24 hour cancellation after booking?
Jun 20, 19, 5:30 am
#16
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: SEA
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You'd have to refer to the specific rules for your region.
But I believe in all regions, if it's > 24 hours, then there's no "courtesy" refund. Instead, the cancellation terms associated with your specific ticket would apply. Those will vary depending on the booking code for your ticket. The details should be in the fine print of the ticket they sent you.
But I believe in all regions, if it's > 24 hours, then there's no "courtesy" refund. Instead, the cancellation terms associated with your specific ticket would apply. Those will vary depending on the booking code for your ticket. The details should be in the fine print of the ticket they sent you.
Oct 14, 19, 10:55 am
#18
Join Date: Oct 2019
Posts: 2
Last edited by Jira; Oct 14, 19 at 10:57 am Reason: further edit
Oct 16, 19, 5:55 am
#19
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Netherlands
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Outside of the 24 hour window there is no reason to allow a voluntary cancellation for free, unless the fare fules applying to that ticket allow for cancellations at any time without penalty.
Given that you are asking here, rather than ringing to cancel your ticket, it sounds like you have not (yet) found yourself in the position of wanting to cancel beyond the 24 hour window. My advice? Don't book a ticket until you know you want to buy it. And don't come up with any strategy which involves needing to cancel for free a ticket outside of the minimal cancellation window. Use the "take an option" instead - for a nominal payment, which is removed from the total purchase price if you go ahead and book the ticket within the allotted time, you can "press pause" on a particular ticket, and go through with the payment at a later (but limited) time for the same price. If you don't purchase the ticket, you lose the fee - which is better than losing the entire purchase price.
Given that you are asking here, rather than ringing to cancel your ticket, it sounds like you have not (yet) found yourself in the position of wanting to cancel beyond the 24 hour window. My advice? Don't book a ticket until you know you want to buy it. And don't come up with any strategy which involves needing to cancel for free a ticket outside of the minimal cancellation window. Use the "take an option" instead - for a nominal payment, which is removed from the total purchase price if you go ahead and book the ticket within the allotted time, you can "press pause" on a particular ticket, and go through with the payment at a later (but limited) time for the same price. If you don't purchase the ticket, you lose the fee - which is better than losing the entire purchase price.
Oct 17, 19, 3:06 am
#20
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: CUR
Posts: 2,170
Outside of the 24 hour window there is no reason to allow a voluntary cancellation for free, unless the fare fules applying to that ticket allow for cancellations at any time without penalty.
Given that you are asking here, rather than ringing to cancel your ticket, it sounds like you have not (yet) found yourself in the position of wanting to cancel beyond the 24 hour window. My advice? Don't book a ticket until you know you want to buy it. And don't come up with any strategy which involves needing to cancel for free a ticket outside of the minimal cancellation window. Use the "take an option" instead - for a nominal payment, which is removed from the total purchase price if you go ahead and book the ticket within the allotted time, you can "press pause" on a particular ticket, and go through with the payment at a later (but limited) time for the same price. If you don't purchase the ticket, you lose the fee - which is better than losing the entire purchase price.
Given that you are asking here, rather than ringing to cancel your ticket, it sounds like you have not (yet) found yourself in the position of wanting to cancel beyond the 24 hour window. My advice? Don't book a ticket until you know you want to buy it. And don't come up with any strategy which involves needing to cancel for free a ticket outside of the minimal cancellation window. Use the "take an option" instead - for a nominal payment, which is removed from the total purchase price if you go ahead and book the ticket within the allotted time, you can "press pause" on a particular ticket, and go through with the payment at a later (but limited) time for the same price. If you don't purchase the ticket, you lose the fee - which is better than losing the entire purchase price.
I think it used to work like the way you describe, but that’s no longer the case.
Mar 23, 20, 10:31 am
#22
Join Date: Mar 2020
Posts: 3
you seem lucky, i cancelled a flight within 24 hour on 18/03 have not heard or received anything yet.
no chance to contact them either. guess they wont want to do refunds currently in case they go bust so may have to try card chargeback option
no chance to contact them either. guess they wont want to do refunds currently in case they go bust so may have to try card chargeback option
Mar 23, 20, 12:03 pm
#23
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Join Date: Oct 2000
Posts: 14,352
When looking at options to get home last Friday, I asked my TA to play it safe and book two flights. Fully refundable fares, but the TA said they would book only one and then change the reservation as required. They were sure they would get no money back from KL for any canceled ticket, fully refundable or not.
Johan
Johan
Mar 26, 20, 10:25 am
#24
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Location: Netherlands
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I've never really understood the mindset of "taking advantage" of a free 24 hour cancellation period, even in normal times.
