Airline cancelled return flight as didnt go on outbound

BritBeth

Hi there, this is my last hope as I have tried inquiring with the airline and travel agent but with no luck.

My partner and I arrived at Sydney Airport on the 1st January 2017 to check in to the flight to London we had booked through Flight Centre and paid for in April 2016 and were told by Thai Airways there was no ticket available for my partner. We were told the reason was because he had not boarded the outgoing flights from London to Sydney and the 'coupon sequence' had to be followed. The reason he had not boarded the original flight was because he has just started his own business and had to stay behind for some last minute meetings (so I appreciate this is not a reason to reclaim the original outbound flight)

My understanding is we paid for a service - outgoing and return flights and Matthew was denied access on the return flights.

The Australian Branch of Flight Centre based in the airport were able to help and booked Matthew onto a flight the same day but this was at a cost of over $2,000AUD.

I have tried to seek compensation from Flight Centre or Thai Airrways for the return flight (who must have sold the seat twice) but I have seen in Flight Centre's Terms and Conditions that compensation is not possible if my partner didn't board the original outbound flight. I feel very stupid but was never notified at the time of cancellation that they had cancelled my partner's ticket.

Does anyone know is there anything I can claim back for this

phatbear

assuming that passenger duty is paid in Australia, i know they dont have such a thing in places like Hong Kong, then you will be able to claim that back, however most of that will probably be gobbled up with admin fees etc

Nick_C

BritBeth wrote: »

My understanding is we paid for a service - outgoing and return flights and Matthew was denied access on the return flights. (

You entered into a contract with BA and agreed to their conditions of carriage.

3c) Using flight coupons in the right sequence and changes in itinerary

3c1) Your ticket is valid only for the transportation shown on it from the place of departure through any agreed stopping places to the final place of destination. The fare you have paid is based on our tariff for the transportation shown on your ticket and forms part of your contract with us.

3c2) Your ticket is no longer valid if you do not use all the coupons in the sequence provided in the ticket. Where you change your travel without our agreement and the price for the resulting transportation you intend to undertake is greater than the price originally paid, you will be requested to pay the difference in price. Failure to pay the price applicable to your revised transportation will result in refusal of carriage.

3c3) If you want to change all or part of your transportation, you must contact us beforehand. We will work out the revised fare for your changed transportation. You will have the option of either accepting the revised fare or maintaining your original transportation.

3c4) If you need to change any aspect of your transportation because of events beyond your control, you must contact us as soon as possible. We will use reasonable efforts to transport you to your next stopover or final destination, without re-calculating the fare.

3c5) If you change your transportation without our agreement, your unused flight coupons will not be valid for travel and will have no value and we will not carry you until:

we or our authorised agents have re-calculated the revised fare for your actual transportation and
you have paid the difference (if any) between the fare you have already paid and the revised fare which applies to your changed transportation.

BA sell return tickets cheaper than singles. They sell inflexible, non refundable tickets cheaper than fully flexible ones.

You get what you pay for.

No chance of a refund.

agrinnall

BritBeth wrote: »

...who must have sold the seat twice

Not that it's relevant to your dilemma, but why are you so certain of this? If the flight was full then you can reasonably assume that the seat was occupied by someone else, but you can have no idea how that seat was filled.

BritBeth

Yes as the flight was full except some spaces in business class I knew they must have sold the seat again which is why I thought I might be able to claim something from the airline but I appreciate the terms and conditions are clear - i think if this has happened on a flight form europe or something it wouldnt have seemed so distressing just the fact it was the other side of the world but I appreciate I should have checked Ts&Cs

Heliflyguy

Nick_C wrote: »

You entered into a contract with BA and agreed to their conditions of carriage.
BA sell return tickets cheaper than singles. They sell inflexible, non refundable tickets cheaper than fully flexible ones.

You get what you pay for.

No chance of a refund.

Except it was on Thai airways but its a standard condition with airlines with the exception of some low cost carriers.

In some circumstances its cheaper to buy 2 one ways than a return on BA but not often.

I wonder what ticket type of ticket was used to get to Australia after not getting on the originally booked flights, a cheaper return or a oneway?

Bit confused with the cancellation bit though, did you try and cancel the outbound flights only?

BritBeth

Thanks for all your comments everyone - no i didn't cancel the outbound flight so I assumed as I hadn't cancelled that the return flight should still be valid.

leylandsunaddict

BritBeth wrote: »

Yes as the flight was full except some spaces in business class I knew they must have sold the seat again which is why I thought I might be able to claim something from the airline but I appreciate the terms and conditions are clear - i think if this has happened on a flight form europe or something it wouldnt have seemed so distressing just the fact it was the other side of the world but I appreciate I should have checked Ts&Cs

Or it could just be that the empty seat saved someone from being bumped off because the flight was overbooked (which they all are).

You have to take the flights in the sequence ticketed, unless you're using a point to point carrier. If you don't the rest of the flights on the ticket are automatically cancelled.

Caz3121

BritBeth wrote: »

The reason he had not boarded the original flight was because he has just started his own business and had to stay behind for some last minute meetings

how did he travel out to Sydney? did he enquire about changing the date of his outbound flight or did he buy a new ticket? Did he enquire about what would happen to the return flight if he did not take the outbound?
Low Cost carriers tend to be the ones that price return journeys as a total of 2 x one-way tickets so tickets can be used even if the sequence is broken but full service airlines have more restrictions and as soon as a leg is missed all subsequent legs are cancelled
Looking at Thai flights LON-SYD 2nd to 23rd March a return flight costs £707
The outbound flight purchased as a one way would be £540
The return flight purchased as a one way would be £596
so it would cost £429 more to buy 2 x one-ways but that way the one-way ticket for the return would still be able to be used

I am afraid this is down to an incorrect assumption and the fare rules have been followed correctly
from the Thai Airways site http://www.thaiairways.com/en/Terms_condition/reservation_and_ticketing_terms_and_conditions.page
Coupon sequential and use
• The ticket is not valid if the first coupon has not been used and will not honored if all coupon are not used in the sequence provided in the ticket

eDicky

The situation is very straightforward. When a passenger fails to take any sector of their booked itinerary, all subsequent sectors of that booking are automatically cancelled in the airline's system. This applies to all airlines (except some LCCs), and anyone at the airline or agent could have informed you if you had mentioned the change of plan. Checking Mathew's return booking online would also have revealed its absence. Sorry for having to say so.

BritBeth

Thanks for your help everyone - I was just seeing if there was anything I could do but it appears not. Big lesson for next time!