Refunding a non-refundable flight

deanosfc9

Hello

I’m flying out to the Maldives in December via Colombo Sri Lanka. As some of you may be aware there’s a hell of a lot of unrest and they are in a financial crisis with lots of protests and rioting. We booked with Sri Lankan airways and it’s a non-refundable booking. The government have said not to fly there due to the unrest but transit within the airport is fine. 

Basically is there anything I can do regarding a refund despite it being non-refundable, if the uk government says it’s completely not safe even transit is there any grounds for a refund? Any options I could take would be much appreciated! 

Sandtree

deanosfc9 said:

Hello

I’m flying out to the Maldives in December via Colombo Sri Lanka. As some of you may be aware there’s a hell of a lot of unrest and they are in a financial crisis with lots of protests and rioting. We booked with Sri Lankan airways and it’s a non-refundable booking. The government have said not to fly there due to the unrest but transit within the airport is fine. 

Basically is there anything I can do regarding a refund despite it being non-refundable, if the uk government says it’s completely not safe even transit is there any grounds for a refund? Any options I could take would be much appreciated! 

1) December is months away and the situation may have significantly changed by then

2) FCO states airside transit is not covered by their advices... if its the same as the flight we took, you dont even get off the plane

3) You can choose to cancel but all you will get back is the taxes because you booked a non-refundable ticket

mr_stripey

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) advises against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka, due to ongoing political and economic instability. This advice does not apply to airside transit through Sri Lanka’s international airport.

This is the current wording on the FO website - if you are just transiting via Colombo then there should be no issue. If the flight operates then I would imagine the chances of gaining a refund are very low.

I guess a lot could happen between now and December but the chances are it will be fine and you'll have rather fantastic holiday in the Maldives

deanosfc9

Thanks guys I did think that. I was just hoping if things got worse and the uk government say it is not safe to fly there period, I had some sort of right to cancel for a refund. I was just seeing if there were any options. Thanks again! 

Caz3121

deanosfc9 said:

I was just hoping if things got worse and the uk government say it is not safe to fly there period, I had some sort of right to cancel for a refund.

assuming the flight is not cancelled by the airline
you should check your travel insurance policy
the airline 'may' also offer a waiver allowing you to change date/future credit

CKhalvashi

If the flight is not cancelled, there is no ordinary right to a refund.

I follow Josh Cahill on Youtube and he is actually Sri Lanka based. He is stating that the situation is a lot calmer than many are making out.

For a direct airside transit, you're unlikely to face too much of an issue. It's rare for airport security to be breached at any international airport.

Do you have insurance that may cover this? They won't cover this yet, however.

bagand96

Most flights are non-refundable, flexible/refundable fares are usually significantly more expensive than the lowest inflexible ones.

Usually if the flight operates then the airline have kept their part of the contract so there's no entitlement to a refund. The UK Government advice won't change that or our any additional obligation on the airline.

However some travel insurances do cover UK FCO advice, so if it did change to include transit flights then you might be able to claim on that depending if your policy covers it. You'd already have to have that insurance in place though.