Avios flight cancelled? You can rebook for ANY date, even if Avios seats are not available

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

• Dave T says:

  5 May5 May 08:20

  Will avios.com honor the same? we have a 241 and an upgrade that were meant to be travelling together and there are no available seats for next year, this would be a weight off our minds if we could just call up and book the same dates

  • pauldb says:

    5 May5 May 09:50

    Yes they should do as the same policies have been published for travel agency bookings and avios.com is somewhere between a direct and agency booking.
    But rolling to the same dates next year is unlikely as that will presumably be beyond ticket validity: more than a year from when you booked your tickets.

• Rob says:

  5 May5 May 08:25

  We like to see proof things work.

• Matthew says:

  5 May5 May 08:26

  I’m still battling with BA/Avios.com regarding my club Europe flight to Helsinki. It’s in Jan 2021 but cancelled already as route pulled. Used a lloyds upgrade voucher via Avios.com. They are claiming only offer a full refund and voucher extension or reroute with BA to another city and BA are saying not there problem as must contact the agent who booked it. After 4 or 5 calls to each party I’m losing the will with this one. Maybe that’s what they want so will prob just cancel and get money/Avios back plus voucher extension.

  • Anna says:

    5 May5 May 08:32

    You are legally entitled to re-routing to your original destination (on a different airline if necessary) if that’s what you want, but BA don’t make it easy. I read once of someone in the same position who was refused re-routing, booked their own replacement flights then sued BA to get their money back but I suspect it’s a lengthy process.

    • Matthew says:

      5 May5 May 08:46

      I don’t want to go down the legal route but yes you’re right I am entitled to a re-route. If I’d booked directly with BA then they have offered everyone a re-route via MMB with Finnair. But it’s not available online to me as they are classing avios.com as an agent. And insist they can only rebook on BA metal. A few have said it’s the airline to sort not the agent but I get nowhere with BA. I have a LH Finnair flight to catch in Jan so I do need to get there!!

      • Lady London says:

        5 May5 May 09:33

        I think technically you have to get avoid.com to deal with this for you? To make sure, if you do have to do a moneyclaim then name both BA and avoid.com as defendants and let the court sort it out. I think you have to call avios.com to let them know you know rights and do a final request too

  • AJA says:

    5 May5 May 08:47

    Matthew search for return flights to HEL on Finnair for the same dates. If you can book them then you should be able to take those. The only snag you may have is that you upgraded with Avios so they may argue that there’s no reward availability on Finnair.

    • Lady London says:

      5 May5 May 09:30

      reward avaikabity is irrelevant in the case of a reroute due to cancellation by airline – there just needs to be a seat in that class and can be a revenue seat you’re still entitled to be rebooked onto it

      • AJA says:

        5 May5 May 14:40

        @ LL What I meant was Avios.com may argue that there needs to be reward seats when in fact there does not. So Matthew may have to push Avios.com to actually rebook him. It would be helpful to have the Finnair flight numbers that he wants to fly on. Also one other thing would be to quote the BA code share flight numbers rather than the AY flight numbers as he will earn more Avios on the BA codes.

  • Lady London says:

    5 May5 May 09:28

    You are fully, incontrovertibly entitled to be rebooked on another carrier for the same journey in the same class under EC261/2004. You do not have to accept additional stops unless no one else is running same routing as you booked.

    Technically you would be fully entitled to book your own replacement ticket at whatever is the market price when you rebook. Then do moneyclaimonline dot gov dot UK to sue them for the money plus any duty of care costs- you get the tiny court fee back when you win.

    Id call them again, ask for a supervisor (not if you’re dealing with the India call centre that’s a waste of time) mention the above and request your replacement ticket under that legislation. They should give it to you but you might have to sue. I think it’s time at least a 25% uplift was brought into the legislation that would be added in egregious refusal cases like this when the law is so clear.

    Do not accept a refund that’s what British Airways is trying to force you into as that’s it he easy way foe them. Absolutely shameful.

