Q: My wife and I planned a trip to London and Paris using points that we had transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic. The itinerary included a flight from Washington, D.C., to London and the Eurostar train from London to Paris.
The morning of our departure we received a flight cancellation notice. I immediately called Virgin and spoke to a representative who put us on a British Airways flight the same day. I received an email with no locator number, so I called back. The next representative said that the BA flight was not available and that the original representative would call me within 60 minutes to confirm another flight.
I never received a return phone call and when I continually called back over five hours nobody called me back. I have screenshots of my calls with the time I spent on the phone.
Virgin offered to rebook us on a flight two days later, but the cost of our hotels and the Eurostar were significantly higher and my wife only was able to take her vacation on our planned days. I’d like a refund of the value of Virgin points that were transferred from Chase.
A: I’m sorry to hear about your ruined vacation. Virgin Atlantic should have refunded your points promptly. So why didn’t it?
It looks like you had a dispute with the airline after the initial cancellation. Virgin rebooked you but didn’t send you a record locator, so you couldn’t be sure it was a confirmed reservation. You then found a seat on another flight, but Virgin Atlantic wouldn’t book you on it. So you canceled your trip.
Worse, Virgin Atlantic promised to call you back to fix the problem but never did.
It doesn’t matter why your flight was canceled or what kind of alternate flight your airline offered. When an airline cancels your flight, you get your money or your points back. Full stop.
