Cancel/modify ticket without penalty within 24h of issuance: here's how to do it

The flexibility of the tickets that during the covid was offered by the airlines is now a distant memory, indeed perhaps now in some ways we are even worse than before the pandemic. However, there is a 24h window period, which few people know about, that allows travelers to get a full refund, or a reservation change, at no cost to the passenger.

I also make mistakes

It has already happened to me twice to use this possibility for careless mistakes and once because I had found a few hours after booking a ticket, a much more attractive fare. In the case of my mistakes, they were caused by lack of attention, haste and superficiality, and could have cost me a lot had I not been able to take advantage of the 24-hour rule.

Just in the past few days I booked a flight with Norse Atlantic., the low-cost carrier that flies between Europe and the United States, including from Rome Fiumicino, at very ridiculous prices. Needing to book a one-way ticket from the U.S. to Euorpe for next March, I decided to take advantage of the promo that advertised tickets as low as 99$ one way.

So I decided to book a ticket for next March 7 and fly in the premium cabin from JFK to London, too bad that 1 second after I pressed pay I realized I had booked for March 6, impossible for me to take that flight since I will be in the air at that time on a flight to Chicago.

I thus contacted Norse's support via email., pretending nothing happened to see how they would behave. In the past with other carriers I had managed to do everything via twitter, but this time I wanted to try email explaining the situation.

The first response was very vague. No mention of what my rights were, only the possibility of changing by paying the penalty through the site.

So I replied to the email basically saying "it hasn't even been 2 hours from when I booked to when I wrote to you, I expected to be able to change my ticket" and magically this time customer service remembered my rights and told me that I could change my flight, paying any difference.

So I was able to change the date of my flight, at no extra charge, from March 6 to March 7.

How the 24h rule works

The U.S. Department of Transportation's 24-hour reimbursement regulation states. All airlines flying to the United States, including international carriers, must issue a full refund if a reservation is canceled within a 24-hour window

Just as in Europe we have protection for passengers in case of delays and cancellations, this guarantee is applicable only if the route is operated in the U.S. or involves a route that departs/arrives from an airport on U.S. soil.

It is a customer service standard set by the Department of Transportation that states that thee airlines must allow travelers to hold a reservation at the specified fare for 24 hours without payment or allow cancellation of a purchased reservation within 24 hours without penalty and with a full refund to the original form of payment.

This guarantee protects against booking errors, as in my case, but also in case of flash offers launched by American carriers and not only. Because as mentioned even ITA Airways, to give an example, is required to comply with this law in case the Italian passenger has booked a ticket from Rome to New York. The 24-hour refund rule applies to all fares, including tickets more restrictive and generally non-reimbursable. However, there are some cases that are exempt from the reimbursement guidelines.

When the 24h guarantee is invalid

It is important to note that the DOT rule does not apply in a handful of cases:

1. Refund policy applies only to reservations made at least seven days or more before departure. But if you make a reservation less than seven days before your flight departure date, the 24-hour rule does not cover your reservation, which means you do not have a grace period to cancel and receive a full refund.
2. The 24-hour flight cancellation rule also applies only to fares purchased directly on the airline's website. Thus, if you purchase through an online travel agency the DOT rule will not cover your ticket and your reservation will be subject to the third party company's refund policy.
3. If the passenger has used the, increasingly popular feature that allows the fare to be locked in for a specific period, the company will not be required to refund any change because the 24h window is exceeded anyway.

In conclusion

If he made a mistake and you booked the wrong time or day, but also the wrong route and your flight leaves or lands in the U.S. You have the right to cancel your flight without penalty within 24 hours of booking, or alternatively to change it at no extra charge except having to pay any fare difference.

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