    • Matthew says:

      5 May5 May 11:13

      Thanks for your detailed help Lady London. Everytime I call Avios.com the lady there (I get same person every time) who is just there to do lloyds voucher bookings says they do not have ability to book with another airline. So when I call BA they say it was booked with agent so contact the agent. I’ve asked to speak to a supervisor with Avios.com and they insistent BA reroute only. Might try BA again…..

      • Mikeact says:

        5 May5 May 13:26

        Problem is Avios.com is BA only.h

        • Mikeact says:

          5 May5 May 13:41

          From what I understand with your issue.( And this is Avios.com we’re talking about, not BA.)
          Get your voucher back together with your Avios and original fees for future use.
          Then go onto the BA site and book the Finnair flight you want, (Avios…will cost more than a BA flight )or purchase the flight you want.
          If it’s that urgent you probably don’t have much choice despite the rerouting issues and legalities of yes or no.
          In my experience you will not get BA to budge with third party bookings, which Avios.com is.

      • Matthew says:

        5 May5 May 13:46

        I think you are prob right Mike. No business availability on Finnair on my dates but it’s only a short flight so economy clearly isn’t the end of the world! I will prob get way more value from the lloyds voucher anyway with a long haul booking for something else.

        Thanks everyone for your help 🙂

• Jason Hindle says:

  5 May5 May 08:37

  Surprised Avios is still a thing. In theory I have enough for one last long haul, first class jolly (assuming Avios really are still a thing once we’re on the other side of this).

  • Anna says:

    5 May5 May 08:40

    I think it says volumes about the amount of surcharges BA is raking in on award bookings, they seem pretty desperate for people to carry on using them!

  • Mikeact says:

    5 May5 May 09:29

    @Jason. Billions are/were issued each year.

• memesweeper says:

  5 May5 May 08:42

  ‘This new policy is obviously open to abuse but it is a generous move by British Airways and hopefully it will be used as intended.’ Generous? I’d have thought that was your legal right.

  • Lady London says:

    5 May5 May 09:35

    +1

• Claire says:

  5 May5 May 08:43

  My first class flight booking to SIN which was cancelled by BA – and a voucher issued has now disappeared from my booking – am I not able to rebook online?

• HarryUps says:

  5 May5 May 08:53

  Does any one know how the 241 Voucher extension will work with this? I have a flight to Vancouver in late June, flying back from Calgary in mid July, which is very likely to be cancelled. I would be willing to move this entire trip out to early June 2021 (once flights become available), however my 241 Voucher which was used for this booking, even with the additional 6 month extension, is due to expire in April 2021. Thoughts on BA’s willingness to extend if it means keeping hold of my money & Avios?

  • Gary says:

    5 May5 May 09:20

    2-4-1 voucher expiry is a “book by” date not a “fly before” date

    • HarryUps says:

      5 May5 May 09:27

      Thanks for the response Gary, I always thought the outbound flight needed to be taken before the expiry of the voucher, but will look into it.

      • Rhys says:

        5 May5 May 09:32

        This is correct. You must fly the outbound before the expiry.

    • sayling says:

      5 May5 May 09:30

      I was under the impression it is a book – and fly outbound – by the expiry date sort of thing

      • HarryUps says:

        5 May5 May 09:32

        Yes, you are correct, I just found the following quote on Rob’s article regarding 2-4-1 Vouchers:

        “You need to book AND fly the outbound leg before the expiry date of the voucher. You can fly back at any point.”

• Cheshire Pete says:

  5 May5 May 08:54

  Well at the moment I read this as being “The Same Class or lower” ie J can be book into C,D,R,I but R could only book into R or I. If BA aren’t allowing even C to book into J then I don’t see how the Redemption classes have a chance really.

  We await our first proof however!

  • Rob says:

    5 May5 May 09:54

    Reader just sent me something. He has an Inverness to Heathrow segment. Rebooking options included Loganair (INV-MAN, MAN-LHR on BA). As you can’t book Loganair on Avios even though it is a codeshare partner, BA is clearly letting you rebook into cash seats.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.