VS400 Cancelled

Just got notification flight on Nov 11 and they have moved me to the flight on Nov 10.

Well don't feel like paying for extra night hotel and car so can I ask them to move me to BA, Emirates or Etihad.

Thank You

I have no idea but will be interested to read what other have to say.

A couple of years ago I got moved from VS29 to BA 2155 for Barbados I did this at check in, but I sure you will be able to do this over the phone, if not get them to pay for the Hotel for the night

I'm not 100% sure but as advance notice has been given they are not obliged to do anything though it might be worth a call to discuss options.

Only with an on the day cancellation are they supposed to offer ab airline switch

As well as offering to book you onto the day earlier flight, I would have assumed they would also have offered a full refund?
However I would not think it is Virgin's responsibility to move you onto a flight of one of their competitors especially as the cancellation is so far in advance.

So called them and they gave me a spiel about they can't do anything and won't contribute to cost of extra nights hotel and said 'thats what travel insurance if for'. Unbelievable.

[honey lamb]

So called them and they gave me a spiel about they can't do anything and won't contribute to cost of extra nights hotel and said 'thats what travel insurance if for'. Unbelievable.

Why is it unbelievable? All airlines can and do cancel flights for whatever reason. You've had plenty of notice and they are quite right about travel insurance

what if you don't pay for travel insurance until you go or just before you go on holiday/fly.
so at the time of booking your flight you have no insurance, what happens then?

what if you don't pay for travel insurance until you go or just before you go on holiday/fly.
so at the time of booking your flight you have no insurance, what happens then?

To be blunt it's called 'tough' or to give it a fancy name 'self-insurance'

Would you expect insurance to cover you if you broke your leg two weeks before you flew and couldn't fly but you didn't have a policy in place?

My advice is always have insurance in place from the moment you book not the day you fly - especially if you can't afford to loose the cost of the flight and hotels etc should something happen that isn't covered by other provisions.

what if you don't pay for travel insurance until you go or just before you go on holiday/fly.
so at the time of booking your flight you have no insurance, what happens then?

To be blunt it's called 'tough' or to give it a fancy name 'self-insurance'

Would you expect insurance to cover you if you broke your leg two weeks before you flew and couldn't fly but you didn't have a policy in place?

My advice is always have insurance in place from the moment you book not the day you fly - especially if you can't afford to loose the cost of the flight and hotels etc should something happen that isn't covered by other provisions.

Ditto that! Why on earth would you not have insurance to cover the time before you travel?

I think everyone is being very harsh here. If an airline cancels a flight because they can't be bothered to fly it due to low loads then they should give you all the options which includes another airline.

Wonderful they gave notice but what if I have already requested the time off from work and have no more holiday days left? Will travel insurance cover me for loss of wages for 1 day?

I know just what you mean, hourami. The insurance doesn't cover missing meeting up with friends on the original day of arrival ( & they couldn't reschedule ) - which is what happened to me.

Travel insurance is not going to cover you for loss of wage (I have read the T&Cs of too many travel insurance policies, and have yet to find one that would cover that), but a good one may cover you for additional accommodation cost of an extended stay due to the change. It sounds like that's what you asked VS to contribute, and that's what they said the travel insurance is for. Things like loss of wage and loss of enjoyment are always excluded from these things.

In any case, I would expect VS to offer to give you a full refund so that you can go ahead and book with other airlines for the same day should you wish. Have you been given this option? This has happened to me with another airline (and as others have said, unfortunately all airlines do this and it's not uncommon) and they had no issue in giving me a full refund. It is a pain, of course, but not the end of the world, and just another example of why travel insurance should be obtained as soon as a booking is made.

Under EU261 an airline is supposed to offer you a full refund - even for cancellations notified months in advance (the compensation and rebooking provisions only kick in for those that happen within 14 days of the flight)

You do not have to just accept the other dates they offer you. If the flight the day before the original one doesn't work but the one the day after does then phone them and ask to be moved to that one and if the agent can't do that then escalate it upwards. If there are multiple flights to your destination look to see which one works best for you rather than the rebooked one.

Many rebookings are done automatically and they just shift A numbers of pax from the cancelled flight to flight B and C numbers to flight D until everyone has been rebooked.

And sorry if people thought I was being blunt but I will always be blunt about people needing to have proper travel insurance in place from the moment they book not from the day they fly. An annual policy can be cheaper than a single trip one so it's not always a cost issue yet provide cover.

[honey lamb]

I think everyone is being very harsh here. If an airline cancels a flight because they can't be bothered to fly it due to low loads then they should give you all the options which includes another airline.

