I booked a return flight for a friend on Sunday night to Bangkok from Dublin. I've just discovered tonight (Tuesday) that I put down the wrong surname for him. I used his nickname by accident. His first name is correct. When I contacted Lufthansa about this I was told that because it's an international flight they can't do anything about this. They said I could get a tax refund of about �70 or �80. The flight cost �575. The woman I spoke to told me to contact my travel agent as they might be able to change it. My travel agent is Skyscanner and they redirect queries of this nature back to the airline. Any advice on this matter would be much appreciated.

I believe you are out of luck on this. By chance, is his nickname shown on any piece of identification, such as his passport, driver's license, or marriage license? Or try calling the airline again and ask to speak with a supervisor.

Norcop, welcome to FlyerTalk !

You definitely arrived here with an unpleasant predicament. As LadyPhoenix mentions, you are probably at the mercy of the airline and you will have to rely on the kindness of strangers to get a decent outcome.

You don't say where you live, but is there a Lufthansa ticket counter nearby ? I find that when I need a favour to resolve a situation it almost always works better in person. It is very easy to tell someone "sorry, we can't help you " over the telephone.

Ticket counter employees have a lot of power ( I have no direct personal experience with Lufthansa ). You just have to convince them to use their power to help you.

If they can't / won't fix the name, perhaps suggest a credit for future travel.

Also, did you pay for the flight with a credit card ? If your credit card comes with any kind of purchase insurance there is a small chance that might help you here.

In any case, good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Wonderful advice from thebobmc. Something else I'd like to add (and I am not assuming that you aren't)...please be nice over the phone and especially if/when speaking face-to-face with the Ticket Counter rep. You would be surprised how many folks think it's okay to behave rudely when seeking help.

Thanks for the replies guys. I sent an email to the travel agency last night and this is the response I got;

''After contacting with the town office of Lufthansa in Athens, advised us that they cannot change the surname of the passenger. The only possibility that you have is to cancel the ticket under the wrong name and buy a new one. According to the airline fare rules the fare and fuel surcharge are non-refundable.''

They also said I could reclaim �76 in taxes but that I would have to pay �20 in fees.

I've spoken to two Lufthansa employees in Dublin and they both quoted their airline policy which is not to allow name changes on tickets. I'll ring again and this time ask to speak with a manager. I think that's the last option available to me. The tickets were booked on a visa debit card so I don't think I have any comeback there.

Not a surprise really, we knew this wasn't going to be easy. But definitely worth at least one more phone call, in my opinion.

The only other suggestion that I can make is to keep a very close eye on the flight status for the various legs on the itinerary. A significant schedule change ( the rule is typically 2 hours here in North America, not sure how it is handled in Europe ) may trigger a refund, and the name on the ticket won't matter.

It is a long shot, but with all of the crappy weather in Northern Europe lately anything is possible. What date is the outbound flight ?

I suppose your friend could just show up at the airport to check in and try and work out the changes there, but that seems even more unlikely.

Outside the box thinking - can your friend apply for a legal name change? It might be cheaper! And then use the new name changed form (and the old passport) to prove that the name has changed etc, to travel.

its not going to be easy...still keep trying

My friend was seriously thinking of changing his name by deed poll. It would cost €35 to do this and a new passport would cost €85. He did however send a stern email to the travel agency which is based in Athens telling them to contact the Lufthansa helpdesk as they have the number to do so. So he got a reply this morning telling him that they would cancel the flight for a fee of €50 and we could book a new flight. However the link they sent me didn't work and I've been waiting all day to hear back from them. Anyway it's looking positive at the moment. It just goes to show that a bit of persistence pays off.