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
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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:
Paid Seating Refund:
Bookings made using Lloyds Upgrade Voucher
You should expect to receive:
Lloyds Upgrade Voucher Notes
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.
- Online forms (Post #435 - corporate-wage-slave) - manual process which may take many weeks
Paid Seating Refund:
- https://www.britishairways.com/trave...ing_claim_form (Post #765 - travelhappypair)
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.
- Use the Qantas website and look back to your original PNR. Step by step guide in post 954
Covid-19 BA Rebooking/Cancellation/Refund HELP & ADVICE *No Speculation etc*
#92
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Laguna Beach, CA
Programs: UA G MM, AS 75K MVP, Delta Plat, Marriot Plat, Hilton Gold, PC Spire
Posts: 246
Hopefully this question has not been answered, If one segment is cancelled can you cancel online for a refund? Hoping to avoid a call to the service center. I know you can do a voucher online, not sure about a refund.
#93
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club, easyJet and Ryanair
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: UK/Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold (GGL/CCR)
Posts: 15,927
#94
Join Date: Sep 2004
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 458
Does this count as a Package Holiday ?
Trying to help out my sister and friends who had a holiday to New York booked, flights with BA and hotel all booked with a local (ABTA member) Travel Agent. My understanding is that if a flight and hotel booked together this counts as a package and if so, given the circumstances, what would happen since they now cannot fly to the US?
Thanks.
- Would the TA be responsible for arranging refunds?
- Would they be covered by Abta?
- Should they claim via their own travel insurance?
Thanks.
#95
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: 63,811
https://www.abta.com/tips-and-advice...iday-protected
#96
Join Date: Sep 2004
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 458
It depends a bit on the details. The TA is certainly responsible for refunding the flight costs from BA, they may also be the ones to collect hotel costs. Usually it's best to inform the insurers that this has happened, but that you are working initially with the TA to minimise losses. ABTA only applies in extremis, such as trader failure, which may of course happen. But for the moment work with the TA to minimise losses.
https://www.abta.com/tips-and-advice...iday-protected
https://www.abta.com/tips-and-advice...iday-protected
#97
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 116
In Barbados having obviously flown first leg of 241. Can I change my return to come back early? There is no award availability.
(sorry if this has been asked before but I couldn't find an answer).
(sorry if this has been asked before but I couldn't find an answer).
#98
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 2,345
Have flights booked 28th March back 11th April to LPA, outbound date is within the 15 day lockdown and FCO advice, when will I see an option to cancel or rebook in MMB please, if I decide to cancel I have to get BA refund in stead of claiming on travel insurance I think? If I rebook instead for later in the summer will I then be able to get a refund if this new date comes under another new lockdown/FCO travel advice or are they only allowing 1 change? Thanks
#99
Join Date: Apr 2005
Programs: BA GOLD
Posts: 604
If it helps anyone trying to get back from the US to London - AA have stated on their website that they will operate 1 daily flight from DFW and 1 daily from MIA to LHR
#100
Suspended
Join Date: Dec 2019
Posts: 629
Have flights booked 28th March back 11th April to LPA, outbound date is within the 15 day lockdown and FCO advice, when will I see an option to cancel or rebook in MMB please, if I decide to cancel I have to get BA refund in stead of claiming on travel insurance I think? If I rebook instead for later in the summer will I then be able to get a refund if this new date comes under another new lockdown/FCO travel advice or are they only allowing 1 change? Thanks
you scans apply for voucher for value of flights to use for another flight.
you can call and rebook now and pay whatever the price difference is between what you paid and new price
#101
Suspended
Join Date: Dec 2019
Posts: 629
not if no reward space unfortunately
Last edited by Hawk777; Mar 15, 2020 at 10:59 am
#102
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Edinburgh
Posts: 214
Mrs Mikey and I have return flights to Las Vegas, leaving on 7th April, booked with Avios and using an AMEX 2 for 1 voucher.
Do we have to cancel them ourselves or will they be cancelled and refunded automatically, assuming we're not cleared to travel by that date? And will the cash, Avios and AMEX 2 for 1 all be refunded?
Thanks.
Do we have to cancel them ourselves or will they be cancelled and refunded automatically, assuming we're not cleared to travel by that date? And will the cash, Avios and AMEX 2 for 1 all be refunded?
Thanks.
#103
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: East Anglia, England
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,056
As a data point, we had a BA holiday to Tenerife booked for 27 March. Roughly two hours ago, BA Holidays wrote to advise that a full refund will be processed in the next seven days.
My wife and I woke up this morning to news about Spain and then later from the FCO. Both of us were relaxed about it because I knew that BA would get around to writing to us.
Whilst I appreciate the doubt or insecurity people may be feeling about the global pandemic, especially with the impending school holidays, I think we sometimes just need to take a step back, pause and breath.
H
My wife and I woke up this morning to news about Spain and then later from the FCO. Both of us were relaxed about it because I knew that BA would get around to writing to us.
Whilst I appreciate the doubt or insecurity people may be feeling about the global pandemic, especially with the impending school holidays, I think we sometimes just need to take a step back, pause and breath.
H
#104
Suspended
Join Date: Dec 2019
Posts: 629
Mrs Mikey and I have return flights to Las Vegas, leaving on 7th April, booked with Avios and using an AMEX 2 for 1 voucher.
Do we have to cancel them ourselves or will they be cancelled and refunded automatically, assuming we're not cleared to travel by that date? And will the cash, Avios and AMEX 2 for 1 all be refunded?
Thanks.
Do we have to cancel them ourselves or will they be cancelled and refunded automatically, assuming we're not cleared to travel by that date? And will the cash, Avios and AMEX 2 for 1 all be refunded?
Thanks.
if you cancel flight lose 35£ per pax everything else refunded
or can use the ba book with confidence online form for voucher for new booking
#105
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: UK, US and ???
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 3
First, huge thanks to Mods and Hawk777 for invaluable info across the various Covid threads! We are due to fly 18 Mar ORD-PHL-LHR-INV. This is the return portion of the ticket and for family reasons need to stay in the US to sit out the virus, rather than be unable to return to the US if borders fully shut in the future. MMB still shows the PHL-LHR leg as running (it is now in red) but dummy booking on the day shows no direct flights (as expected). If the TATL leg is indeed cancelled, would I be entitled to a refund on the back half of this ticket, or is that down to the Ts&Cs? Or would it depend on what the flight time differences would be on any rerouting BA proposes as to whether a refund could be claimed? 125 ticket, booked CW, GUFed to F on the TATL legs. Am aware of rebooking option out to Aug 1, or of course pay change fee+fare diff to rebook further out but v hard to pin down a date ATM so refund if due looks the cleanest option if possible. Trying to sort preferred options in advance of calling BA. TIA!