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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 Mar 26, 2020, 2:07 pm
  #1081  
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: YYZ
Programs: BA Gold/Marriott Gold/HH Diamond/IC Plat Amba
Posts: 5,982
Originally Posted by Hawk777
not normally if in usual circumstances the conditions of carriage for cabin change due to different aircraft is any fare difference is repaid (on voucher for voucher bookings)

rebook alternative flight in same cabin 3 days either side to same destination

rebook more than 3 days either side but into same class

full refunds only allowed for cabin changes in fare rules apply it on original ticket
Thanks for the clarification. Still no indication if they will still be running but these are bookings in May from YYZ. I noticed that BA has cancelled both Toronto flights for the first half of April and gone daily with the 351 for the last 2 weeks of April which would be fine if the Covid situation was clearer. Basically if it comes down to it I'll take the refund vouchers even if they are running. Seems quite insane to have to take the flights to LHR to go into self isolation,fly back and go into 14 day quarantine here on return.
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 2:40 pm
  #1082  
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Waterloo Canada
Programs: QF SG, AC, AA
Posts: 424
Originally Posted by KARFA
AA would actually do the refund and calculate it for you. Tbh if you are cancelling half the booking then it should be very roughly half the cost coming back....
Originally Posted by jerry a. laska
Are you sure about that? Knowing how round trip tickets are generally priced I doubt that cancelling the inbound of a return booking having flown the outbound will be roughly half the total cost. I would generally assume that the refund would generally be just taxes and surcharges of the inbound and possibly something more...
The return fare was less than $1000; a one-way fare is about $5000.
That is why I asked for ideas on how the calculation might be done when BA cancels the flight.
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 3:20 pm
  #1083  
gms
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: South East, UK
Programs: BA Gold / GfL, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 2,431
Originally Posted by flashware
There's usually a way to revert back to the classic MMB page, should be a link somewhere.
I know what you are referring to - in recent times BA gave you an option to switch back to the old version. Now it seems this is not an option - when you have a booking that has been cancelled by BA the page it takes you to has no option to switch back to the old/standard style MMB.

If anyone has any suggestions as to how to 'force' BA.com back to the standard MMB functionality I am sure many people would be grateful!
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 3:28 pm
  #1084  
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Programs: Eurostar Carte Blanche, SBB-CFF-FFS GA-AG, SNCF Grand Voyageur LeClub
Posts: 7,831
Received an email from BA now with two voucher numbers. No attachment to the email. How can I find out how much the vouchers are worth?

These are vouchers I received for cancellation of an Avios booking.
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 3:45 pm
  #1085  
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Dubai
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hilton Diamond, Accor Diamond, BA Gold, QR Plat
Posts: 353
Originally Posted by San Gottardo
Received an email from BA now with two voucher numbers. No attachment to the email. How can I find out how much the vouchers are worth?

These are vouchers I received for cancellation of an Avios booking.
from what Ive understood based on my last call with BA, there is no way to manage the vouchers online or retrieve this information ourselves - we would have to phone up BA.

I downloaded all the invoices prior to requesting the vouchers and put the values in an excel sheet with the PNR so i that i have an overview.
CanaryWharf is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2020, 4:28 pm
  #1086  
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: 63,475
Originally Posted by San Gottardo
Received an email from BA now with two voucher numbers. No attachment to the email. How can I find out how much the vouchers are worth?

These are vouchers I received for cancellation of an Avios booking.
See post 954 or the Wiki.
corporate-wage-slave is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2020, 4:39 pm
  #1087  
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 73
Thank you for the suggestion, I will try to contact them at begin of next week.
I have both italian and american passport so I should be able to overcome some of the possible restrictions.
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 5:07 pm
  #1088  
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Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Juneau, Alaska.
Programs: AS 75K;BA Silver;AA G;HH Dia;HY Glob
Posts: 15,750
Originally Posted by jrobin
The return fare was less than $1000; a one-way fare is about $5000.
That is why I asked for ideas on how the calculation might be done when BA cancels the flight.
My understanding of Regulation EC 261/2004 is it does not guarantee that you will receive 50% of the total ticket price back if the inbound of your ticket is cancelled and you opt for a refund. I am by no means an expert on EC 261; maybe C-W-S will have other thoughts.

