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Published: September 17, 2018
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Early booking of tickets for both international and domestic flights is always associated with the potential need to return or exchange a travel document. While searching for options for reissuing a ticket, an uninformed or inexperienced passenger may suddenly discover that a ticket of his class is accepted for exchange or refund with significant commission costs or is not subject to these actions at all.
- Tariffs and their features Business class
- Comfort class
- Economy class
Let's look at how things stand with the possibility of re-issuing plane tickets purchased from the largest Russian air carrier - Aeroflot.
Tariffs and their features
The right to reissue or return an Aeroflot plane ticket, like most other airlines, is directly related to the fare and category of the previously purchased travel document. In three classes of tickets - Business, Comfort and Economy - there are four tariffs - "Premium", "Optimum", "Budget", "Promo".
Business Class
All Business Class tickets are charged according to the terms of the Premium and Optimum packages, and their return and exchange are allowed in both cases. If, if necessary, a passenger can reissue award tickets free of charge , then for changing or returning a ticket purchased at the “Optimum” fare, certain costs will have to be paid.
Comfort class
Premium and Optimum fares also apply to Comfort Class tickets. If expensive tickets at the “Premium” fare, just like in Business class, can be returned or exchanged without additional payment, then re-issuance of a document purchased at the “Optimum” fare is allowed for money and only until the end of the passenger check-in time for the flight.
Economy class
An Economy Class ticket from Aeroflot can be purchased at Premium, Optimum, Budget and Promo rates.
In this segment, only “Premium” tickets can be returned or reissued without deduction of additional payments. Optimum tickets can be exchanged or returned before the end of registration with a fee charged.
The most affordable air tickets purchased at the "Budget" and "Promo" fares are non-refundable (with the exception of travel documents in the direction of South Korea).
At the same time, such tickets can be exchanged for alternative ones with a fixed surcharge.
Contact
Aeroflot is expanding its ability to reissue tickets purchased before May 1 . Although I’m no longer sure that anyone understands these possibilities.
First, let's remember what options Aeroflot began offering three weeks ago.
For tickets purchased before May 1, Aeroflot offered passengers a refund in the form of a certificate for future purchases . The certificate is offered both in case of flight cancellation and in case of voluntary cancellation of the flight. If we are talking about voluntary refusal, then the certificate is valid even for non-refundable tariffs.
The certificate is valid for three years. And when choosing a certificate, passengers are offered an additional “bun”: a 15% discount on a future purchase, or even a 25% discount if the original ticket was at the Maximum fare. The discount is valid on the base fare, but not on taxes and fees, and only for tickets on canceled flights.
To summarize the above, then:
- passengers who voluntarily refuse to fly benefit because they can return the cost of the ticket with a certificate;
- passengers whose flights were canceled by Aeroflot itself found themselves in a dual position: on the one hand, a certificate with an additional discount is a good option for those who often fly with Aeroflot, but, on the other hand, many would prefer a refund in real money.
Keep in mind that legislation giving airlines the ability to refund tickets with certificates has not yet been passed. So Aeroflot has no right to avoid returning cash.
One way or another, you won’t envy even those who would agree to a certificate. Both the certificate can be issued and spent only at sales offices, branches and representative offices of Aeroflot. Last century!
I don’t know whether the dissatisfaction of passengers, chaos in Aeroflot offices or technical restrictions on issuing certificates played a role...
But now, in addition to receiving a certificate, the passenger is given the opportunity to change dates and/or direction twice without penalties.
This option is notable because to reissue a ticket, the passenger does not need to come to the office, but simply contact the Aeroflot call center or the agency where the ticket was purchased before December 31, 2021.
Here's what the new options look like. I hope I understood them correctly.
- For the first time, a ticket can be reissued for flights until December 31, 2021, maintaining the route and class of service . In this case, you will not need to pay the difference in fares, and the validity of the ticket will be extended until April 30, 2021, which will expand the possibilities for further reissuance of the ticket.
- If you want to immediately change your ticket to a later date (after January 1, 2021), a different destination or a different class of service, or if you are changing your ticket a second time, then there will be no fee, but you will have to pay the difference in fares.
All other conditions remain the same as in the certificate history.
If your flight is cancelled, you can still take advantage of the discount on a new ticket.
But unless I'm missing something, it may not be profitable to use the discount. That's why:
- By choosing a certificate, you will receive a discount on a future flight, which can have any high cost; maximizing potential is up to you
- By choosing the option to rebook to another route or another class of service, you will receive a discount only on the difference in fares (after all, the cost of the original air ticket will be accepted as payment for a new one)
That is, for example, if you initially had a ticket from Moscow to St. Petersburg for 5,000 rubles. and you need to exchange it for a ticket from Moscow to Novosibirsk for 10,000 rubles, then it is more profitable to take a certificate and pay the difference between the tickets yourself. In this case, you will receive a 15-25% discount on a future flight, which you can apply to the purchase of a new ticket with a basic fare, for example, 100,000 rubles, receiving a benefit of 15,000-25,000 rubles. If you immediately reissue your ticket, the benefit will be much less.
