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My international conference in Europe this May has been canceled due to the COVID-19. I have a ticket, purchased from TAP air Portugal, from Toronto, Canada to Lisbon. Because it is a non-refundable fare, they don't want to give a refund.

They won't allow me to reschedule later than May 31 of this year. This won't be useful for me.

What options do I have? I'd prefer to get a full refund.

(I am a US citizen if it matters)

Note: They offered to refund just the taxes, which is about 10% of the value. That's not horrible, but I'd rather have the whole thing returned.

choster
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Astor Florida
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7 Answers7

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Since you bought a non-refundable ticket, the airline does not have to refund you. Travel insurance could pay out if you have “event cancellation” cover. However, since the the Canadian government does not advise against travelling to Portugal, it’s unlikely that most generic policies will pay out.

I would say that your best option is just to wait. It’s possible that the flight could be cancelled either due to official travel advisories or reduced demand. In this case, you’ll be eligible for a full refund.

MJeffryes
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Try calling the airline and asking for a cancellation. Most airlines are giving a full refund with almost no questions. If they are not giving you a refund, I would say hold on to your ticket for a couple of days and try for a cancellation again. With the corona situation, only looking to get worse, they might realize the intensity of the situation and give you that refund.

Source: Cancelled flights and hotels to/at Germany with 100% refund

Bhargav Chereddy
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Today (17th March 2020) the airline have revised their policy which is now much more generous and flexible (at least in terms of rebooking without a change fee or the offer of a voucher).

Last updated: Tuesday, March 17, 2020, 17:20 / 05:20 PM (WET)

Due to the current situation of Coronavirus (COVID-19), we have extended the possibility of rescheduling your flight, without paying the associated change fee, for any TAP route and for any travel date.

From now on, the reservation change can be made up to 24 hours before the departure of your first flight, rescheduling the new trip to any destination and flying until December 31, 2020.

Alternatively, we fully refund the amount paid for the purchase of the ticket, by issuing a voucher, sent by email, valid for one year, for use on a future journey of your choice. (there's another page of details)

https://www.flytap.com/en-gb/latest-updates

I've just changed my flights from March to October and paid just over 4 euros (5USD) for miscellaneous charges (I'm not fussed about this tiny charge in the circumstances).

JulianHarty
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My husband and I were supposed to go to Portugal on March 5 for 10 days. We spoke with TAP representatives 3 different times in the days leading up to our trip, and they said our ticket was non-refundable, even though COVID-19 was already a global issue and Portugal's health director had assigned a "red alert." We had thought about getting travel insurance, but companies told us that we would not be covered for cancellation, claiming we already knew about COVID-19. My advice: wait to cancel your flight, since TAP might/hopefully offer refunds as things get worse (there are currently 25 confirmed cases in Portugal.) But don't cancel the tickets beyond your scheduled flight, because the penalties are much more costly. I submitted a complaint letter to TAP, but received no confirmation that they received it. And their phone lines are inaccessible at this time. It's a mess!

Melissa H Cronin
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On March 20 we were told that they would deduct $250 per direction (I.e. $500 round trip) and then give the balance as a voucher that had to be used by the end of the year.

Nancy
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I inquired on March 20 too and they said a 70euro per person to cancel a full fare, refundable First class ticket. I was holding out for a cancellation & full refund. today, I checked and flight is now cancelled and only a voucher for full amount, with travel started by 12/31/2020. Now, I wish I had cancelled and paid the $156 for 2 tix. I still would have received a $700 credit back on my card.

RJS
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You might try calling the Portugal Embassy and complain to them, the government still owns half of this airline. I have an SFO to LIS flight in middle of May and hoping to be able to cancel or at least reschedule it.

Mark L
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