booking using the following route: JFK-LHR-KRK + WAW-LHR-JFK return (J+W restricted fare).

Recently, both onward segments (BA172 on Dec 4, BA872 on Dec 5) were cancelled independently. BA moved me to BA114 automatically, but the outstanding segment remains cancelled as there's no longer any BA service to KRK or any adjacent airports until Dec 17.

I called BA expecting to be rebooked to another airline (either via LHR or from JFK), but was told by the agent that there's no availability with partners, and in any case their partnership with LH is only for short-haul flights and that my booking doesn't qualify. I was offered a partial refund for the LHR-KRK segment (which I didn't accept), and told to HUCA in a few days in case something changes.

I intend to fly on or around that date. I just booked a backup flight with UA/LH, but I'd prefer to fly BA, and I'd rather not cancel the entire booking since I might need the return flight though I have an alternative Avios booking for return as well. A couple questions then:

1. Was the agent right saying they can only rebook if there's some magical partner inventory, and that inventory is based on whether my flight is short or long-haul? Availability for LHR-KRK is indeed very low around those dates, BA wasn't the only airline that cancelled service. There are acceptable connections out of LHR with KL or LH, but quite expensive (500-700 GBP in J, almost half of what I paid for the whole trip). Is published fare price a factor in involuntary rerouting?

2. If there's no onward connection from LHR, shouldn't they consider rerouting from JFK?

3. If I decide to take the alternative (UA/LH) flight out, is it still possible to fly the return segments of the original BA booking, while getting a reasonable refund for JFK-LHR-KRK?
sziwan is offline  
Old Nov 25, 2020, 2:59 am
  #4747  
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
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Posts: 63,476
Originally Posted by sziwan
A few weeks ago I made a booking using the following route: JFK-LHR-KRK + WAW-LHR-JFK return (J+W restricted fare).
Given this was a recent booking you must have known this was a speculative arrangement!

The agent should have offerend JFK-LHR-FRA/MUC-KRK, with the longhaul on BA, or offered a WAW / PRG option, involving Lufthansa on shorthaul. The problem is that unless you find a viable route, in the same cabin, on Lufthansa yourself, then BA's computers aren't good at finding non BA services. Moreover you have the FRA/MUC thing, which is almost guaranteed to be hidden to the agent. So what I would do is do the research first to find the BA + LH services that will get you to Poland and ring up with a specific set of flights in mind. And a few alternatives too. It may take a while but it should be possible. Longhaul replacement flights won't be available at this remove.

It is possible to strip out the oubound, fly just the inbound and get an Invioluntary Refund on the unused sectors. But it is rarely a good idea, and I would imagine your return flights will be cancelled too, given the grave situation in both the UK and Poland.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Nov 25, 2020, 9:11 am
  #4748  
 
Join Date: Nov 2020
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 18
Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave
Given this was a recent booking you must have known this was a speculative arrangement!
No more than any other in these times. I fully expected BA172 to be cancelled when I was booking, but not necessarily BA827. Likewise, I booked BA in the first place because I was sure the direct LO JFK service to Poland would be axed (as it had been between Match and July), but inexplicably LO is still flying.

The agent should have offerend JFK-LHR-FRA/MUC-KRK, with the longhaul on BA, or offered a WAW / PRG option, involving Lufthansa on shorthaul. The problem is that unless you find a viable route, in the same cabin, on Lufthansa yourself, then BA's computers aren't good at finding non BA services. Moreover you have the FRA/MUC thing, which is almost guaranteed to be hidden to the agent.
I don't think LHR-MUC is a thing any more, at least on Dec 5. There are viable routes via FRA, it's just that their system doesn't see them (or so I keep being told). I just called again with specific flights in mind, but the agent wouldn't even let me get to that part. It's somewhat disappointing.