Well, unless I'm missing something. To be honest, Aeroflot confused me...
Just in case, compare this with the Qatar Airways offer . Qataris allow you to voluntarily change the date and direction without paying any difference in fares, also for new tickets. Aeroflot, on the other hand, allows you to change directions only with an additional payment, offers a discount only in case of flight cancellation, and even then, in many cases, re-issuance will not be as profitable as receiving a certificate. And all this is only for tickets purchased before May 1st.
I do not know…
How do you like the new options for reissuing Aeroflot tickets?
Aeroflot ticket exchange rules and procedures
In accordance with the company's rules and some restrictions regarding the tariff schedule of travel documents, passengers can return or exchange Aeroflot tickets according to their personal needs directly at the sales office, by calling the Technical Support Service telephone number, as well as on the air carrier's website.
In case of a forced exchange of an air ticket due to a flight cancellation, a change in route, or due to a failed flight due to Aeroflot’s fault, passengers can contact any of the company’s offices or call the Contact Center toll-free numbers 8-800-333-55-55 and *555 (from cell phones).
On the Aeroflot website there is an option for exchanging travel documents purchased online, taking into account the costs provided for by a particular tariff plan. You should know that passengers can change their ticket automatically if necessary only insofar as it concerns travel dates, destinations and flight numbers . It will not be possible to change the passenger’s personal data on the ticket online in this way.
As for the full refund of an air ticket online, this option can only be implemented in relation to documents that were not used or changed.
Funds for an unused ticket will be returned to the passenger within 10 working days in the same form in which the trip was paid for.
Exchange/return of a ticket purchased online
When the ticket was purchased via the Internet, to exchange the ticket you should go to the official Aeroflot website. There, click on the “Buy ticket” label.
Next, select the “Reservation Search, Exchange/Return” section.
This section will contain the necessary information, as well as a line in which the passenger will need to indicate the reservation code and personal data of the person.
Once all forms are completed, the exchange will be processed.
Remember, if the payment for the purchased ticket was not made in rubles, then such a ticket can only be exchanged at the company’s offices or Aeroflot contact center. The same procedure is provided for tickets purchased at the Aeroflot sales office.
How to change an Aeroflot ticket to another date: step-by-step instructions
To exchange a travel document at the sales office, the passenger will only need to present a ticket and passport for traveling abroad. In some cases, when applying for a refund to a card, you may need the payment card with which the ticket was purchased.
In order to change an electronic ticket for other dates, the passenger should follow the following procedure:
- Go to the “Online Services” section on the Aeroflot website and then go to the “Ticket Exchange/Refund” menu. The system will prompt you to enter the reservation code, as well as the passenger's last name.
- All active tickets will be displayed in the search results on the site - next to the required document, click the active “Exchange” button.
- In the air ticket that opens, select the required field to correct the data , in this case, flight dates, and then enter the current data.
- The system will perform a search and offer routes for other dates , in turn, the passenger selects a convenient flight.
- After clicking the “Continue” button, the cost of the new travel document will be updated, indicating the fare and fees for changing the data in the ticket.
- At the next stage, the system will once again prompt you to familiarize yourself with the rules of air transportation and then confirm the changes: after making a new payment, the details of the old ticket will be cancelled.
- If the payment is successfully authorized, a new, up-to-date document will be sent to the passenger’s email..
How can you replace a plane ticket?
Having discussed the rules established by Aeroflot management, we should move on to consider the procedure for exchanging travel documents. The choice of exchange method depends on how the air tickets were purchased. Travelers can contact the airline's ticket office or apply for a refund through the carrier's official portal.
At the airport office
An Aeroflot ticket can be exchanged for another date based on a request received from the passenger. This application must be accompanied by a copy of your passport and the travel document itself. Airline representatives recommend their clients to carry an original identification document with them.
The possibility of exchanging your travel document for another date directly depends on the tariff at which it was purchased
Via the Internet
This exchange option involves visiting the official website of the carrier. On the main page of the site, select the “Online Services” section and follow the required link. To gain access to the required page, you will need to enter the last name for which the ticket was issued and the reservation code. Having selected the desired item in the menu, the traveler needs to begin adjusting the information. The passenger can change both the flight date and the route itself. The latter option is only available to business class ticket holders.
The system automatically calculates the amount of additional payment in accordance with the selected tariff plan. After making all changes and payment, the passenger will receive a new itinerary receipt to his email. Completing this procedure involves canceling a previously purchased air ticket.
Cost of replacing tickets for another date
A passenger faced with the need to replace an air travel document must be prepared to pay commission costs.