AA should be able to tell you the amount of the refund you would receive if you opt for refund. Is there any chance you would want to use the inbound at any any point in the next year? If so, you may just want to reschedule to some date in the future.
jerry a. laska is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2020, 5:24 pm
  #1089  
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 1,260
Originally Posted by jerry a. laska
My understanding of Regulation EC 261/2004 is it does not guarantee that you will receive 50% of the total ticket price back if the inbound of your ticket is cancelled and you opt for a refund. I am by no means an expert on EC 261; maybe C-W-S will have other thoughts.

AA should be able to tell you the amount of the refund you would receive if you opt for refund. Is there any chance you would want to use the inbound at any any point in the next year? If so, you may just want to reschedule to some date in the future.
This is the EC 261 bit about refunds:

Originally Posted by EC261
(a) - reimbursement within seven days, by the means provided for in Article 7(3), of the full cost of the ticket at the price at which it was bought, for the part or parts of the journey not made, and for the part or parts already made if the flight is no longer serving any purpose in relation to the passenger's original travel plan, together with, when relevant,
I would read that as no recalculation of the fare (i.e. they can't say you paid X, and the one-way fare is Y, so you get X-Y or nothing, depending on whether X or Y is bigger). I imagine the amount you should get back would depend on how much can be attributed to the cancelled sector.
cauchy is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2020, 5:35 pm
  #1090  
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 858
My flight using Avios miles was cancelled. I would like to arrange for a refund (taxes+miles). The JS workaround does not work anymore as I see a blue button that takes to voucher page. How do I best get the refund using the manual cancelation form below or else:

https://www.britishairways.com/trave..._ticket_refund
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 5:38 pm
  #1091  
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
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Posts: 42,705
Originally Posted by pred02
My flight using Avios miles was cancelled. I would like to arrange for a refund (taxes+miles). The JS workaround does not work anymore as I see a blue button that takes to voucher page. How do I best get the refund using the manual cancelation form below or else:

https://www.britishairways.com/trave..._ticket_refund
Yes, either that manual form or calling would allow you to get a full refund. If the flight is not imminent and you do want to call it may be best to leave it until next week when the call centres are hopefully a little less busy.
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Old Mar 26, 2020, 11:47 pm
  #1092  
Moderator: Luxury Hotels and FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Palo Alto, California,USA
Posts: 17,836
I had an award ticket booked on BA from HND to SFO on JL. I got an email informing me that I now had a voucher, which would appear to be for the taxes and fees.

BUT -- the Avios were not restored for the flight, do I have to call or should I just wait for a few days and it will reappear?

Sorry if this has been answered before but this is a long, long thread.

Thanks!
RichardInSF is offline  
Old Mar 27, 2020, 12:12 am
  #1093  
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: UK/Australia
Programs: BAEC Silver, UA2MM, QF Platinum, VA Platinum., Volare Executive Club
Posts: 2,488
Originally Posted by pred02
The JS workaround does not work anymore as I see a blue button that takes to voucher page.
Just for info, the JavaScript workaround still does work (at least with an avios booking and the Chrome browser).

I tried it a few minutes ago, and my avios were returned almost instantaneously, with the nett cash refund (taxes, etc) being clearly indicated.
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Old Mar 27, 2020, 12:12 am
  #1094  
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Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Juneau, Alaska.
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Posts: 15,750
Originally Posted by PrivatePilotDR40
Not sure if this is right place: but odds on BA cancelling the A350 flight to DXB on the 2nd May. I ideally want cash back for my booking than a voucher.
If you want a refund then you need to wait until BA actually cancels the flight. Once they cancel it then refer to the wiki to try to get a refund online or call.
jerry a. laska is offline  
Old Mar 27, 2020, 12:20 am
  #1095  
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Join Date: Oct 1999
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Posts: 15,750
Originally Posted by RichardInSF
I had an award ticket booked on BA from HND to SFO on JL. I got an email informing me that I now had a voucher, which would appear to be for the taxes and fees.

BUT -- the Avios were not restored for the flight, do I have to call or should I just wait for a few days and it will reappear?

Sorry if this has been answered before but this is a long, long thread.

Thanks!
If you opted for the voucher it incorporates the avios and cash you paid. No avios are returned.

For avios bookings the voucher does not seem to be as beneficial as just canceling. If BA has cancelled your flights then you are entitled to a full refund; see the wiki for the javascript method and if that does not work you have to call. If BA has not cancelled your flight then just pay the GBP35 redeposit fee as a voluntary cancellation. Read backwards in the thread you will find a number of similar questions and answers.

If you have opted for a voucher and now want to change your mind, see the Q and A here:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/32231154-post1001.html
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