How long to inform your new changed flight is not suitable

[knobbs]

Hi Guys, we have a flight booked out of BNE to MEL on Friday. Currently where we live in QLD is in a red zone for Melb, meaning we can't enter. Due to this I think Virgin is starting to cancel/combine some flights and our flight has been moved 2hrs later. I was hoping I can use this cancelation/move of the flight to request a full refund due to 'not being suitable' rather than a travel credit. Is there a time limit to inform them of this? Such as maybe 24hrs since notification? I am on hold ATM trying to get an answer but we would like to wait until tomorrow (thursday) morning announcement to see if we move to orange and just need to isolate and get a test.

 

[knobbs]

After 1.5hrs on hold I found out it is 24hrs you have to give them notice. Looks like I need to request the refund tonight/tomorrow morning before Melb announce

 

[MEL_Traveller]

The terms and conditions don't list any time requirements: Virgin Australia Guest Compensation Policy | Virgin Australia

I was surprised to hear of any time limits.

 

[knobbs]

The terms and conditions don't list any time requirements: Virgin Australia Guest Compensation Policy | Virgin Australia

I was surprised to hear of any time limits.

It might have just been the rep talking out of their a**. The previous change they made before this last one, I only called ~2-3 days after it requesting to be changed to a different one than the auto selected and they had no fuss. However as the last one I requested a refund they may have been not as helpful if I waited a few days.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

It might have just been the rep talking out of their a**. The previous change they made before this last one, I only called ~2-3 days after it requesting to be changed to a different one than the auto selected and they had no fuss. However as the last one I requested a refund they may have been not as helpful if I waited a few days.

Yeah. Normally the time to accept or reject changes is pretty open ended.

 

[Daver6]

Yeah. Normally the time to accept or reject changes is pretty open ended.

That's been my experience with QF. At the start of this whole Covid thing I can QF cancel a flight between PER - ADL for around Xmas 2020. They put me on a later flight. I ignored accepting it for months and used that as an easy out about a week before travel to cancel and get a full refund. So literally, I must have sat on that change for 8 months or so.

 

[Matt_01]

@Daver6 your experience is the same as mine and I have been doing this for years for both reward and revenue flights and not just during Covid. I will state that on the odd occasion QF have taken it upon themselves to take the change as accepted as I had not responded or accepted the change. When I eventually called to sort out what would work I was given the line, as you had not responded we took it as accepted. Some minor discussion ensued and flights were changed or refunded without penalty.

Now back on topic this is a VA thread, and IME pre and during Covid VA when it comes to VA changes or irrops VA is not easy to deal with. The agents seem to make up excuses, rules and reasons for not providing refunds on the fly. When dealing with VA it seems like the agents have been given a script with the words "Do everything to prevent a customer from getting a refund" as the headline. VA 1 or 2, full service or mid market service, it is just "lipstick on on a pig" VA has never strayed to far from the DJ brand.