Flights canceled, no one is flying anywhere. What should the client and agent do in such a situation? As a rule, the first impulse is to request a refund for the unused service. However, as Anna Filippova, director of the promotion and development department at My Agent, emphasizes, first of all it is necessary to understand what is offered airlines in the current situation, and which of this is more beneficial for all parties.
According to the expert, airlines today, conditionally, it can be divided into several groups.
- First: airlinesoffering involuntary and voluntary refunds.
- The second: airlinesoffering vouchers to replace unused tickets
- The third group: offers renewal for other dates through agents, but prohibits agents from making forced refunds, directing passengers to their own contact centers / sites.
«Forced refunds are allowed to do, for example, aeroflot, Victory, Nord Wind, British Airways. Such permission may not apply to all directions, it is better to check them in the information from the a / c on the website myagent.online. Passengers are invited to issue an involuntary return without penalties and deductions, or to postpone the date of travel without surcharges, within the acquired booking class, ”explained Anna Filippova.
At the same time, she stressed that when asked, do i need to withdraw funds now, the answer "yes" is not obvious.
«Of course, no one canceled the clients' panic, but after a while, when the situation calms down, and this will surely happen, the clients will still fly along the selected routes. If it is now possible to rebook an air ticket for a later date, which the client already knows, do it. Even if the cost of the flight at the time of the new Travel, will increase, then by doing this, your passenger will use his ticket without fines and surcharges. But if he does not know exactly when he will fly, airlines ready to provide a voucher for the onward flight. What it means: the agent must book seats, and a voucher is issued for the amount of the ticket, which can be credited against the new booking for this client", - explained the director of the department of promotion and development" My Agent ".
Voucher: Good or Evil?
According to Anna Filippova, the agents' opinions on the issued airlines the vouchers were split. "Let me explain that the voucher (the right to use the cost a / b further) is issued in exchange for an unused ticket in case of involuntary or voluntary refund. For example, British Airways allows voluntary refunds on non-canceled flights if a customer is unable to take advantage of the flight, for example, due to a closed border to leave the country, but the flight has not been canceled. In this case, instead of an unused ticket, the client receives a voucher for an amount equal to or greater than the value of the first a / bwhich can be used to pay for the next booking. And what if the cost of a new ticket airlines will be lower, the difference can be used for additional services. But a number airlinesFor example, Air France, KLM issue vouchers in the event of an involuntary refund, replacing them with the payment of funds. And according to the rules a / k EMIRATES, use of the right to use the value a / b in the future, it is more profitable for clients, t. to. Refunds are possible only according to the rules and restrictions of the current tariff, on the day of registration", - said the expert.
For what amount a voucher is issued is the most frequent question of agents.
“For all airlines, the voucher is issued for the amount paid by the client in rubles. On the territory of the Russian Federation, you cannot pay in foreign currency, all prices are set in rubles. Therefore, whatever amount is equivalent, at the time of payment, the amount in euros or dollars, the client receives the paid value in rubles. In any case, for a passenger, getting a voucher is a fixation of his ability to travel later, and for an agent, it means keeping a client today and in the future. Well, we, of course, understand that this option is extremely important for maintaining stability. market", - said Anna Filippova, adding that Ryad airlines, allow forced returns, but do not allow their agents to do so.
According to her, in such cases, the passenger should contact the airline for clarification directly. it UTAIR, URAL AIRLINES, AIR SERBIA, SCAT Airlines. For its part, "My Agent" provides information on the forms of contact, contact details and more. How to act in each of the cases is indicated on the website myagent.online
«Colleagues, as you can see, each airlines its own terms and conditions, which can be updated almost daily. Therefore, we collect all the information in one place so that you can, sorting by the desired one, find the answer to your question. And realizing that there is more and more information, we are preparing a tool for you to search for it faster. And answering the question "which is more profitable", you can answer this way. Of course, everyone decides for himself what is best for him and can choose an option from those offered by the airline. But using the possibility of rebooking for further dates will enable passengers to carry out Travel without additional expenses or minimizing them. And for agents - the opportunity to work with this client in the future. After all, a passenger is not alive by an air ticket alone, insurance, placement according to the program, etc. = the agent's income, which after stabilization of the situation will definitely not be superfluous.
In conclusion, I want to say that employees contact center My Agent is always in touch with you regarding exchange and return. But in order for you to receive the processing of applications faster, please use the section "Coronavirus: Up-to-Date Information" on our website, where all information on these issues is collected from airlines... Priority in processing applications still remains for flights with departures “today and tomorrow”, please be patient for those whose departures were to or will take place in April and May.", - concluded the director of the department of promotion and development" My Agent "Anna Filippova.
