Trying to Keep a paid for seat!

Wonder if anyone can help?

My family is flying to orlando(wife and 3 kids)
I can not now travel and asked to change name to mother in law for 4th ticket(mine).Told no need to buy new seat.
So o well did that and only UC out and PA back 1200+
No choice told so done that.
Now I am told if I dont travel my seat will be resold and not available for my wife to put our 18month old in!!!What the hell is all that about.
Surely this cant be correct we have paid for this cant have refund and cant name change!!

I reread your post a couple of times to try to be sure of what you are saying, which I decipher as you have paid for yourself, your wife and upto 1 of the children in UC on an advance, inflexible fare. You cannot now travel and you have asked Virgin to either change the name to your MiL or refund you, you have discovered that this isn't possible and you're miffed so you're asking for the seat to be held for one of the children.

Understandably miffed, that is if you do not know the rules.

Unfortunately, you are in the position of getting a low priced, UC fare long in advance of your travel but with that come restrictions on its flexibility, refundability etc. This, sadly, is life. If your reasons for being unable to travel are medical or of another type of emergency, Virgin may in their discretion, refund you?

[Darren Wheeler]

Whilst it might seem unfair and unreasonable to you, the seat will be resold to another pax if required. Given that flights to MCO are usually very full, this is highly likely.

Name changes are never allowed on air tickets with VS, even on the most flexible (and expensive tickets).

If the seat is going to be empty, VS are well within their rights to resell the seat. Unless a seat has been purchased for an infant (under 2) they are required to travel on their guardians lap.

If not travelling, you will be able to claim the tax and surcharges back for the unsued ticket.

A V-Flyer witnessed situation on-board a BA flight when a no-shows seat was resold. The result was not pleasant. LINK

If you check in, is there less chance that your seat will be resold?

[preiffer]

Originally posted by ambyuk
If you check in, is there less chance that your seat will be resold?

No - the flights are oversold anyway for exactly this reason (along with other similar 'tricks'). The reality is that ALL this would likely do is hold up the entire plane taking off while they sort out the mess. Not a nice thing to knowingly do to 400 other peoples' holidays.

If you can't travel for a specific reason, perhaps your travel insurance can help out? Other than that, sorry, Virgin are simply following the T's and C's that YOU AGREED TO (granted, may not have actually read [;)]) then you purchased the ticket in advance.

It's a win-win situation for the airline I'm afraid.

Ok so seems pretty straight.

I no show and they re sell the seat.
Family all travel and a great hols with mickey and minnie is had.
My question is basically can my 18 month old use my ticket.

The answer is no.
Morally wrong! Airline is on win win.Understand that but why should an airline be able to resell something I have paid for just due to t and c.
I suspect most of the people who think this is ok us the standby system regularly as I do?

While I understand your frustration the truth is you have paid for a seat for you to sit in and if you cannot sit in it Virgin will try to get someone else to sit in it. That is why your original fare was so cheap. If they were not to operate this policy all fares would go up and cheap non refundable fares would not be available which I think most people would hate to see as thats how most non corporate people manage to fly UC!
It may seem unfair but the other option is that airlines put up ticket prices which I doubt anyone wants to see! I know it seems like a win win situation for the airline which is unfair to you, but it does mean ticket prices remain lower. If they didnt operate the overbooking policy planes would leave with lower capacity, thus decreasing yield per flight, hence putting up ticket prices to compensate!
Simple truth is I am afraid thats why they have different class of fares for the same class of travel! They know they will win some on the non refundable tickets, but that is reflected in the ticket price being low to start with!
From a morale point of view they have not done anything that their or many other airlines terms and conditions state will happen, its how the airline business works!

[Decker]

If your 18 month old has the exact same name as you I am unsure as to whether VS could stop you 'buying it a ticket' - after all you can buy them for cellos.

It isn't a strict win win. Someone with a fully flexible ticket could book a flight, turn up and cancel and the airline is left with an empty seat. So it's swings and roundabouts really.

I don't know if I'm the only person confused by your last sentence? It SEEMS to read 'I want airlines to enforce these T&Cs when others breach them so that I can get a cheap standby but don't include me in that'? I guess I'm missing something?

Originally posted by Decker
It isn't a strict win win. Someone with a fully flexible ticket could book a flight, turn up and cancel and the airline is left with an empty seat. So it's swings and roundabouts really.

I think it swings towards the airline alot more than the passengers. I don't think this roundabout is actually round.

Originally posted by sky0000547
I think it swings towards the airline alot more than the passengers. I don't think this roundabout is actually round.

You pay your money and you take your choice at the end of the day: EITHER you pay for the cheap tickets and take the risk OR you buy the flexible/refundable tickets for the normally considerable extra cost...

Sometimes you get caught out if you go for the risky option, but otherwise it wouldn't be the risky option...

Boo

The starting point of my post was to gain advise that the information I was being given was correct.
Also if there were any secrets to get virgin to change there mind.
I have paid for the seat cannot take it and have lost it!!
This it seems will not change.

The point now seems to have changed to the fact that the T&C are unfair and biased to the airline?!

Originally posted by Boo Boo

Originally posted by sky0000547
I think it swings towards the airline alot more than the passengers. I don't think this roundabout is actually round.

You pay your money and you take your choice at the end of the day: EITHER you pay for the cheap tickets and take the risk OR you buy the flexible/refundable tickets for the normally considerable extra cost...

Sometimes you get caught out if you go for the risky option, but otherwise it wouldn't be the risky option...

Boo

You might say it is a cheap ticket but could that cheap ticket be a standard price ticket and the prices you pay for flexible/refundable ticket actually is overpriced?

Originally posted by bigsi
The point now seems to have changed to the fact that the T&C are unfair and biased to the airline?!

You should now advertise your ticket for free travel to someone with the same name as you. It may not help you but at least it will stop airlines milking it more due to your misfortune [}:)]

Originally posted by bigsi
The point now seems to have changed to the fact that the T&C are unfair and biased to the airline?!

You would have checked the box (or similar) to say that you accept the Ts & Cs of the ticket/fare when you purchased it. If it was unfair, then you had the right not to purchase it.

Originally posted by sky0000547
You might say it is a cheap ticket but could that cheap ticket be a standard price ticket and the prices you pay for flexible/refundable ticket actually is overpriced?

As above pretty much - the OP had a choice when they purchased: they purchased what they wanted and should take responsibility for that.

To be honest EVEN more in this case: the OP bought DISCOUNT UC/PE flights - for a very similar price he could have had a flexible/refundable Economy ticket... so it wasn't that he didn't have the money to buy a refundable economy ticket, he just chose to buy a non-refundable ticket in higher classes...

Boo

Originally posted by Boo Boo

Originally posted by bigsi
The point now seems to have changed to the fact that the T&C are unfair and biased to the airline?!

You would have checked the box (or similar) to say that you accept the Ts & Cs of the ticket/fare when you purchased it. If it was unfair, then you had the right not to purchase it.

I think the OP point was that he did not mean to debate whether the T&C were fair or not he simply wanted to clarify that what he has been told is correct.

I do agree with the point though - this is the risk of booking non-flexible discounted tickets. If the seat is cancelled though the OP can recover the taxes paid (probably around £400 on this ticket?).

Originally posted by oxmatt
I think the OP point was that he did not mean to debate whether the T&C were fair or not he simply wanted to clarify that what he has been told is correct.

Ooops, yes, on reading I think you are right. Sorry.

The OPs posts are generally very hard to decipher... [:#]

Boo