If you had been due to travel to China or Hong Kong over the next few weeks but had been concerned about Coronavirus, British Airways is now allowing you to request a refund.
The guidelines are simple and straightforward.
If you are due to fly on British Airways to China or Hong Kong before 23rd February then you can request a full refund.
If you booked via British Airways you can contact the airline directly. If you booked via a travel agent, you will have to discuss it with them as British Airways cannot deal with you.
The only grey area would be if you had any onward connections on the same ticket which were not operated by British Airways.
Even if you are still willing to travel, this may be an opportunity to refund your existing ticket and rebook at a cheaper rate. However, any fresh booking is likely to put your travel insurance at risk as this would be seen as a known issue at the time of booking.
You can find out more about the British Airways refund policy on ba.com here. Any policy updates, including refund extensions beyond 23rd February, are likely to go onto the same page.
About Head for Points
We flew back from Shanghai a couple of days ago. If possible I would advise people to cancel their trips and rearrange once this has passed. Even if you don’t catch the virus most major attractions closed their doors at the end of last week to avoid large gatherings of people. The other risk is that if you contract the virus and have symptoms you are likely to be quarantined by the Chinese authorities for a potentially extended period. I wouldn’t risk travel right now.
Very disappointed that BA have put out a misleading statement during the deadly situation of Coronavirus in China! Contrary to what their website says, BA are charging a cancellation fee and so are only offering a partial refund for flights to China and Hong Kong!
The refund is currently only available for flights up to 23rd February. If your flight is after that date you will still incur a cancellation fee, although BA are likely to roll over the full refund option if the situation continues in China.
My flight to Hong Kong departs before 23rd February and they still want to charge cancellation fees, so your statement is not correct.
so quote their own rules at them:
[China – Coronavirus
Answer Id 7982 Updated 28/01/2020 09.45 AM (UK time)
Summary
We fully understand that you may want to change your travel plans as a result of the recent coronavirus outbreak in China, and so whilst we await further advice from the Government and health organisations, we are offering any customers due to fly to or from China including Hong Kong until 23 February the option to refund or rebook.
More information
Can I rebook my flight?
If you are flying between 26 January – 23 February 2020 you can rebook on to another flight operated by British Airways to the same destination.
This must be in the same cabin class as the original flight or a lower cabin if available. This also includes any connecting flights that are operated by British Airways.
To make this change please contact us. If you made this booking via a travel agent, please contact them to rebook your flight.
Can I get a refund?
If you are flying between 26 January – 23 February 2020, you can request a refund. This also includes any redemption bookings.
To make this change please contact us. If you made this booking via a travel agent, please contact them to refund your flight.]
Did you book it via a travel agent?
I would call British Airways (0344 493 0787 option 3, followed by option 3). They just gave me a full refund on our flights to HK on 7th February, but also gave options to rebook or take a flight to another destination.
Interesting reading the comments…for once there’s actually a topic I specialise in. I have actually dealt with a returned traveller from Wuhan and given specialist advice!
Some comments made me chuckle though.
MDs are not scientists.
You can be both…
Correct.
And equally bad at both as well. Talking about MD that do a PhD as part of their carreer progression. If you do it the other way round, I admire you.
Question – I booked BA flights through Iberia. London – Shanghai then Tokyo back to London. Can I change the outward leg directly through BA?
I’ve just made a test booking from LHR to AKL via HKG, returning within the current 23rd Feb refund cutoff. Looks like they’re still taking bookings.
I haven’t yet found any reference to the cancellation options on their website. We’ve booked through Travelbag for a March departure. They haven’t yet heard anything about it, and apparently their phone lines have been very quiet today! Intriguing…….
Foreign Office advises no travel to mainland China.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51288672
I cancelled my ticket to Hong Kong before this annoncement and incurred a penalty fee. Will i reactively get this back. Thanks
I have the similar situation and BA refused to refund.
We’re due to fly to South Korea in March, and my parnet’s work has suggested not travelling to Asia unless it’s absolutely necessary. We also feel like we wouldn’t enjoy the trip to the fullest. We tried to call BA to hopefully receive a full refund, but they’re not having any of it. Hotels.com and Korean Air were much more helpful.