Can we get a refund

jimi_man

Thomas_Holding said:

jimi_man said:

Thomas_Holding said:

My wife and son are flying to South America via Miami with American airlines.
Their flight home was due to leave at 14.30 but now it is going to be 00.30.
This is a big change - can they get a refund?
I have contacted the agency but no reply yet.

To add insult to injury we could have bought flights at that time for less but my wife didn't want to go then.

Hi

Under the T's and C's for AA, a flight schedule change of greater than 241 minutes (four hours essentially) for Intl flights means that you can request a refund. Or you can change to a better timing/routing. The most important thing - and I cannot stress this enough - is that you (the passengers) do NOT accept the changes until you are sure exactly what you want to do. Once you accept the new flight(s) then you're screwed in terms of further changes. Travelling in July/August there isn't a huge rush so take a bit of time to research exactly what you want to do first. The best way to do this is through the website/app. I've had similar and I've found them pretty good and fairly accommodating. And even if a flight/routing isn't available at that time, it might be a few days later as it's pretty dynamic. However.....

Your original post mentions contacting 'the agency'? Did you book direct with AA or did you book through a travel agent? This will make a huge difference. The Travel agency have their own rules and protocols and generally they are far more restrictive than if you book through an airline. 

If you booked direct then use the website/app and decide on the best course of action and under AA's rules you can get a refund. Only do this if you're sure you can get what you want elsewhere at a similar cost.

If you booked through a TA then you're at the mercy of how they deal with things and their T's and C's. AA's T's and C's may well be different (and generally are much more restrictive) for a TA issued ticket. 

I booked one through the Travel House I will try to contact them tomorrow.
Last Minute Flight Tickets and Airline Deals - TheTravelHouse

And the other direct from AA.

This is because they are travelling back on different dates - but both flights have been changed.

Ok, as I'm sure you're aware that's going to make it slightly complicated. Presumably you have two separate PNRs.

Have a look at the AA one first and see what can be done, then that will give you an idea of what to ask the TA.

The comment above about them changing schedules again is a fair point. Most airlines finalise their schedules a few months out (often three or so) when the slots are released by the relevant airports, so usually after that they are fairly solid. However it is still possible for them to change and as mentioned AA have a bit of history in this area. As an example, I've got a booking in June that was changed back in February, but I'm hopeful that there won't be any more though I'm prepared for it.

Thomas_Holding

silvercar said:

As this is American Airlines, who have previous in this regard, I would expect that the flight times could change again before actual departure. That said, they are a big airline so they may well be able to accommodate a request to move to a different flight time. Your complication is having booked through a third party, so any requests will need to go through them.

One extra thought, make sure that all travellers are registered in the AA frequent flyer programme, you will earn Avios for your flights. Even if you never intend flying again you could transfer them to nectar and spend at Sainsbury’s or Argos.

We have travelled with them before and only had 2 problems
a) they will sell connections which are impossible to make 40 minutes in Miami - although we didn't buy those ones
b) My wife has heard them say to people who arrived 2 hours 30 minutes before a flight who were complaining about the slowness, "We told you to arrive 3 hours before hand".

Thomas_Holding

Thank you all my wife and child are not travelling back on the same day.
For the child we are leaving it as it as because we got a good price.
For her AA let her cancel the flight and she bought a new one and saved £310.