[VickiOB]

We were on a family trip home after many years living overseas, a long haul flight we splurged on business class seats. When trying to book flights there were not enough business class seats but were advised to pay for business class seats to ensure priority waitlisting, this we did with no advice on what would happen if the seats did not appear. Well the seats did not appear and somewhere in the fine print (never found) it says we were not entitled to a refund. Not even a complementary free upgrade!

[azstar]

we were not entitled to a refund

That can't be true. A business class ticket should be fully refundable, and if you are not accommodated in business class you are entitled to a refund between the business class fare and full economy fare. Now, it's possible that by paying the full economy fare you're entitled to business class seating, but if not available then you are not entitled to refund because you actually paid economy class fare. This is also true of some US domestic airlines. Pay full economy class and book (limited number ) available First Class seat and you pay the same price, whether traveling in F class cabin or coach cabin.

[VickiOB]

We were going on holiday, it was Christmas and we needed those seats, they were scarce. Emirates booked us into Economy to ensure we got to our destination but as I said we were advised to pay Business class to enhance our chance of an upgrade - no advice whatsoever that was going to be our only option. I give you a direct quote from the letter they sent we asked about our compensation.
"
Our records show that whilst your family were holding Business class tickets, they were booked in Economy class on this flight. A priority remark was entered on our system alerting our flight controllers to upgrade your family to their ticketed class, should seats become available at flight closure.

In line with our standard procedures, ............................ do not qualify for compensation as they were pre-booked in Economy class for this flight.

However, may I explain that, depending on the fare paid for this part of their journey, and the actual fare for the class of travel that day, they may be eligible for a refund of the class fare differential. This change of cabin class will have been indicated on their tickets by us. You may wish to contact your nearest Emirates office to process any applicable refund."

Despite this the answer was final
"After checking conditions of ticket, there will not be any refund in fare for the sector Dubai/Brisbane."

Still not sure where those conditions are to found. Thanks for your help, we have put it in the past and taken it as a lesson learned. Just hope others are made aware of this and take care not to get caught.

[Silent Bob]

Vicki, you didn't NEED the seats in business, you WANTED the seats. There's a huge difference. No one really NEEDS business class, but everyone WANTS it. I'm in agreeance with Azstar, sounds like you paid a full fare economy ticket, with an option for an upgrade should the seats become available. Also it says in the letter you posted that you wanted compensation. Compensation for what and what did you ask for? Was this something you wanted on top of a refund? If you contact emirates you might be able to get the difference from a full economy to a lesser economy... maybe. if not, its like you said "lesson learned"

[VickiOB]

Sorry wrong wording - we needed seats, as in any seat to get home, seats were scarce as it was Christmas that is why we took the option of Economy seats as back up, but definitely paid a business class return airfare.

[azstar]

I think they're confusing "compensation" for a refund of the difference between business and economy class. "Compensation" usually refers to additional monetary award for things like "inconvenience", or not being seated together which people frequently try to get from airlines. You should pursue a refund of the fare difference ( if there is one). Tariffs must be filed with the U.S. Dept of Transportation for flights to/from the U.S. and you cannot be charged a business class fare if you didn't sit in the business class cabin. European countries have stricter regulations, so make sure you get the refund you're entitled to.

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by azstar

we were not entitled to a refund

That can't be true. A business class ticket should be fully refundable, and if you are not accommodated in business class you are entitled to a refund between the business class fare and full economy fare. Now, it's possible that by paying the full economy fare you're entitled to business class seating, but if not available then you are not entitled to refund because you actually paid economy class fare. This is also true of some US domestic airlines. Pay full economy class and book (limited number ) available First Class seat and you pay the same price, whether traveling in F class cabin or coach cabin.

Not all Emirates business class fares are totally refundable. I am currently planning a trip which includes flying from Australia to Hong Kong. I'm flying on Emirates from Melbourne to Singapore in business class en-route to HKG. Here are the restrictions on that portion of the ticket:

Fare conditions


Below are the fare rules for your booking. These apply to all passengers on this itinerary. Please note that if more than one fare rule is used to arrive at the fare, the most restrictive condition applies.

PENALTIES CHANGES ANY TIME CHANGES PERMITTED FOR REVALIDATION. NOTE - DATE CHANGE BY REVALIDATION IS PERMITTED WITHOUT PENALTY WITHIN THE SAME SEASON AND TICKET VALIDITY --------- AT ANY TIME REVALIDATION IS PERMITTED BY EITHER THE ISSUING AGENT OR EK OFFICES --------- VOLUNTARY REVALIDATION BEFORE DEPARTURE OF THE FIRST TICKETED FLIGHT SEGMENT WILL BE SUBJECT TO ANY FARE DIFFERENCE APPLICABLE TO THE NEW DATE OF TRAVEL PER TICKET CHARGE AUD 100.00 FOR REISSUE.



----------- CANCELLATIONS ANY TIME PER TICKET CHARGE AUD 220.00 FOR REFUND.

Since VickiOB did not post her origin and destination it's impossible to check the rules of a business class fare in that market however if they are similar then there will at least be a fee to process the refund. It seems though that since the business class fare was paid but the waitlist didn't clear then she is entitled to a refund of the difference.

Originally Posted by VickiOB

Sorry wrong wording - we needed seats, as in any seat to get home, seats were scarce as it was Christmas that is why we took the option of Economy seats as back up, but definitely paid a business class return airfare.

I would contact the local Emirates ticketing office in the country where the tickets were issued to see if you can arrange for the difference, less any fees, to be refunded to you. When dealing with non-US based airlines you do indeed have to call locally. I once bought a refundable ticket from Rome to Dublin on Alitalia. My plans changed and I ended up flying to Dublin from Barcelona. Even though the ticket was purchased on the EU website in Euros the ticket office in Dublin couldn't assist me with the refund. I had to contact the Rome office directly for that.