[Anonymous]

[peter19]

Where prices fluctuate during a sale (as expected) can anybody advise if there are any comeback on the price if it drops?

I understand that some airlines operate a price promise but most of this relates to finding it cheaper elsewhere with the exact same conditions and only available on the same day of purchase.

If, for example, I booked last weekend a deal in the sale and now the exact same package in the sale is now cheaper then I’m guessing that’s just bad luck? My example is with BA but wondering if its any different elsewhere. Its not much in my case on my booking.
However having just looked at DXB prem econ RTN fares these have dropped £300 in 1 day.

[AMcWhirter]

peter19 – I had a similar Ask Alex query some time ago. Basically a seat with BA is like any other consumer item so if the price falls at a later date then it’s tough luck.

As for the other carriers you would need to check each one.

Conventional carriers tend to act like BA. But some LCCs may vary. Why ? Because they price their seats in a different way to conventional carriers.

[esselle]

Typically this is an “invitation to treat”, so there is no recourse if the price subsequently drops (of course it can also go up) unless there is an express condition at the time of the contract, or the seller decides to offer it as a form of goodwill.

[NiceTravelAdventures]

What you can do is use the value of your ticket to upgrade on BA (on many of their tickets) to a higher cabin, so if the price of that cabin has fallen in the sale then you may get a cheap / free upgrade.

[peter19]

Thanks Alex, I presumed this was the case but also wondered if anybody has heard of a goodwill gesture (or similar) on these occasions…
The price of my package as i say was very little difference. It was a club europe +hotel package but would have been annoyed in the example of the DXB flight!

NiceTravelAdventures, you have a point regarding the cost but both would have been on a reduced selling fare because of the sale?

It just shows you it can be worth waiting until later in a sale (in BA’s case its a sale sale?) to see which fares have been purchased and which ones they might change if they are not selling so many seats as expected.

edited to add : this can also have the increased fare potential if you do wait as we know.

[SimonS1]

I don’t understand – why would there be any form of goodwill gesture?

They offered you a price, you were happy and you accepted it. It’s as simple as that. Prices always are subject to change, especially for air travel.

Imagine if you got a bargain and the price then went up by £500. Would you expect the airline to charge you the difference? It amounts to the same thing.

[NiceTravelAdventures]

Peter – I was explaining that if you have a ticket which costs $2k, and is now in the sale for $1.5k you can’t get the difference back, but can probably use the value to change to a ticket in a better cabin – and the cost of this new seat might not be much more than what you’ve paid already due to the sale.

[LuganoPirate]

The trouble is if they made a gesture of goodwill every time a fare became cheaper it would cost them tens of millions and then lead to an increase in fares for everybody else.

It’s always annoying when this happens and if you wait till the last minute before booking you may end up paying even more.

Rather than torture myself, I never recheck a fare once I’ve bought it, unless I have a fully refundable ticket and then I might but I can’t think of an occasion where it was much cheaper.

[peter19]

SimonS1, You are correct its as simple as that. I just wondered if there had even been any experience by one of the forum posters who had queried and got anything out of it – more a Friday curiosity thing!

LP, you are right – should never look back. If you are satisfied with the price you committed to then then its all good.

[AMcWhirter]

An earlier Forum thead discussed the Easyjet price promise. Mind you, am not sure whether or not it still applies.

Easyjet is known to raise of lower fares close to departure hence the thinking behind its price promise.

http://www.businesstraveller.com/discussion/topic/Easyjet-s-well-kept-secret

[Author]

Posts