Dear Alex,
On May 4, I purchased economy class round-the-world (RTW) tickets for two adults and one child using Star Alliance’s website, staralliance.com. But when I checked my bank statement I discovered I had been charged for five tickets – four adults and one child.
I contacted Lufthansa’s Auckland office [Lufthansa manages staralliance.com], which apologised but in an email reply said: “Please be aware that our accounting department is based in Bangkok and owing to the current political unrest the office has been closed for the past few days [it was at the time when part of downtown Bangkok was sealed off during the riots]. We will ensure this is processed as soon as staff return to work.”
As I write, it is May 22 and the refund has not come through. What should I do?
Nikita Volkov, Auckland
Alex replies:
Fortunately the refund came through shortly after Nikita Volkov contacted me, but that was not the end of the matter.
That is because he had purchased the tickets in NZ$ using a US$ nominated credit card. It meant that because of shifting exchange rates he was out of pocket to the tune of NZ$675 by the time he was refunded.
Lufthansa has now agreed to refund the currency exchange difference but will not compensate Nikita Volkov for his costs in sorting the matter out. This is a cautionary tale for anyone wishing to purchase round-the-world tickets online. These fares are complex and that is why an online booking option was unavailable until comparatively recently. (Readers who have a look at the RTW booking tool on staralliance.com will see what I mean.)
Until the booking function improves, I suggest booking RTW tickets the conventional way – through a travel agent or with the airline direct.