Wonderful they gave notice but what if I have already requested the time off from work and have no more holiday days left? Will travel insurance cover me for loss of wages for 1 day?

Not really. There's over two months' notice of the change of flight. Enough time to negotiate with employers re time off work/meetings etc. I don't know what the annual leave year is in the UK but here it's from April 1 to March 31 of the following year with my former employer (based on the old tax year which we inherited from the UK) If someone has used up the entitlement by Nov 11, I would have little sympathy for them - and even if the end of the annual leave year is from Dec 31, I would always have a little wriggle room, even if only to finalise Christmas shopping!

Wonder if this is to do with low loads or 330 maintenance? Could wifi installation be starting this winter?

I think everyone is being very harsh here. If an airline cancels a flight because they can't be bothered to fly it due to low loads then they should give you all the options which includes another airline.

Wonderful they gave notice but what if I have already requested the time off from work and have no more holiday days left? Will travel insurance cover me for loss of wages for 1 day?

Not really. There's over two months' notice of the change of flight. Enough time to negotiate with employers re time off work/meetings etc. I don't know what the annual leave year is in the UK but here it's from April 1 to March 31 of the following year with my former employer (based on the old tax year which we inherited from the UK) If someone has used up the entitlement by Nov 11, I would have little sympathy for them - and even if the end of the annual leave year is from Dec 31, I would always have a little wriggle room, even if only to finalise Christmas shopping!

]

I pray they cancel all your upcoming flights so we can all come on here and not sympathise with you and blame you for Virgin not being able to fill their flights and say its your fault for inconveniencing them by asking to fly on a specific date that you wanted to fly on originally and then laugh at you when your employer won't change your days off.

I'm done and out of this forum.

Oh dear, reality check time.

All airlines can and do cancel flights. They are businesses, not charities, and if operating a particular flight just isn't viable they'll cancel it. It's frustrating but throwing a strop won't help. You are entitled either to rebook or, if you prefer, to a full refund. As you're aware there's huge competition on that route so if you must fly on the day you originally booked, take the refund and take your business elsewhere.

[honey lamb]

I think everyone is being very harsh here. If an airline cancels a flight because they can't be bothered to fly it due to low loads then they should give you all the options which includes another airline.

Wonderful they gave notice but what if I have already requested the time off from work and have no more holiday days left? Will travel insurance cover me for loss of wages for 1 day?

Not really. There's over two months' notice of the change of flight. Enough time to negotiate with employers re time off work/meetings etc. I don't know what the annual leave year is in the UK but here it's from April 1 to March 31 of the following year with my former employer (based on the old tax year which we inherited from the UK) If someone has used up the entitlement by Nov 11, I would have little sympathy for them - and even if the end of the annual leave year is from Dec 31, I would always have a little wriggle room, even if only to finalise Christmas shopping!

]

I pray they cancel all your upcoming flights so we can all come on here and not sympathise with you and blame you for Virgin not being able to fill their flights and say its your fault for inconveniencing them by asking to fly on a specific date that you wanted to fly on originally and then laugh at you when your employer won't change your days off.

I'm done and out of this forum.

Sweetheart, I've had much worse happen to me on my travels so your sarcasm is wasted on me.

EU regulation 261/2004, which includes the stipulation that a carrier is obliged to transfer you to another airline on the intended date if it cancels a flight.

Hourami - actually I think your response to honey lamb was harsh and uncalled for. Having said that her response made me smile.

As mentioned many times before, why not just take the refund and rebook onto an alternative flight if your dates are fixed, or if you have travel insurance, make a claim and have the accommodation and other bits paid for for the extra day? I think people are not being terribly sympathetic because 1) it's really not a huge deal and indeed it has happened to many of us before and 2) you don't seem to be responding to any of the suggestions made to you.

Try and take the emotions out of it and you will see it's quite a solvable problem/inconvenience .

EU regulation 261/2004, which includes the stipulation that a carrier is obliged to transfer you to another airline on the intended date if it cancels a flight.

I thought, as Tonty says, that the transfer obligation only kicked in if the cancellation was within two weeks of the scheduled departure.

Sweetheart, I've had much worse happen to me on my travels so your sarcasm is wasted on me.

An airline cancelling a HL flight would be very low down on the HLDS - Honey Lamb Disaster Scale

[honey lamb]

Sweetheart, I've had much worse happen to me on my travels so your sarcasm is wasted on me.

An airline cancelling a HL flight would be very low down on the HLDS - Honey Lamb Disaster Scale

Wouldn't even register on the scale!