Travel Troubleshooter: Our $23,577 Air France credit expired during the pandemic

Q: In 2018, I booked three flights on Air France for a trip in 2019 through American Express. I had to cancel the flights and received a one-year ticket credit.

I rebooked a flight to Europe for 2020 through KLM, an Air France partner. But in June 2020, at the height of the pandemic, KLM canceled the flight. American Express submitted refund claims with Air France.

I thought our vouchers would be extended beyond the original 12-month validity date, given the unprecedented COVID restrictions.

They weren’t. Air France denied our claim and said we needed to contact Amex for a refund. Now, Air France says our credits have expired. And Amex says it must follow Air France’s rules. Can you help me?

A: This is it! Our last COVID refund case.

Oh, who am I kidding? I keep saying that, and my dear readers keep proving me wrong.

American Express is your travel agent, and it should have held your hand the entire way through this ordeal. Air France and KLM should have worked directly with your travel adviser to figure out a way to either use your ticket credit or give you a refund.

You canceled your tickets and accepted a credit. If you’re paying $23,577, chances are your fare was refundable. I would have just taken the refund. When an airline offers you a refund or a credit, always take the refund.

You could have asked for a refund the second time your travel plans changed because KLM canceled your flight. Most airlines were offering ticket credits that lasted more than a year, so you were correct to assume the airline would have given you more time to use your voucher. But you should have made sure.

It looks like you contacted the airlines, waited, and then moved on to something else before coming back to the case. I’ve found the best approach is to keep at it — be persistent and don’t let an airline just pocket your money. Also, if you wait too long, you might end up timing out, and a 2019 booking is really pushing it.

I recommended that you talk to your travel adviser and get the name of a manager. You did, and American Express reviewed its records. According to the agency, it had repeatedly tried to negotiate a credit extension with Air France, to no avail.

The manager recommended filing a complaint with the Department of Transportation. You did, and Air France apologized and issued new flight vouchers for the full value of the tickets, valid for one year.

“We are very pleased with the outcome and immediately booked flights to Portugal,” you told me. Bon voyage!

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy. Contact him at chris@elliott.org or elliottadvocacy.org/help.