Have you been planning a trip for a long time, but had to cancel it a couple of days before departure? You already have your tickets, but the airline has canceled or rescheduled your flight, and you’re not happy with that? Whether plans change according to our will, or it happens for reasons beyond our control, the situation is still unpleasant. It’s doubly offensive if, on top of everything, you also have to incur material losses - in the form of money spent on the trip. In such situations, completely logical questions arise - is it possible to return air tickets, and whether it is possible to get back the money paid for them.
Each such case is individual. The positive outcome of the case depends on a number of factors - the chosen fare, the time remaining until the departure date, the form of return. Even with non-refundable tickets, the situation is often resolved quite successfully. The main thing is to inform the carrier of your intention to return the ticket in advance.
Refund of air tickets
There is no need to delay the delivery of air tickets. The closer the departure date, the higher the return fee will be. Immediately after registration is completed, the ticket often “burns out.”
There are two types of refusal to fly
- Forced - when the flight is impossible for a good reason caused by force majeure situations with you (you or a close relative who was supposed to fly with you got sick, a family member died, etc.) or the air carrier (flight delay for a long time or its cancellation ). In this case, the entire price of the ticket, including non-refundable ones, is subject to compensation;
- Voluntary - when you yourself changed your plans. In this case, the refund amount will not be more than provided for by the rules of your tariff. If you purchased a non-refundable ticket, only taxes and fees paid will be refunded. And that's not all. Some of them are not compensated. Only airline representatives can determine the exact amount.
Return Policy
According to air carrier rules, you can return your ticket at the place of purchase. If you bought it from a certain agency, you must return it there. This rule also applies to tickets purchased online. If a person who wishes to return an air ticket is in another city, he must contact the nearest representative office of the carrier.
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You can return your plane ticket before passengers check in for the flight, that is, no later than 40 minutes before departure. Returns after this time are not possible.
Ticket refund if you miss your flight
A passenger who did not have time for check-in . At the same time, he can still try to return the money spent. To do this, he needs to cancel the order for the ticket - enter the website where it was purchased, enter his passport details and reservation number.
If you do this at least 1 hour before departure, the airline will refund 75% of the ticket price.
If a passenger arrives at the airport after the plane has departed , you can count on compensation only when he has a return ticket in hand. In addition, it will be necessary to provide convincing evidence of the reasons for the delay. These usually include delays in connecting flights on the route, duration of customs inspection, etc.
In these cases, you can count on almost 100% compensation.
If jams prevent you from arriving at the airport on time , failure to show up will be regarded as a voluntary return.
This means that the company is obliged to compensate the cost of the ticket minus additional fees. Alternatively, you may be offered the next flight.
What to do, if
1. Tickets purchased for the wrong date/wrong country
If you noticed an error immediately after purchase (or within 30 minutes), nothing bad happened. Most ticketing services allow you to cancel your order with minimal or no loss. If you paid by card, your money will hang in the bank for a while while it is being returned or unblocked, but in the end you will lose nothing or almost nothing.
But in some cases, the purchase of air tickets cannot be canceled within 30 minutes. For example, it does not allow cancellation of an air reservation. In some cases, it will not be possible to cancel a ticket with a departure in the near future.
If you buy a ticket on the airline's website, please note that there is very limited time to cancel the ticket. So we recommend that you check all the details very carefully before paying: dates, directions, passenger details.
If you notice the error late—that is, more than 30 minutes have passed since payment—contact the service support team. The ticket will have to be exchanged or returned and purchased again.
2. I'm late for the airport
Contact the service you purchased your ticket from as soon as possible to find out what your options are. The sooner you do this, the smaller the financial losses will be: in case of a refund, you will receive more money, and if the departure is postponed to a later flight, the surcharge will be less. If you bought a ticket directly from the airline, then you need to contact its support service.
3. I or my relatives got sick
First of all, consult your doctor. Firstly, you should not self-medicate, and secondly, if you want to get your money back for tickets, you will need certificates to provide to the airline. Contact the support service of the service where you purchased your tickets to receive a sample certificate.
If it is not you who is sick, but one of your close relatives - a child, parent, husband or wife - also take a doctor’s certificate and contact the support service of the service where you purchased the tickets.
The service agent will resolve all issues with the airline, and if everything is in order with your documents, you will receive your money in full within up to 2 months. The same algorithm works when communicating with the airline directly.
