Turkish airlines traveller cheque bs!

Android07

I booked a flight on Lastminute.com with Turkish airlines in June 2020 and the flight was cancelled. I asked for a refund and there was an option to get a Turkish airlines refund or a traveller's cheque with 15% extra. I decided to go for the cheque.

Now, keeping in mind that it is safe to fly now and the cheque expiry is near ( 2 years expiry ) , I went to use the cheque online and couldn't. I contacted their customer services and was told to call their sales office. The problem is the sales office offers a different fare compared to their website ( almost 3X higher ).

I have asked Turkish airlines to give me a voucher that I can use on their website or give me a refund and they have refused.

What can I do at this point in time ? I am kicking myself for going for their traveller's cheque.

Android07

Can anyone tell me what to do ?

Westin

I am sure you were not the only one to be tempted and loured in to getting a 15% uplift if you opted for a LM voucher. You can now however see the draw back of taking the ‘free’ money.

I am not sure however why you are finding it difficult to use the voucher. It should be a case of inputting the code during the online booking flow.  https://www.lastminute.com/en/info/covid-19/refund.html  What are you trying to book?

Android07

Westin said:

I am sure you were not the only one to be tempted and loured in to getting a 15% uplift if you opted for a LM voucher. You can now however see the draw back of taking the ‘free’ money.

I am not sure however why you are finding it difficult to use the voucher. It should be a case of inputting the code during the online booking flow.  https://www.lastminute.com/en/info/covid-19/refund.html  What are you trying to book?

When the flight got cancelled, the airline also contacted me for a refund. I went with the airline instead of LM as I was waiting for further flight refunds from LM and was not sure if they would survive or go bust.

The airline were also quick to issue me a voucher  and this is what the email states :

We found that you’d already had your ticket refunded as a traveler's cheque.

 

please find below the relevant details:

 

Passenger's Name & Surname: XX

Traveler's Cheque Number: XX

Traveler's Cheque Value: XXGBP

Traveler's Cheque Issue Date: XX

 

Terms of use of traveler's cheque:

 

 

The use of the traveler's cheque is permitted within 2 year of its issuance date.

It may not be refunded in cash.

This traveler's cheque can be used in the payments you will make to buy or change ticket for Turkish Airlines flights.

The name on it may not be changed nor may it be transferred to another person.

It may not be used in the online channels, our call center, and our authorized agencies.

Your traveler's cheque can be used in our sales offices only, and you can apply to our nearest sales office by giving the number of your traveler's cheque.   

 

Since the working hours of our sales offices may have been changed due to the period we are in, we suggest you contact them before going to the office where you will have your transaction made. 

 

We wish to meet you in healthy days when we close the distances between us after overcoming this difficult period as soon as possible.

If I try to use this traveler's cheque during flight bookings, I recieve :

Dear passenger, The passenger information provided to us by your agency is inadequate to complete your transaction. You can complete your transaction through your agency or our sales offices, call center or via feedback form.

Westin

Is it the London office of TK who you are contacting? If not contact details below:-

Tel:  0207 471 6666. Email: infolondon@thy.com

Appears to be open Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm so pick your time when calling.

Whilst some airlines (not sure on TK policy) may supplement bookings made via call centres by £25-£35 to encourage online self service, I am surprised at you mentioning a fare 3x the online price.

Westin

Just picked up on this -
“ It may not be used in the online channels, our call center, and our authorized agencies.

Your traveler's cheque can be used in our sales offices only, and you can apply to our nearest sales office by giving the number of your traveler's cheque.”  - which seems terribly restrictive, but it is what it is.

The London office is in the Hammersmith area and their website suggests you call ahead to make an appointment to visit.

When you call it might be worth asking if they would also accept your voucher if you went to one of the TK ticket desks at LHR/LGW/MAN etc.

That 15% uplift not worth it IMO given all the faff.

Android07

Westin said:

Just picked up on this -
“ It may not be used in the online channels, our call center, and our authorized agencies.

Your traveler's cheque can be used in our sales offices only, and you can apply to our nearest sales office by giving the number of your traveler's cheque.”  - which seems terribly restrictive, but it is what it is.

The London office is in the Hammersmith area and their website suggests you call ahead to make an appointment to visit.

When you call it might be worth asking if they would also accept your voucher if you went to one of the TK ticket desks at LHR/LGW/MAN etc.

That 15% uplift not worth it IMO given all the faff.

Tel me about it!

The call centre pricing was actually 1.5x higher and an additional a £15 admin charge.

Android07

So, the update to this is that Turkish airlines are time wasting and using delay tactics while time runs out for me!

I need to check how I paid for the Lastminute.com flight and if it was AMEX, will they still assist.

CKhalvashi

Android07 said:

So, the update to this is that Turkish airlines are time wasting and using delay tactics while time runs out for me!

I need to check how I paid for the Lastminute.com flight and if it was AMEX, will they still assist.

For flight only, as you've used an intermediary, you will have no access to S75. This would be different if you booked directly with TK.

You are far outside the Chargeback timescales now.

The answer in this case is therefore likely no. This is why we advise booking directly with airlines and not using screenscrapers, who in some cases act illegally to gain bookings.

Android07

So....

A week before my voucher was due to expire, I started calling Turkish airlines and booking flights. Everyday, there would be one excuse or the other - Our payment system is down, Your refund voucher does not have a Title ( Mr,Mrs,etc. ), Your refund voucher does not have a middle name but your passport does and everytime I was told that would email their 'other' team to have things fixed and I would recieve a callback, which I never did!

This went on for days and finally obviously I have been told that my voucher has expired.

I went to their website and submitted a complaint and got some bs response :

First of all, we are very sorry for this unpleasant situation you have experienced.

We pay the utmost attention to ensure our passengers' satisfaction from the first to the last moment of their flight and place importance on showing a customer-oriented approach.

We would like you to know that we scrutinize the feedback on Turkish Airlines employees/employees of the service provider firms we receive service from, together with the authorized units.

In consequence of our investigation based on your feedback, we are unable to change the name area of your check. Beside we have found out that your check is already expired. Based on your request we will kindly inform you that we will not be able to meet your demand positively.

We kindly submit for your information and we wish to offer you a better experience in your future travels.

So, they have tried every technique to avoid letting me use this voucher!

tasticz

wow, what a sh*t show. looks like that's their first instance here... and bag themselves some extra cash. I wonder if you can take them to small claims court?