Thanks for the suggestions. I guess I'll wait a few days to see if anything changes. If not, I'll probably refund the entire booking and hope my backup return from ZRH on Jan 16 doesn't get axed as well.
sziwan is offline  
Old Nov 25, 2020, 4:19 pm
  #4749  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 447
Thought I'd double-check before I make a booking for next year (returning before end of August):

Thinking about booking a WT+ return (using the 20% off voucher) and then UUA to CW. If we decide not to travel in the end, will I get a voucher for the entire cash value plus the Avios used to upgrade, or do I need to disassemble (i.e. undo the UUA) first, presumably at a cost of 70?
just_starting is offline  
Old Nov 25, 2020, 4:52 pm
  #4750  
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 just_starting
Thinking about booking a WT+ return (using the 20% off voucher) and then UUA to CW. If we decide not to travel in the end, will I get a voucher for the entire cash value plus the Avios used to upgrade, or do I need to disassemble (i.e. undo the UUA) first, presumably at a cost of 70?
You can keep the Avios and cash in an FTV without losing anything, however that will end up as an FTV that will have to be used on another UuA booking, and some people have found the process difficult to implement. So I would actually reverse the UuA, which is 35 per person, since you will retain flexibility with the Avios, and a possibility of getting an eVoucher rather than FTV in due course. I'm still advocating people do not make "maybe" bookings, so it would be best to make a booking that you're pretty sure you are going to ttake. We get nearly daily reports of people who find themselves boxed in due to speculative bookings which then unravel. If it is nearer August then clearly there is a good chance that the Northern Hemisphere will be back to some form of normality, but I'd be less certain about the Southern Hemisphere. These fares are not the last such opportunity for reduced price flying.
just_starting likes this.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Nov 26, 2020, 3:24 am
  #4751  
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 69
Apologies if this has been answered already, I did search and read back 20 pages or so but didn't find an answer. What's the current situation with cancelling short haul redemptions? I've read various things about it not being possible online at the moment and having to ring, and as a result it costing 35 rather than the previous 0.50. Basically I'm on the verge of booking flights to Salzburg in February and trying to figure out if my best bet is just pay for them and rely on book with confidence if it turns out that skiing isn't possible, or alternatively use Avios if the old position of being able to cancel for a full refund of points plus cash applies (less the 50p). If it's going to cost 35 to cancel the redemption then clearly I'm better off paying cash and relying on rebook/voucher options if I need to cancel.
taranty is offline  
Old Nov 26, 2020, 3:29 am
  #4752  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,706
you do have to call to cancel if it is a voluntary cancellation.

a 35 per person cancellation fee will be deducted from the taxes/fees/charges you paid - if you paid less than 35 per person you are not asked to cure the difference.

you can get a FTV if you want and use that towards a new reward booking in the future, all the avios and cash will just be held on the FTV for use by april 2022.
KARFA is offline  
Old Nov 26, 2020, 3:36 am
  #4753  
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 69
Originally Posted by KARFA
you do have to call to cancel if it is a voluntary cancellation.

a 35 per person cancellation fee will be deducted from the taxes/fees/charges you paid - if you paid less than 35 per person you are not asked to cure the difference.

you can get a FTV if you want and use that towards a new reward booking in the future, all the avios and cash will just be held on the FTV for use by april 2022.
Clear, thanks very much. So the only way to guarantee a complete no strings refund would be booking the 50p plus 17,000 avios option, with the downside of it being terrible value for the extra avios as against 8,000 plus 35. As you say, clearly the FTV would be better than a standard redemption cancellation if doing the 8,000/35 option as you don't lose the 35, it just comes back as BA money rather than actual money as was previously the case.
taranty is offline  
Old Nov 26, 2020, 3:50 am
  #4754  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
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Posts: 42,706
well the lowest cost option if you want a voluntary refund is to book the 50p rate, although i agree it is not a great use of avios.

personally i would just book the normal band rates and rely on using a FTV for any voluntary cancellation.
KARFA is offline  
Old Nov 26, 2020, 3:54 am
  #4755  
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 69
Originally Posted by KARFA
well the lowest cost option if you want a voluntary refund is to book the 50p rate, although i agree it is not a great use of avios.

personally i would just book the normal band rates and rely on using a FTV for any voluntary cancellation.
Yep, agreed, that is the best bet.
taranty is offline  

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