It's all very well to have a sudden unexpected turn of events almost immediately after committing to a ticket - but I think that buying a ticket with an almost certain intention to cancel within 24 hours is crazy. If you are not committed to a trip, don't buy the ticket until you know that that "24 hour uncertainty" is passed.
And what if you, for whatever reason, forget to contact, or can't contact, the airline to make the cancellation on time? You are taking something of a risk, at the best of times.
To expect to be able to exercise this option in the current climate, however, seems to be to be complete madness.
People - you have to look out for yourself. Be clever. Act in your best interests - be proactive - and do not rely on these sops to flexibility/customer service. Because viewing them as such is incorrect.
Do not be lulled into making a booking before you are actually ready to commit to that ticket.
It's all very well to have a sudden unexpected turn of events almost immediately after committing to a ticket - but I think that buying a ticket with an almost certain intention to cancel within 24 hours is crazy. If you are not committed to a trip, don't buy the ticket until you know that that "24 hour uncertainty" is passed.
And what if you, for whatever reason, forget to contact, or can't contact, the airline to make the cancellation on time? You are taking something of a risk, at the best of times.
To expect to be able to exercise this option in the current climate, however, seems to be to be complete madness.
People - you have to look out for yourself. Be clever. Act in your best interests - be proactive - and do not rely on these sops to flexibility/customer service. Because viewing them as such is incorrect.
Do not be lulled into making a booking before you are actually ready to commit to that ticket.
Last edited by irishguy28; Mar 26, 20 at 10:30 am
Mar 26, 20, 4:21 pm
#26
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Join Date: Oct 2000
Posts: 14,352
KL is getting 100,000 phone calls a day, plus 200,000 social media contacts. The social media team has gone from 400 to 1,200 staff, but the extra 800 are volunteers with minimal training and limited or no customer service experience.
Johan
Johan
Mar 27, 20, 4:00 am
#27
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: AMS / ATH
Programs: AFKL Plat, A3 Gold
Posts: 6,958
Same for when you find a great flight deal with very low availability. Book the flight first, then look for hotel options. Sometimes hotels are so expensive that it makes more sense to then choose to fly another date, even if flights are a little more expensive then. So at that point it makes sense to cancel that flight booking within 24h.
Ideally, you'd have the option to create one booking reference (e.g. Amadeus), and add your flights, hotels etc to that booking - reserving them in the process. And pay the full balance, and fully commit to the full itinerary, at the end - at once. Kind of like a database transaction, where you commit all changes at the end (or rollback all changes if there is an issue at any step). But unfortunately our travel industry is not set up for that yet, at least not for people not working with/for a TA.
Last edited by Xandrios; Mar 27, 20 at 4:07 am
Mar 27, 20, 4:36 am
#28
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It depends on what kind of trip you're booking. If something complex, with multiple separate airlines/tickets and various hotel bookings, there is always a chance that one of these booking processes may error out. Prices may jump up while booking. When you have expedia's payment page say "Sorry, this itinerary just went up $1000" its awfully nice to have the option to reconsider your trip and be allowed to cancel the already booked flights.
Same for when you find a great flight deal with very low availability. Book the flight first, then look for hotel options. Sometimes hotels are so expensive that it makes more sense to then choose to fly another date, even if flights are a little more expensive then. So at that point it makes sense to cancel that flight booking within 24h.
Same for when you find a great flight deal with very low availability. Book the flight first, then look for hotel options. Sometimes hotels are so expensive that it makes more sense to then choose to fly another date, even if flights are a little more expensive then. So at that point it makes sense to cancel that flight booking within 24h.
However, in this strategy, it is the hotel booking/Expedia booking that you expect to be problematic, so why not perhaps make that first?
My point is - it's all very well to have the option of falling back on a 24 hour cancellation, but it's still far less work to wait and make the booking only when you know you need it, and not before. Saves you the extra time of cancelling and waiting/checking for refund to clear.
(And in the timeframe you've given above, you presumably are making your Expedia booking in almost the same session, so re-ordering the booking flow would make more sense - the KLM flights aren't going to jump in price in the next 15 minutes! I don't see any logic to a sequencing of events such that you make your KLM booking, and then wait until the 24 hours is almost exhausted before booking the "problematic" parts of the trip...)
Mar 27, 20, 3:10 pm
#29
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: CPT,AMS
Posts: 4,352
Ideally, you'd have the option to create one booking reference (e.g. Amadeus), and add your flights, hotels etc to that booking - reserving them in the process. And pay the full balance, and fully commit to the full itinerary, at the end - at once. Kind of like a database transaction, where you commit all changes at the end (or rollback all changes if there is an issue at any step). But unfortunately our travel industry is not set up for that yet, at least not for people not working with/for a TA.
