Travel fund expiration "contamination"

[pkerr1000]

Can someone explain the travel voucher expiration policy to me?  I understand that if I have a travel voucher that I have 1 year to use it from the time of issue.   I have no problem with that.

What I do have a problem with is that if I book a $300 flight and use a $5 voucher that expires in 1 month and then cancel that flight, I now have a $300 voucher that expires in 1 month. Even though I used $295 of "real" money, I now get a $300 travel voucher that expires after only one month?!  Shouldn't that $295 expire after the 1 year period?  Why does the $5 voucher cause the $295 to only have a 1 month life span?  system limitations?

[TheMiddleSeat · Accepted solution]

Could be a system limitation, but it is what it is and it's been that way for as long as I've been known about travel funds. You are better off letting the soon to expire $5 travel fund expire if you are unsure you'll be taking the flight to which you apply them fund.

--TheMiddleSeat

[pkerr1000]

Thanks... I was sure when I booked it back in October but now with the way things are the reason for my flight is no longer there (cancelled Wedding) and since the majority of my flight was booked with $$ and only a small portion booked with travel funds that expire soon I'm pretty much up that creek without a paddle.

i just don't see how SWA can justify lumping ALL the funds together into the same expiration pot.

[SWDigits]

@pkerr1000 I'd write a letter to Southwest, their mailing address is listed in the "Contact Us" section at the bottom of forum pages.

The forums are flooded with folks in similar situations, with all sorts of vatiations.