TAP Covid changes / any advice?

Back to Forum
Viewing 8 posts - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

  • superchris
    Participant

    Hi everyone – hoping to take a sanity check and get some advice from the group on a flight I have to travel on the 3rd July.

    Background – I booked a leisure trip around ten months ago London to the US on Air Portugal,

    I didn’t get insurance at the time of booking as I took the view that if we could go we would and I assumed that if we weren’t allowed the go then the airline would allow us to change dates. I was planning to get insurance closer the time once we had assurance the trip would happen.

    However… despite the US currently banning us travelling unless you are a US national or resident, TAP are not letting me change flights. They have various flights they will allow one free change on but my flights (booked 16 Sep) don’t apply apparently (im guessing their dates correlated to dates of lockdowns in Portgual?)

    I did pay for the flights on Amex so there maybe a chance Amex would pay out? No idea. Any experience or thoughts from the forum on if its likely TAP will renege on their decision?

    With the US CDC advice continuing to say no non US nationals I do find it hard to believe they will continue on their stated plan to increase their daily flights (Washington to 7) but Ive stopped trying to second guess.

    Part of me thinks I should just rock up at Heathrow to check in to which of course they would tell me that I couldn’t fly due to US regulations (rather than me cancel) but that seems silly.

    Anyone got any similar conundrums or any advice?


    Travel Smurf
    Participant

    Don’t expect a refund from #tapairportugal. Horrendous would be a very complimentary way to describe them. Just read their twitter feed and other places where customers are waiting 6-12+ months, hoping for a refund to be processed. The standard excuse of “your refund is being prioritised” doesn’t sound the same when you’ve been waiting so long and hear it literally every time.

    Get your credit card company to cancel the charge and remove it from your bill. Then let them deal with that horrible excuse for a failing airline.


    superchris
    Participant

    Thank you. And I believe to do that I need to wait to the flight passes and the time of the flight it is still illegal to travel (I cant see the US changing between now and 3 July!)


    rferguson
    Participant

    I flew TAP to Brazil in January to have a many times cancelled operation here in the UK performed.

    The day after I landed in Brazil from the UK, the UK announced the ban on all flights from Brazil and Portugal and I went into a panic as I would be flying back two weeks later from Brazil via Portugal.

    I contacted TP and I have to say I found them really helpful. They basically offered to get me anywhere in Europe that would let me in (I was re-routed GRU-LIS-MAD). Saying that, TP had cancelled my LIS-MAN sector so that may have been why they were so accommodating.

    I will say this – the downside of contacting TP is that 1) the waits are enormous, and 2) the first person you speak to can never resolve the issue. They always have to put you through to ‘another department’.

    Personally, if I was in your situation, I would persist with TP. Keep calling, try different agents. Perhaps depending how far you live from LHR go and see if the station manager there can help. I recently had an issue with a LifeMiles redemption and I kept calling. No. No. No. Eventually, a Yes.

    Slightly OT but as an aside I found TP’s J product really good. The LHR-LIS flight was amongst the best intra europe J flights i’ve ever experieced. The service and food was incredible. The hard product and catering on the longhaul sectors were excellent. The more ‘senior’ crew staffing these long flights were not as good as the crew I experienced on the short flights however.

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    LHRSENflyer
    Participant

    Sadly I can only reiterate comments from @Travel Smurf.
    I cancelled a TAP flight booked for Christmas 2020 when the Kent variant halted all travel ex-UK. Still waiting for a refund, even though it has allegedly been “prioritised”. Has now gone to Section 75 credit card claim in attempt to get a refund.
    TAP is a decent airline if things go to plan. As soon as they don’t, unfortunately the service is dire and real blot on *A.

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    superchris
    Participant

    peterrejchrt -thanks for your response. If its not prying too much can I ask what was the circumstances of the refund? Were you unable to travel (due UK restrictions) but the flight went anyway? Or was the flight cancelled? These details appear to matter in my conversations with TAP.

    What does appear to be against me is that 1) so far at least, TAP intend to operate the flights, 2) the EU are happy i go on it. 3) the issue is that the US wont recieve me so TAP seem to be shrugging their shoulders saying this isnt their issue.

    Was the Section 75 process an easy one and on what grounds did you claim?

    Chris


    TonyR
    Participant

    Which Amex card do you have. Some of them have inbuilt travel insurance so worth phoning up to find out.


    superchris
    Participant

    Hi TonyR – I have the BA plus card. They are my next call I think. It does seem there are a lot of moving parts to this and many different combinations of if you can, cant or indeed dont want to go.

    I am in a reasonably unique position that the departing region is okay with me leaving (and indeed coming back), but the destination (ie US) say its illegal. It beggars belief as to why TAP want to fly this route (Cargo and returning US citizens perhaps?). Either way i will push that as Im not allowed to fulfill the contract ie fly, then the airline should at the minimum allow me to change. Will report back although obviously if Boris and Biden agree something in Cornwall and open up travel then this changes everything.

Viewing 8 posts - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Be up-to-date
Magazine Subscription
To see our latest subscription offers for Business Traveller editions worldwide, click on the Subscribe & Save link below
Polls