Recently, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines have successively announced that they will adjust the ticket refund and change rules from January 10, 2024, adding free flight refund and change regulations, aircraft type changes, etc., which are included in the scope of free refund and change, and if the ticket price is reduced and certain conditions are met, the ticket can be refunded free of charge after purchase
The two airlines are only one day apart from the release of the new rules on ticket refunds and changes, and the changes are generally the same. The difference is that in the new regulations of China Eastern Airlines, a free refund and change rule is added outside 30 days before the departure of the flight, while the maximum refund and change rule of China Southern Airlines is 7 days before departure.
Secondly, China Southern Airlines will include factors such as aircraft type changes that make it impossible to travel, flight stopovers, airport transfers, force majeure and other factors into the scope of free ticket refunds and changes. According to the new regulations of China Eastern Airlines, for force majeure factors such as airport transfers, natural disasters, and public safety reasons, it is necessary to pay attention to the temporary announcements issued by China Eastern Airlines.
However, in addition to aircraft type changes and flight stops, there is also an additional article "flight itinerary change caused by flight changes" in the scope of free ticket refunds and changes in the scope of China Eastern Airlines' tickets. Flight changes are commonly referred to as "flight changes", such as flight cancellations, flight delays, etc., and these delayed or cancelled flights are abnormal flights. In fact, irregular flight services are also the most frequent area of consumer complaints.
Let's take a look at the details of the announcement↓
Announcement on the Adjustment of China Southern Airlines' Ticket Refund and Change Rules
In order to further enhance the passenger experience and meet the needs of passengers, China Southern Airlines will comprehensively adjust the ticket refund and change rules from January 10, 2024. The details are as follows:
1. China Southern Airlines domestic tickets sold from 0:00 Beijing time on January 10, 2024 are subject to the new version of the Voluntary Refund and Change Rules. The new version of the rules adjusts the charging standards for ticket refund and change business.
Among them, based on the face value, the cancellation and change fees for each class of economy class have been reduced by 5-40 percentage points.
In the new cancellation fees, the fee for voluntary changes is reduced to a maximum of 60% compared to 100% (Economy Class N/R) and the fee for voluntary refunds is reduced to 75% compared to 100% (Economy Class R).
For example, if you voluntarily change 7 days in advance, most classes will be exempted from the handling fee, and the cheapest economy class will be charged a 5% handling fee, while according to the existing rules, only first class, business class J class, Sky Pearl economy class W class, and economy class Y class will be exempted from the handling fee, and economy class N/R class will be subject to a 100% handling fee.
These Conditions of Use apply to tickets sold from January 10 onwards (applicable to markets other than Beijing Daxing Airport and Chengdu Tianfu Airport) for travel after January 10 (inclusive). The red arrows in the figure show the downward adjustment of the new standard.
2. Applications for involuntary and special scene changes or refunds of China Southern Airlines tickets accepted from 0:00 on January 10, 2024 Beijing time shall be subject to the new version of the rules for the handling of involuntary refunds and special scene tickets, as follows:
- Expand the scope of free ticket refunds and changes
Factors such as aircraft type changes that make you unable to travel, flight stopovers, airport transfers, force majeure and other factors are included in the scope of free ticket refunds and changes.
- Relax the rules for cancellation and change due to illness
1. Passengers who are unable to travel due to illness can apply for a change or refund due to illness on both domestic and international tickets of China Southern Airlines.
2. The proof of cancellation due to illness will be adjusted to payment invoice or hospitalization deposit certificate (choose one of the two), and the scope of medical institutions recognized by China Southern Airlines will be relaxed to hospitals and subordinate medical institutions listed by the National Health Commission.
3. Accompanying persons who meet certain conditions can apply for ticket refunds and changes together with sick passengers, and the number of passengers is relaxed to 5 (inclusive).
- Adjusted the handling rules for tickets for special scenarios
1. In view of special circumstances such as companions traveling alone due to flight change protection, involuntary protection of some flight segments of the connecting ticket that makes it impossible to connect to subsequent flights, and involuntary endorsement of China Southern Airlines flight changes that require a change back to China Southern Airlines flight, the ticket can be changed for free of charge under certain conditions.
2. Further expand the scope of free refund and correction for misoperation. In the event that the name, certificate, itinerary, date, class and other information are filled in incorrectly when purchasing a ticket, as well as the repeated ticket purchase caused by misoperation, a refund of the wrong ticket can be granted free of charge if certain conditions are met. If the fare is reduced after the ticket is purchased, it is allowed to re-purchase the ticket within 24 hours after the ticket purchase, and the original ticket will be refunded free of charge if certain conditions are met.
The above service application acceptance channels may be different, specific service details can be consulted 95539 customer service hotline, we will serve you wholeheartedly. China Southern Airlines Co., Ltd. January 4, 2024
Announcement on the Adjustment of CEA Ticket Refund and Change Rules
CEA will adjust the ticket refund and change rules from January 10, 2024. The details are as follows:
1. CEA domestic tickets sold from 0:00 on January 10, 2024 Beijing time are subject to the new version of the Voluntary Refund and Change Rules. The new version of the rules adjusts the charging standards for voluntary ticket refunds and changes, please refer to the Rules for the Use of Domestic Tariffs of China Eastern Airlines for details. A new rule has been added to the rules for free cancellations and changes other than 30 days before the departure of the flight.
2. Applications for involuntary change or refund of CEA tickets accepted from 0:00 on January 10, 2024, Beijing time, will be expanded to the following scenarios:
(1) Expand the scope of free ticket refunds and changes to include factors such as the inability of passengers to travel due to changes in aircraft type, changes in itinerary due to flight changes, and delays at flight stopovers. For force majeure factors such as airport transfers, natural disasters, and public safety reasons, please pay attention to the temporary announcements issued by China Eastern Airlines.
(II) Relaxation of the Refund and Change Rules for Passengers Due to Illness1: For Passengers who are unable to travel due to illness, all domestic and international tickets of CEA can apply for changes or refunds due to illness.
2. The medical institutions that issue the certificate of withdrawal and change due to illness are relaxed to the hospitals and subordinate medical institutions listed by the National Health Commission.
The website for the inquiry of medical institutions of the National Health Commission is: http://zgcx.nhc.gov.cn:9090/unit and the website for the inquiry of doctor's practice registration information is: http://zgcx.nhc.gov.cn:9090/doctor
3. The number of accompanying passengers who apply for ticket refund and change together with sick passengers will be relaxed to 5 (inclusive).
(3) The new refund rules for fluctuating fares, such as the price reduction of the original ticket purchase channel after ticket purchase, allow the ticket to be repurchased within 24 hours after ticket purchase at the same ticket purchase channel, and the original ticket that meets certain conditions will be refunded free of charge.
(IV) Involuntary Cancellation and Change Rules for New Non-Consecutive TicketsFor tickets purchased separately, if they constitute a continuous itinerary under certain conditions, the refund and change fee may be waived when the flight is irregular.
(5) If you purchase the wrong ticket through the online self-sales channels of CEA's official website, APP or Mini Program, and meet certain conditions, you will be entitled to a free refund.
(VI) CEA's official website, APP, and Mini Program provide a refund fee calculator function to facilitate Passengers to grasp refund information.
The channels for accepting applications for the above services may be different, and for specific services, please contact the original place of ticket purchase or the 95530 customer service hotline of China Eastern Airlines.
China Eastern Airlines Co., Ltd., January 5, 2024
Source: China Eastern Airlines official website, China Southern Airlines official website, Jiemian News, Guangzhou Daily
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