j3823x

They already can if there's availability.

zxcvbs

I know, but I'm asking if there's any chance they'd make a one-time concession. I don't know if it's the case that AA would have to refund the taxes out of their own pocket, but they're not losing any money on the airfare because I didn't pay them any.

TrojanHorse

If my flights were any indication.. they were both half full or half empty on both flights to/from ACA.

There is no incentive (based on the loads I flew) to give you a thing.. unless its F0 A0 Y0 etc.. why should they give you a thing.. they have other seats to sell at the regular fares..

Spiff

My money is on AA keeping your money and telling you "your sand and mallet are over there, sir."

izzik

lucky them.

miller4isu

I doubt they will give you a refund, and here is why:

If people knew they could get a refund on tickets like these, how many people would have purchased multiple tickets? For example, if John Doe knew he could get a refund on any tickets he didn't use, why not buy tickets for every weekend, then only use the ones he wanted?

After traveling to ACA last weekend on $0 tickets, my SO and I wish we would have purchased a few more for upcomming weekends. We didn't, because the fact that we would have been out $100+ for each ticket we didn't end up using kept us 'down to earth' and only purchased 1 ticket each.

That being said, I would love to hear if you have any luck!

zxcvbs

well here's a better question - what money is AA keeping? if it's all taxes, what exactly is AA keeping? isn't my $110 going to various goverment agencies?

and I won't apologize for trying to work the system a bit - if I did I should never have booked the fare in the first place

miguel0881

I was under the impression that airlines automatically refunded taxes, even on non-refundable tickets. This has always been the case when I've refunded with DL and NW, and on award tickets. Often times I've not even asked, and the fee reappears as a credit on the card originally used (sometimes, for award tickets, it can be as little as $5 or $10 if all they charged intially was the Sept. 11 security fee). Last time, DL didn't refund the taxes, and after about a month, I called their refunds department directly and she processed the credit on the spot. So, maybe you should try and find a number for the AA refunds department rather than reservations and call them instead (if AA has such a number...it took some digging to find DL's). If they turn you down, I would write a letter and perhaps threaten a class action suit, b/c these taxes and fees are certainly not their's to keep.

Spiff

This fare may be a $0 fare, but it is not a fully refundable fare!

When you refund a ticket, it usually is in the form of a travel voucher, less any change fees unless it is a refundable ticket, which this ain't.

So, a $110 total ticket - a $150 change fee means you owe AA a $40 voucher. Got one handy?

zxcvbs

my question is, where are the taxes going? when I return an item to a store, I get my sales tax back. why are airfare taxes different? maybe this is a dumb question and pro MRers learned this in grade school, but I do wonder.

nako

There is actually some precedent for this sort of thing, though - AA not only offered refunds to passengers, but also gave them miles as if they had flown, for a group of people who took advantage of a fare error from the UK to Cleveland last August. The key difference, though, is that the error was only on flights within a very limited period of a couple of days, making it more obvious that people were only flying these for the miles.

I kind of hoped that AA would do the same thing with these (or at least allow people to get their taxes back on a refund) as I can no longer use my tickets, but I'm not really counting on it.

Mike

izzik

In light of previous pricing mistakes by airlines and hotels alike, let's not forget that AA is honoring this fare no-questions-asked.. and is providing EQMs as well. Trying to get a refund on a nonrefundable fare error is just a bit .. well.. wrong.

nako

Is it wrong if the airline offers it, though?

That's the point I'm trying to make. I'm not going to push the issue even though I can't use the tickets, but if AA were to call me and ask if I'd take a refund (as they have done before) in exchange for the miles, then I'd be more than happy to take it.

Mike

Spiff

AA will give you your taxes back!

However, the terms and conditions of the ticket that you agreed to when you purchased it necessitate that 1)any refund is not in cash, but rather in the form of a voucher that can be applied to a future international ticket and 2)that you agreed to pay a fee of $100-200 (not sure what it is for this particular fare) if you wished to have a refund described in 1).

If the ticket had been $500 + $110 in taxes, you would be eligible for a refund if you followed the procedures in 1) and 2) above. However, you would receive a voucher for $410 - $510 instead of owing AA $40, should you insist on trying to get these taxes refunded.

It's that simple.

heathriel

Away fromthe taxes/refundn discussion for a minute:

Is anyone else going down on the 11th? My husband and I are doing a quick visit from the 11th to the 13th and I'm just wondering if anyone else will be there too

I'm also curious as to what people think the best way to see the cliff divers is - I'm leery of driving at night, so should we drive out on our own during the day or pay for a tour to La Perla at night (with van), or is there a third option?