Coronavirus: Airlines Relax Reservation Policies

To avoid customers postponing or canceling their travel plans, several airlines company have decided to soften their reservation policies by offering the possibility of changing the date of the trip, the destination or the book free of charge. This measure also serves to reassure travelers.

The first company to apply these new rules was Air France which, as of Wednesday March 04, announced that all trips booked before March 31, 2020 and scheduled between March 03 and May 31 could be postponed or canceled without charge and this, across its entire network. It is in the form of a voucher valid for one year that the postponed or canceled trip will be credited on Air France and KLM flights. It should be noted, however, that this voucher is in no way refundable, so you will have to use it in the coming year.

Also yesterday, March 04, at 3:00 p.m., it was Air Transat’s turn to announce that it was offering its customers the possibility to change the date of their trips, their destinations or their hotels at no cost. This policy, implemented to encourage travelers not to change or cancel their travel plans, applies to new flight bookings on all routes offered by Air Transat and South packages made between March 04 and March 31 2020 for stays by October 31, 2020. The new policy allows travelers to change their reservations up to 24 hours before departure and the stay must be made within one year of the original date of travel. However, it should be noted that this temporary policy does not apply to groups and remains subject to the usual conditions.

As for Air Canada, it was also in the middle of the afternoon on March 04 that the company announced a temporary policy that allows you to make changes to your flight without having to pay fees until 14 days before departure for all reservations made between 04 and 31 March 2020. Applicable for the 12 months following the date of issue of the original ticket. The measure applies to all Air Canada fares, regardless of service class, as well as to Aeroplan reservations.

Sunwing has implemented a relaxation measure for its reservations. It will waive the administrative costs associated with the first modification made to any reservation made between 04 and 19 March 2020. Applicable to any new reservation confirmed during this period with a departure date up to and including 24 June 2020. Passengers can also purchase insurance starting at $ 50 per person which provides full cancellation coverage up to three hours before departure for any reason.

The Corsair company follows in real time the evolution of the world health situation following the Covid-19 epidemic. To date, no restrictions have been issued to destinations operated by the company. However, to allow you to serenely plan your trip, for any ticket purchased before March 31, 2020, Corsair offers you the possibility of postponing it or changing destination for free, for departures until June 30, 2020, in the same travel class. You will simply have to make the change 15 days at the latest before the departure date.

At WestJet, the change fee exemption applies to new bookings made between March 3 and March 17 for flights scheduled by June 24.

All airlines require that passengers pay the price difference between the original and new flights.

Conditions are different and may change from day to day, so it is strongly suggested to contact your travel counselor or check with your supplier for full details.