A forced refund of a ticket can also be requested if a passenger’s close relative has died. And of course, money for a ticket can be returned in the event of the death of the passenger himself.
Important! It is necessary to report the illness or death of a passenger or close relative as soon as possible. You must do this before check-in for the flight closes, otherwise the airline will refuse a refund for the ticket. And some airlines ask to notify them 24 hours before departure. So the sooner you contact the support service of the service where you purchased your tickets, the better.
4. I was not given a visa
Refusal of a visa is another reason for issuing an involuntary refund of an air ticket, but not all airlines recognize it. In any case, if you are not given a visa, immediately contact the service where you purchased the ticket or the airline itself.
If the airline considers your visa refusal to be a valid reason, you will need to send copies of documents confirming the reason for the refusal. Usually you need an official refusal on embassy or consulate letterhead with a notarized translation.
5. My plans have changed
If you decide to cancel your trip, this is considered a voluntary cancellation of your flight and refund conditions depend on the fare of your ticket. The general rule is this: the cheaper the ticket, the greater the loss of its return. Usually the cheapest tickets are those with non-refundable fares, meaning if you cancel your flight you will lose the full price.
If you voluntarily return your ticket, you will be charged the following:
● Entire tariff if it is non-refundable. If the fare is refundable, it is possible that if you voluntarily cancel the flight, part of it will be withheld - you need to check the rules for applying the fare.
● Refusal and/or cancellation fees. They are established by the airline and specified in the fare rules.
● Agent fee for returning tickets.
Often, if you subtract all this from the ticket price, you get a negative value.
6. The airline made changes to the flight and I don’t like them.
If your original flights have been changed by the airline, you will be notified by email. If the changes do not suit you, you can apply for an involuntary refund of your air ticket or try to exchange it for a more convenient time or date. However, please note that if the changes are minor, for example, the flight was postponed by an hour or two, then the airline will not approve the refund.
To issue a refund or exchange, contact the support service of the service where you purchased the tickets. Based on your application, specialists will send a request to the airline to authorize a full refund and, after receiving a response, will issue a refund.
Usually in this case there is no need to pay extra for an exchange or return.
7. The flight was delayed and I don’t want to fly anywhere anymore.
If your flight was delayed or canceled due to weather conditions, due to a natural disaster or technical breakdown of the aircraft (in general, any reasons that were beyond your control), try to get a note from the airline representatives about the delay or cancellation of the flight and send it to Customer Support. The ticket sales service agent will tell you whether it will be possible to make a refund or exchange, and will contact the airline.
How to return a plane ticket
The airline is notified in advance of flight cancellations.
This can be done in one of the following ways:
- Apply for a refund on the carrier’s website, in the “Booking” section;
- Send him a request for a refund via e-mail;
- Submit a relevant application to the contact center.
Air ticket deadline
Air carriers ask passengers to notify passengers of their intention to return their tickets as early as possible.
Preferably - no later than 1-2 days before the departure date. In this case, losses will not amount to more than 25% of the price of the travel document.
If it is not possible to notify the carrier in advance, try to contact airline representatives at least before completing check-in for the flight. After this time, you most likely will not be able to return the ticket.
An approximate algorithm of actions when returning a ticket
1. Find the contacts of the airline or intermediary through which the ticket was purchased and ask for clarification of the procedure and conditions for the return. And follow the instructions received.
2. Write an application according to the established template, attach a scan of your passport, ticket and supporting documents (if the refusal is forced) and send it to the company or intermediary, fortunately modern technologies allow you to do this by e-mail.
Important: notification of cancellation of a flight must be made at least 24 hours before departure.
3. If the agent refuses to refund the cost of the ticket, you need to contact the air carrier directly.
4. If the airline refuses to refund the money and ignores your rights prescribed in the Air Code of the Russian Federation, you can safely write a complaint to the Federal Air Transport Agency, attaching all correspondence. And be patient, because... Such issues are not quickly addressed.
5. If all the actions taken are unsuccessful, the last resort remains - legal action.
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– Moscow—Dubai only from 7227 rubles
– Moscow—Tel Aviv for some 7,227 rubles
– Moscow-Beijing from 6570 rubles, wow
All other special offers and discounts on air tickets can be found at Aviakassa.
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