American Airlines Ticket Question

[njmomtoone]

We have three tickets with American for April that we may not be able to use. I know I cannot get a refund, but what else can be done? Can I use them in the future for an extra charge?

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Most tickets have a $150 change fee per ticket with American Airlines. So if you need to rebook, you can do so, the original fare paid will be reduced by the $150 per ticket and the remaining balance can be used to book a new ticket (I believe American requires that the ticket be in the same name as the original ticket as well).

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Most tickets have a $150 change fee per ticket with American Airlines. So if you need to rebook, you can do so, the original fare paid will be reduced by the $150 per ticket and the remaining balance can be used to book a new ticket (I believe American requires that the ticket be in the same name as the original ticket as well).

ALl of the above is correct, but htere is mroe to the story. You also need to cancel the reservation before departure, or you will lose all the value. However, if you are not ready to rebook, there is no upside to cancelling early. It is possible that by the time you need to cancel, there will be a major schedule change or flight disruption and AA will offer you a refund or rebooking without charging you a change fee.

You need to keep track of your ticket number, which is how your credit is stored. AA will not usually issue you a voucher on cancellation.

Your new ticket will need to be for travel not later than one year after you purchased the cancelled ticket. If you cannot do this, you need to find a cooperative agent or book a cheap "throw away" ticket and get a voucher for the remaining balance. The voucher will be good for another year and can be used to book a ticket in any person's name.

You need to call to rebook and thus, cannot apply any promotion code discounts to the new ticket price. While in general the new ticket needs to be in the name of the original ticket holder, I have had them make minor allowances by applying a small remaining balance to my DHs ticket that I was booking as the same time.

Best of luck -- Suzanne (who just researched this after cancelling our October trip!)

 

[dudspizza]

the only downside to hoping for a schedule change is that AA only does quarterly tweaking of their schedules and if they make any changes, it isn't by a whole lot.....

 

[SuzanneSLO]

the only downside to hoping for a schedule change is that AA only does quarterly tweaking of their schedules and if they make any changes, it isn't by a whole lot.....

You're right. The most likely scenario is that nothing will change or be cancelled and the passenger will be out the change fee. However, until the passenger is ready to rebook another flight, there is no benefit to having that credit sitting in your account, so you might as well wait. -- Suzanne