c1mth0g

Does anyone know what these means? Does this simply have to do with some *A airlines requiring a 24 hour waiting period for confirmation?

I am wondering if it is now possible to cancel an award within 24 hours of departure ...

WineCountryUA

This is a catchall for those airlines that do take the fulle24 hours, however, LH for one, you can make changes under the 24-hour window and generally be OK.

The "restriction" has not apply to cancellations for others.

jsloan

It's nothing new, and it's not enforced in practice, but the general consensus is that it is, indeed, meant to protect against the possibility of a *A partner not confirming space until 24 hours after booking. I've yet to see a report of anyone being denied a cancellation because of it, although they might be within their rights to do so.

transportprof

Cancellation is not the same as change. I have cancelled *A award tickets < 4 hours before departure with no problem and full refund.

jsloan

True. I've also changed them at the last minute with no problems. Even if they decided to enforce the rule, I don't think there'd be a problem with a cancellation (and, even if they were, you could get the miles back for the $125 no-show fee). Mostly I think it's another case of UA putting in an exception that they don't really plan to use, but is intended to protect them if they ever change their mind.

MatthewBL

quick question. I am 1K and have an award booking for next week i may not use. What is the very latest i am allowed to cancel this and still receive miles back without penalty.

emcampbe

typically, to get value back, you need to cancel the reservation before the GA closes out the flight with you not on it. That should be ‘departure time’, however, they can and do close out the flight prior to that (if they are ready to go sooner - could be as early as 15 minutes prior for domestic or 30 minutes prior for international flights) - or could be later - (delay, or even flight departs gate on time but GA still has to finish up admin first before closing).

This is the case for most revenue tickets for sure. Not 100% sure if awards are different, but I don’t think so. Consult the fare rules - though those are typically not available after you book unless you have an expertflyer subscription. You can try doing a dummy booking of a new award on the same route to get a good idea, or can call to ask. I always save fare rules when booking to have access after the fact.

jsloan

This is correct if you've checked in. If you haven't checked in, I think you have to cancel by the check-in deadline (30 minutes prior for domestic, 60 for international), as you can be offloaded then. Unused award tickets can still be redeposited after the fact, but will be subject to a $125 no-show fee (all status levels). In most cases, "the time at which I'd have to leave for the airport to make my flight on time" isn't a bad proxy.

emcampbe

They certainly can (and do!) offload you if you miss any required cutoff, including checkin. However, I'm almost 100% sure from a refund (and some other) perspectives, it is 'departure time' (per COC), but in actuality, closing time, that really matter. You won't be allowed to check in for your booked flight, for example, if you've missed the check in cutoff (save supervisor intervention - which can happen - but I would never count on this). But UA will typically rebook on next available - the ticket itself is still valid (even after departure sometimes...see flat tire rule).

Bask in the day, PMUA would actually give you until midnight the day of your flight to get a refund...so you wouldn't have to rush to cancel by flight time. But that was a long time ago.

Also note that check in cutoffs can vary based on airports - while 30/60 minutes is typical for most stations, some are different, especially if you are checking bags, where many major stations (and probably all hubs) require at least 45 minutes.

mahasamatman

Back in the real day (at least 2010), you had until one year after booking to cancel and get a refund on award tickets.

jsloan

Actually, that was still true until last year. I just don't think a lot of people knew it -- I certainly didn't. (For award tickets specifically, I mean).

aacharya

Basically, do it an hour before the flight is going to depart. That avoids offloading and airport control issues with the ticket.

Dublin_rfk

In December I had to cancel an award ticket after checking in. It was @ 10 minutes prior to boarding. I spoke with the CS in the lounge and had them make sure it went through.

onthesam

As other posters have pointed out, $125 to redeposit miles after a no-show. That $125 is the same charge for a general member to cancel and redeposit the miles <61 days before departure. For non-elites there's no real reason to rush to cancel.

NewbieConsultant

Hi there,

Quick question - according to United's site re: award ticketing options / service fees (https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly...ticketing.html), Premier 1Ks pay no fee to make a change within 60 or fewer days before departure, but pays a $125 for "no show". How is "no show" defined? Is it based on the time of departure (e.g., for an 8:00 PM flight, if I cancel the tickets at 7:55 PM, it's free and is not counted as a "no show") or another time (e.g., 3 hours before the flight)?

Thanks!