Cancel flight due to COVID
Hello! I wanted to share my negative experience working with AuAir. Even before the covid-19 began to spread (i. e. the end of January 2020), I purchased 2 AuAir airline tickets for the flight Riga-Brussels-Riga. So it was planned to spend only a holiday in Brussels, I bought Basic tickets. The flight was scheduled for the end of September 2020. Over time, and closer to the date of the flight, we find out that, unfortunately, Belgium is on the red list. We think that we do not want to fly because we are afraid of our own health and the health of our loved ones. I say to write letters through the form available on the AuAir website with a request to either transfer the flight dates or return the money, directly emphasizing that it is related to the covid-19 level in the country. But no reply was received to any of the letters. I decided, however, to try to call AuAir, if willingly, that the time of the call will cost about 5-7 dollars. I called, explained the situation, and here it was: at that time, Belgium was not yet on the list of countries to which flights are banned. And despite the fact that the virus level in the country was several times higher than in Australia, we seem to be flying. Of course, it was offered to change the date, but it would cost about 200 dollars for 2 people (in both directions). That's a little less than the ticket price. It was also not possible to change the gift card. So, no alternative was offered to us. Just either fly at your own risk, or just don't fly and get back airport taxes (negligible amount). The funniest thing is that a week later, Belgium was also included in the list of countries to which flights are banned. And all subsequent flights were canceled with a refund. And I still have a question: why weren't we able to change the date or get a gift card because it was all about the desire to reduce the risk of getting sick? How could I have known when buying this tickets here even half a year ago that there would be such a situation? Why are my consumer interests not protected, despite the fact that I, for my part, pay in full for the services? PS I still haven't received any airport tax refunds.
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