I booked a flight with Thomson Fly at the weekend for someone and since then the person have changed their mind due to other commitments they can't get out of. I have phoned up Thomson this morning a full 25 days prior to the flight to cancel and they tell me I won't be refunded. Now I expected a small charge but the complete fare is in my opinion totaly out of order considering the time limit. I have looked at the terms and conditions and could'nt find very much regarding Cancellations.

Any help in this matter would be gratefully received

Itmight be worth sending them a letter saying that you regard this as a punitive measure for a breach of contract, and as such would not be enforced in a court.

See what their response is and come back here.

The measure of damages is always the actual losses suffered by the company.

Ideally you need to know whether they sold the seat on to someone else. If they did then you would be entitled to nearly a full refund whether they like it or not. Very difficult to find this information out though.

They have a duty to mitigate their loss. Do you have a seat number allocation?

The problem is that alot of the budget airlines don't allocate seat numbers (easy jet don't even allocate a seat number at check in, its just a free for all when you get on the plane!!) they usually have in their terms and conditions that the tickets are non refundable, however most will allow you to change the date and or name on your ticket for an admin fee. (I've just checked ThomsonFlys T&C and they do state "All bookings are non-refundable.")

Even scheduled air (British Airways, Virgin etc) have rules on their tickets, the cheaper the ticket the more restrictive the rules. For example you might buy a flight to New York with British Airways for £200 plus taxes, however the ticket will probably have 100% cancellation charges. First Class and Business Class fares are the highest and are therefore less restrictive.

Does your friend have travel insurance? If they can't travel for a reason covered by their insurance then they might be able to claim back any money lost.

T&Cs are not relevant here - just like the banks

Does your friend have travel insurance? If they can't travel for a reason covered by their insurance then they might be able to claim back any money lost.

OP said other person changed their mind. Travel insurance won't cover that.

On cheap flights, the excess alone would probably be close to the cost of the flight.

Ideally you need to know whether they sold the seat on to someone else. If they did then you would be entitled to nearly a full refund whether they like it or not

Only way for that is if the plane was actually fully booked. If there's 1 seat left, then the airline can say they could have sold the seat back (even with 25 days left between cancellation and flight).

There's also the fact that there could have been some manual intervention in booking/cancelling the flight (they can be booked by phone, means there's actually someone manning the system, manually inputting details), which will mitigate the amount to be refunded. Again, on a cheap flight, the sums involved may well negate the cost of the flight itself.

Thanks for the info guys, didn't cancel it in the end although person is still not going, i'm going to have the extra room for myself

I used to work for a well known airline in Luton. We always oversold our flights! If noone checks in for your spare seat, they may well check someone else in for it. I would not guarentee on having your spare seat!

Will they not let you transfer the seat to another flight, and you can enjoy the use of it another time?

If the flight was booked online or over the phone, wouldn't the 'Distance Selling' legislation apply?

I used to work for a well known airline in Luton. We always oversold our flights! If noone checks in for your spare seat, they may well check someone else in for it. I would not guarentee on having your spare seat!

 

Will they not let you transfer the seat to another flight, and you can enjoy the use of it another time?

If your spare seat is taken by someone else then don't worry, we can help you get your money back.

Now that you are travelling on the foight and can see what is happenng yu are in a good postiion.

If your spare seat is taken, then during the flight walk up and down the aircraft and note how many seats and which numbers are unused. Try do this very discreetly. If the cabin crew ask you what you are doing, just say that you are doing your own private survey.

try and make friends withthe person in your spare seat and get at least a name anda few details such as occupation etc - the kind of things that come up in casueal conversation.

The when you get back, come back here.

If the seat is empty then forget it.

This topic was closed on 03/07/19.

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