I received an update in the form of a response for not getting a full refund from the airline in question on a ticket that I purchased in which I should have received a full refund.
Update: Response For Not Getting a Full Refund From the Airline
I purchased a round trip ticket with American Airlines to Guayaquil in Ecuador for $461.21; but although I canceled it within 24 hours and was entitled to a full refund, I received an e-mail message that informed me that my refund “is complete” with only $451.21, which has since posted to my credit card account. When I asked about what happened to the missing ten dollars, the reply I received was that “The fare has been refunded, but the taxes paid to the Ecuadoran government are non-refundable.”
The communication that I outlined in this article on Friday, December 20, 2024 was via social media, through which none of the representatives would not budge. I had thought about filing a consumer complaint to the Department of Transportation of the United States as my next step — but according to its official Internet web site…
Before you contact DOT for help with an air travel problem, you should give the airline a chance to resolve it.
…and…
If you feel that the airline does not resolve the issue to your satisfaction, you may want to file a complaint with DOT.
I decided to contact American Airlines through one of its official customer service channels and succinctly stated my case. I have to give American Airlines credit for responding to my complaint within hours even though they can take up to 30 days to respond — so I must say that I was indeed impressed with the quick response:
Hello Mr. Cohen:
Thank you for contacting Customer Relations. I am sorry to hear that you are unable to retrieve the full amount of your ticket upon refund request. Given this matter, I am more than happy to help.
Tickets purchased for travel involving Ecuador are charged an E2 Infrastructure Tax. This tax is paid to the government of Ecuador at the time of sale and is non-refundable; therefore the refund issued in the amount of $451.21 for each ticket is correct and no further amount is due. I apologize for any misunderstanding regarding this transaction but hope this information has been helpful. We appreciate your business and look forward to welcoming you aboard soon.
However, as we don’t want to park this case as unresolved, we would like to offer the remaining amount into a Trip Credit. If you are willing to accept, kindly reply to this email directly so that we can further assist you.
On behalf of everyone at American Airlines, Mr. Cohen, please know that we appreciate you very much. As an AAdvantage® member, your business means a great deal and we hope to have the opportunity to rebuild your confidence in us. It would be our pleasure to serve you again.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxx Xxxxx
Customer Relations
American Airlines
I wanted to be sure as to what exactly was a Trip Credit before I committed to accepting it — so I submitted the following response:
That was a very quick response, Xxxxxx. Thank you!
I have a question: do Trip Credits expire? I ask because I am based in Atlanta, where American Airlines has few nonstop flights…
Regards,
Brian Cohen
Before I knew it, I had a Trip Credit worth ten dollars added to my American Airlines AAdvantage membership account…
Hello Mr. Cohen:
Thank you for your most recent response. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you with your request.
Trip Credits are valid for one year from the date of issue, unless otherwise stated, and can be used to purchase travel on American Airlines or American Eagle flights for anyone. Although Trip Credits must be applied towards a ticket prior to expiring, travel can extend past the expiration date. When you’re ready to book new travel, you can do so online at aa.com or through Chat at aa.com/chatnow.
Following the previous offer, I have sent a $10.00 Trip Credit to each of you in exchange for the nonrefundable taxes that were deducted for both of your tickets when you requested for refund.
Mr. Cohen, we value your continued AAdvantage® loyalty and look forward to rebuilding your confidence in our service. We hope you’ll give us the opportunity to provide you with a more positive experience on an American Airlines flight in the future.
Sincerely,
Xxxxxx Xxxxx
Customer Relations
American Airlines
…and yes, two tickets were purchased — so the actual total of $20.00 was missing.
Final Boarding Call
The resolution was not exactly what I wanted, because now I must purchase yet another airline ticket with American Airlines within the next year in order to use the Trip Credits — but I suppose it is better than getting nothing at all.
What bothers me is that I was not trying to receive compensation. Both this issue and the issue with which I purchased a Main Cabin ticket but still must pay for seat assignments on two flights that are operated by a different airline through a codeshare partnership have not been resolved. As with this experience, no clear warning or guidance was presented at any time during the process of booking the tickets…
…so, my question to you is this: do I stop here and be satisfied with what I received in both situations and consider it the cost of doing business — or do I escalate these issues through the Department of Transportation of the United States to help prevent someone else from experiencing similar situations?
All photographs ©2019 by Brian Cohen.
