Travel Question of the Day: Simon Calder on the chances of getting a refund on a transatlantic flight
Have a travel question that needs answering? Ask our expert Simon Calder
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Q My wife and I are booked through eDreams on American Airlines from Manchester to Orange County in California in June. The flight is non-refundable. We heard yesterday that our long-awaited appointment for a US Green Card has come though. The date clashes with our US trip. Is there any way we can get a refund for the flights?
Dave Huxtable, Manchester
A I’m sorry to hear about your predicament - and puzzled why you would choose to book through a Spanish online travel agent? I cannot see any benefit in buying a flight from your local airport from a Barcelona-based company. Anyway, if the American Airlines conditions are like most restrictive tickets, then refunds and date changes are either impossible or very expensive. To be fair, eDreams does warn (to anyone who can be bothered to check the terms) that “this type of fare is normally 100 per cent non-refundable in the case of cancellation”. Even if AA does allow you to reclaim back any of the taxes, fees and charges, eDreams will extract £25 of the refund.
You may find that the US authorities will amend the interview date. Or, if it is a matter of you coming back earlier than planned, you could still use the outbound part, discard the return half of the ticket and return from nearby Los Angeles LAX to Manchester on Thomas Cook Airlines; one-way fares in June are available for under £400.
Failing that, all you can take from this expensive misadventure is some caution before you book through an online agent based outside the UK - and not to buy an off-peak flight a long way ahead; fares for June are not likely to increase significantly until a couple of weeks before departure.
Every day, our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles readers’ questions. Just email yours to: s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments