Look above the title of this post. You’ll see that it falls under ‘Points-Complaining‘. I don’t have a section for Thank You’s because 1) I’m a salty bastard. 2) Companies don’t do the right thing (see Happy Festivus! Airing of Points Grievances 2019). Notwithstanding point one, I have to say thank you to American Airlines which issued a full voucher for a basic economy round-trip due to coronavirus. While the ticket was not purchased after March 1st and my departure was within fourteen days (the current guidelines for free waivers), AA made an exception. For that I am grateful.
However, since this is technically a complaining post, I will say that basic economy is unconscionable (United Basic Economy Review: It Sucks). I will also say that change fees for other classes of service are also unconscionable (see Careful! No 24 Hour Free JetBlue Cancellation w/in 7 Days of Departure). Southwest doesn’t implement such draconian measures and it is still profitable. Why should other airlines be so cold-hearted?
And back to my thank you. Thank you AA. You avoided the Festivus 2020 list, for now.
So did you email customer relations and referenced the Coronavirus concern? Did you call before and were told no? Im asking cause im on the same boat.
I should’ve written that. Over the phone they were rude as usual and said there’s no travel advisory. And they said basic economy blah blah. Over email I said Corona and that’s the response.
Why exactly did you book basic economy, when you know it sucks?
Because I’m a cheap bastard and I still got a window seat. What more do I need?
Sorry, but I’m not seeing their response. What did they say (the image cuts off on “Hello Alex”)? Did they refund, or give you a credit for future travel? I’ve got a trip to the UK in a week that I’m planning to cancel too, and I’ve been doubtful they would do anything, so this is helpful!
And how did you phrase your email, if you don’t mind sharing?
Credit which is fine. I said that I don’t want to travel because of the coronavirus and I don’t appreciate the agents telling me that there’s no advisory and that I won’t receive a refund. It was that simple.
Thanks. Were you scheduled to go somewhere that HAD an advisory (i.e. Italy, S. Korea, China), where one would expect a refund, or were you scheduled somewhere that doesn’t have an official travel advisory (i.e. Germany, etc.) but has coronavirus?
San Diego
Thank you. I reached out to them and will see what they say. Hopefully they are just as nice as they were to you.
The email told me to wait 5 days for a response. Did they take that long to get back to you?
I’m charging per question. It took about that time.
Where is TPOL and what have you done with him?!?
We paid over $1800 for a flight to Maui in 1.5 weeks. I checked, and it now costs $802 for the exact same flights. I unfortunately also booked Basic Economy before March 1. If I said we didn’t want to travel due to coronavirus, do you think we could get a voucher (like you did), then rebook the same flights using the voucher? Or do you think it would be better to ask them to cancel our flight and rebook at the lower rate for us?
Cancel. Rebook.
Let us know if this works. Supposed to leave on a flight to Jamaica on Saturday and the flights are hundreds cheaper now. If it works, I’ll cancel and use the voucher to immediately rebook.
It worked for me. Obviously you just say cancel and get the voucher
I bought 2 RT tickets a couple of days ago (for travel in Jan 2021) to, frankly, take advantage of the low fares and waived change fees. I can rebook on a cheaper flight one week later and AA tells me I’d be due a $61 *credit* per ticket if I do this. Just what is an American Airlines credit, anyway? How can I use it?
Actually easy to use. They send you an email with a voucher number and pin. You book online and pay using that info.
So do I understand correctly that what AA is calling a “credit” will actually be issued in the form of a travel voucher? Can I use it for anything besides flights? (I’d actually like to use it for seat upgrades 🙂
Yes a voucher. Not sure about upgrade but probably can because it’s a payment method at checkout.
Actually, if it’s a voucher it looks like it can only be used for airfare. The rules on that are pretty clear at the American Airlines website. Searching for “credit” got me nowhere, however.
Hmm, well that’s that then.
How long does it take to get the voucher after cancelling?
Took 5 days
When I try to cancel my basic economy trip that falls within the specifications, it says I won’t get a refund? Is that what yours said too?
Contact customer service through the email. I actually asked for a refund after skipping my flight without cancelling it. They still issued the credits.
Thanks for this post. I want to cancel my Basic Economy flight. Should I wait until I actually skip the flight, then email? What email address for American did you use? How soon did you get the credit and in what form? A code?