Are you worried because you faced a sudden change in your travel plans and would like to cancel or refund your Virgin Australia ticket? Have you recently booked a ticket on Virgin Australia and want to change it? Then this article can provide you with some tips on Virgin Australia Cancellation Policy.
There was a transfer in ownership of Virgin Australia and it was recently purchased by Bain Capital in 2020. Certain flights are suspended and some domestic flights are still operating.
So the next question will be how to obtain a refund. Well, it depends on certain factors like the cause of your flight cancellation. Did you require the flight trip to be cancelled or did the airline cancel it?
If the airline cancels your flight and can’t provide a proper alternative, you can ask for a credit or refund. However, for bookings made on or before 20 April 2020, you can only claim a Future Flight credit.
At first, the airline will give you alternative arrangements like informing you about the next available Virgin Australia flight to the same destination without any fee. If you are not satisfied with the new arrangements, they might give you another flight. If you still find all these unsatisfactory, ask for a refund by contacting the airline.
On the other hand, if you wish to cancel Virgin Australia flights then you will have to check the fare rules to check if you are eligible. They don’t provide you with a cash refund but you will be allowed a travel credit to Travel Bank which can be used for a later trip in the future.
However, be careful to choose a refundable ticket while booking otherwise you won’t be refunded.
About Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia is an eminent Australian-based airline that was formerly known as Virgin Blue and founded on 31 August 2000 with its headquarters in South Bank at Brisbane, Queensland. It has won numerous awards and accolades such as Best Airline and Best Airline Staff in Australia by Skytrax in 2017 and was 13th among the World’s Top 100 Airline List. Virgin Australia has a codeshare agreement with other airlines like Air Canada, Hawaiian Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Silk Air, All Nippon Airways, Etihad Airways, Beijing Capital Airlines, Delta Airlines, and Alitalia, Hainan Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, and South African Airways.
How to cancel or change your booking
As a matter of fact, the booking can be cancelled, but some are nonrefundable. There might be some cancellation fees and surcharges which depend on the types of fares booked.
Luckily, the airline provides a 24-hour cancellation policy thus providing more benefits and convenience to its customers. This means you must make sure that you cancel the booking within 24 hours of the purchase of the ticket. Unfortunately, if you cross this time limit, you will be required to pay VirginAustralia cancellation fees
Methods to cancel VA flights
- Have you made your booking with the help of a travel agent or travel agency? Then you must contact them to make the cancellations for you.
- If you need assistance, you can also contact the Virgin Australia cancellation contact number or the guest contact centre on 13 67 89 where the helpdesk will ask you for your booking reference number and last name.
- Another way to cancel your booking is to do it online
- Firstly you have to open the official website of Virgin Australia and log in to your account.
- Now you are on the home page of Virgin Australia you can see here the Manage booking Tab just click on it.
- The next step is to enter your details which are asked in the field- Last name, and the confirmation number(booking reference number).
- This step will retrieve your ticket details which you need to change or cancel if want to cancel your booking and your ticket class gives permission.
- After clicking next you can see here all the alternatives related to your change(ticket date, time, or destination, cancel your booking, pay for extra baggage, correct your name on the ticket).
- If you are eligible for the changes which are permitted by your ticket you can change it according to your wish and then pay for it online with your cards if any difference occurs in-flight change.
- Lastly, after successful payments for your changes, you’ll get a confirmation mail on your email id.
You may visit the airport near you and cancel a booking from the VA kiosk.
Flight changes or cancellations can also be made via the manage bookings section on the VirginAustralia website or by contacting the Guest Contact Centre
After you cancel your flight as per fare rules, you will receive a travel credit to the travel bank which can be used to book future flights. If you are eligible for a refund, you may choose either travel credit or refund.
For refunds, you can either contact the Guest Contact Centre or you can send an email to reservations@virginaustralia.com with the below information
Virgin Australia Cancellation policy based on fare rules
In fact, there are different factors that decide the Virgin Australia cancellation policy for your bookings like the fare type and origin and destinations. So let’s have a look at the fare types and cancellation charges
The different types of fares available for Virgin Australia are :
For domestic flights
Getaway(Economy) – Cancellations are not permitted on this fare
Elevate (Economy) – you can cancel till midnight prior to flight departure for 70 AUD
Freedom (Economy)- you can cancel while the credit is passed to the travel bank for no fee or you can also get a refund for a payment of 80 AUD.
For no shows, there is a 100 % loss of fare
However note for flight bookings till 31 March 2021, there is no applicable change or cancellation fees.
Business Saver – If you wish to make any changes like flight date, time or destination then there are no charges applied on bookings made for travel till 31 January 2021. Cancellations are permitted till midnight before departure with fees of AUD 50. The credit will be passed to the travel bank.
Business -you are allowed to cancel the booking with no fee involved. This would be credited to Travel Bank or the original form of payment. Further, there is no fee involved for name changes or for any type of change while travelling on Virgin Australia for this particular type of fare.
For short-haul International destinations
Getaway – Cancellations are not permitted on this fare, however, you can make changes with a specified fee which depends upon different destinations
Elevate – For cancellations, the credit is passed to the travel bank with a fee (AUD 100) or they refund you the original payment (AUD 200).
Freedom – No fee is involved
Business Saver: Changes are allowed until 30 days before the departure of the flight with no fees. Cancellations involve a fee of AUD 200 or AUD 400 for a refund.
Business – Changes and cancellations have no fees involved.
What is meant by Future Flight credits?
If your booking was made before 20 April 2020 and has been cancelled, the airline offers you Future Flight Credits in the form of a Travel bank. You will receive an email from the airline. This can be used to book flights with Virgin Australia in the future. It is valid for bookings up to 31 July 2022. However, you will be able to use your Future Flight credit for Virgin Australia flights only which is not applicable for their codeshare partners.
Impact of Covid 19 on Virgin Australia flight cancellation policy
As a matter of fact, the pandemic has brought about many changes and cancellations in the airline industry. This is true even for Virgin Australia and other airlines.
If travelling before 31 march 2021 and booked on or before 20 April 2020
For domestic and international short-haul travel – You can make changes like changing dates or destinations an unlimited number of times. Travel dates can be changed 12 months in advance.
For international long-haul travel and travel to /from Tonga
You are advised to contact Guest Contact Centre or get in touch with your travel agent.
If your flight is cancelled and alternate flights have not been arranged, then future flight credits will be applied automatically.
For bookings made after 21 April 2020
Domestic travel and international short-haul travel – You can make an unlimited number of changes free of charge. Cancellations will be permitted as per fare rules of Virgin Australia. Remember it is valid for travel up to 31st March 2021.
International Long Haul Travel and to/from Tonga -You would be required to contact Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent.
