Converting a refundable ticket to non-refundable
 

I purchased a refundable domestic ticket several months ago (one seat in Economy Comfort (W) and one in First (A)), and I am now certain that I will be taking the trip so I would like to convert it to the current considerably cheaper non-refundable fare.

I would like to keep my current seats and flights.

I am thinking I should either
- call Delta and ask them to convert the ticket for a partial refund
- cancel the ticket and buy a "new" fare online without speaking to anyone at Delta

Does anyone have experience to share or recommendations for doing this?

Book the new nonrefundable tix with the same routing as you currently have, or whatever you desire.

Then go into the refundable and change your seats. Immediately go into the nonrefundable and take the seats you just vacated and you're all set.

Under no circumstances would I convert the refundable. That's asking for problems. Keep things separate.

Call them up. Point out there's a lower fare for your flights and you want to rebook them using the lower fare. If you truly have a refundable ticket then they'll refund the difference.

However I would look at the receipt to make sure the notation NON-REF isn't on it close to bottom. You're fare classes just give me cause for concern. Especially the C+ portion.

One further note.

Refundable does not always mean there is no change/cancel fee. It means you can get money back (as opposed to a credit for future flight).

I would suggest you first just call and see what happens. If they push back, get details on your full fare rules as to why.

FWIW, this is sort of my standard practice.
Most of my travel is last-minute with an unsure return date. (50/50 domestic/international).
I'll book a refundable ticket, then when I'm certain of my return date I'll call the DM line and change my return flight to non-refundable, and the fare difference is refunded for the return flight.
I've even made this change at the airport just prior to checking in for my flight home. Saves the company a bit of money.

AFAIK all A and G fares are nonrefundable, as are some but not all P fares.

In fact, even if the ticket is refundable, it might be refundable only with a fee, so that it's really only partially refundable and not fully refundable.

Just call and ask. It's not illegal.