An exception is made for award tickets of all classes: replacement of data in a document or its full refund is free of charge.
In all other cases, the amount of costs for changing the date on the ticket is determined based on the type and direction of the flight:
- for domestic flights the amount of penalty costs is 2300 rubles;
- for international travel excluding Japan, the commission fee is set at 35 euros (40 US dollars);
- Passengers traveling from Japanese airports will have to pay 4,500 yen
When can you get your money back?
applications for a refund for an air ticket free of charge in word format
The legislation that is in force on the territory of the Russian Federation specifies cases in which the return of tickets that have the status of non-refundable is allowed.
If there are valid reasons, the passenger is refunded the entire cost of the ticket; when the flight is missed due to the fault of the passenger himself, you can claim a refund of fees.
How to return a plane ticket purchased online?
The full cost of the purchased ticket can be returned when the carrier has not fulfilled the obligations stipulated by the agreement or, for example, when the passenger has force majeure circumstances that he could not previously foresee (illness, death of a relative).
The passenger must remember that he must inform the carrier about the existence of reasons why he cannot use the purchased ticket before the end of check-in for the flight, providing documentary information confirming the validity of the reason.
You can exchange your ticket without penalty:
- Due to a serious illness,
- In connection with the death of a person who is a close relative,
- Due to a flight delay or cancellation, unauthorized change of passenger service class.
Please note that travel insurance is quite common in foreign countries, which implies payment of compensation in the event that a passenger does not fly on his flight due to illness. In this regard, some carriers do not recognize illness or death of a close relative as valid reasons for refunding the cost of a ticket.
Although the flight was missed due to the fault of the passenger himself, an attempt can be made to return not the cost of the ticket, but at least part of the additional fees that were paid by the person.
As a rule, only the tariff is non-refundable in such cases. In this regard, a certain list of fees may be returned to the passenger.
ATTENTION! Look at the completed sample application for a refund for an air ticket:
Watch the video. Refund of a non-refundable air ticket:
Tariff plans “Promo” and “Budget”
Purchasing tickets using these tariff plans allows travelers to get the cheapest travel documents. Their use has a lot of different advantages and one significant drawback in the form of the difficulty of changing the departure date. To begin with, we suggest considering the amount of the additional contribution provided for budget tickets. In the case of flights on domestic routes, the amount of the surcharge varies from one and a half to two and a half thousand rubles. Changing the departure date on European routes will cost travelers fifty euros. Rescheduling your trip to Japan will cost fifteen thousand yen. On other flights there is an additional charge of one hundred euros.
You can change your ticket for another Aeroflot date only until the plane takes off into the sky . The only exceptions are European routes and flights departing to the Middle East. In this case, the surcharge will be eighty-five dollars.
The “Promo” tariff deserves special attention, since in this case travelers will not be able to change the departure date. Tickets can only be exchanged on flights heading to South Korea. The additional payment will be about two hundred dollars. This application must be completed before check-in for the flight.
Tariff system
In order to answer the question in question, you need to familiarize yourself with the airline's policy . Today, the Aeroflot organization uses four different tariffs, each of which has its own characteristics. It is these features that travelers need to take into account when booking travel documents. Let's study the transport company's policies in more detail using examples of different tariffs.
Business Class Policy
To get a seat in business class, a passenger must purchase tickets at the Optimum or Premium fare. These tariffs differ greatly from each other. One of these differences is the fact that Premium tariff users have the opportunity to return tickets without penalty. In the case of the second tariff plan, passengers will need to make an additional payment:
- Domestic flights – five thousand rubles.
- European routes – seventy euros.
- Japanese cities - fifteen thousand yen.
- Other routes cost one hundred euros.
Policy regarding Comfort class clients
In this class of passenger service, the same fares apply as listed above . Exchanging a ticket for another Aeroflot date at the Optimum fare is slightly different from the conditions described above. The main difference is the amount of the surcharge:
- Domestic flights - from one and a half to two and a half thousand rubles.
- European routes - fifty euros.
- Japanese cities - fifteen thousand yen.
- Other routes cost one hundred euros.
Customers using a premium fare are allowed to exchange tickets without additional payment. When using the “Optimum” tariff plan, one important nuance must be taken into account. The airline's management prohibits changing the departure date after the plane has departed on its route. The only exception to this rule is flights heading to the Middle Abroad and the Middle East. In these cases, the additional cost will be approximately eighty-five dollars.
The possibility of exchanging your travel document for another date directly depends on the tariff at which it was purchased
Economy Class Policy
There are four different fares used when selling tickets for this class of service. The best tariff plans are “Premium” and “Optimum”. Owners of tickets purchased under the first tariff plan have the opportunity to change the departure date absolutely free of charge. In the case of the Optimum tariff plan, the same sanctions are applied as in the case of a comfortable travel class. We propose to consider the remaining tariffs below.
