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Unable to change outbound flight

Gncntry12
Explorer C

 

i used points to pay for flights and I check regularly to see if the points cost has gone down.  I’ve received quite a few points back this way.  I checked this morning and selected “change” and I no longer have the option to change the outbound flight.   Has anyone seen this before?  

 

291295F8-9E54-4B9F-AC94-301726A6DAC9.jpeg

5 REPLIES 5

Re: Unable to change outbound flight

TheMiddleSeat
Aviator A

Perhaps another reason to book all trips as separate one-ways?  That's how all mine are now so I can't test and see if the same thing is happening to me.  If you know how many points you spent to book the flight you can check to see what it would cost to make a new reservation and compare.  That would at least let you know if you need to bother calling to complete the change.

 

--TheMiddleSeat

Re: Unable to change outbound flight

dfwskier
Aviator A

Nope I've not seen that.

 

If the point cost is lower now and you want to switch, you probably need to contact the airline. I suggest that you use the app chat function.

Re: Unable to change outbound flight

LuvFlyingSW
Explorer B

I think I know what is going on. Do you see this message above the part of the screen you posted?

Southwest Change Message.JPG

When Southwest changes a flight, they give you an option to change the flight without a change of fare. Until sometime last month, a change in either leg of a roundtrip flight seemed to allow you to make this type of change to either leg. Now, however, the system seems to limit you to the leg Southwest changed (and even if Southwest coincidentally changed both legs, you have to make your changes separately). So, if only one leg was changed, the other leg is grayed out when you go to make a change. Also, with this type of change, you won't get a refund if the new flight is actually cheaper and would save you money through a normal change, which was also true when Southwest allowed you to change either leg with this type of change. Other than cancelling the leg you want to reprice and then rebooking at the lower price (which will result in two one-way tickets with different confirmation numbers-not a big deal IMO), I'm not sure how to solve this short of calling Southwest.

Re: Unable to change outbound flight

CupCrusher40
Frequent Flyer B

This seems like way for Southwest to stop giving flight credits. esp for those new to airline and this is there 1st flight may not ever see the -minus money feature

Re: Unable to change outbound flight

bec102896
Aviator A

@LuvFlyingSW wrote:

I think I know what is going on. Do you see this message above the part of the screen you posted?

Southwest Change Message.JPG

When Southwest changes a flight, they give you an option to change the flight without a change of fare. Until sometime last month, a change in either leg of a roundtrip flight seemed to allow you to make this type of change to either leg. Now, however, the system seems to limit you to the leg Southwest changed (and even if Southwest coincidentally changed both legs, you have to make your changes separately). So, if only one leg was changed, the other leg is grayed out when you go to make a change. Also, with this type of change, you won't get a refund if the new flight is actually cheaper and would save you money through a normal change, which was also true when Southwest allowed you to change either leg with this type of change. Other than cancelling the leg you want to reprice and then rebooking at the lower price (which will result in two one-way tickets with different confirmation numbers-not a big deal IMO), I'm not sure how to solve this short of calling Southwest.


I do believe this might be the cause as well the return probably had a schedule change and unfortunately one flaw with the system is if your ok with the new flight you can’t change a flight until you deal with the modified flight. 

they need to have a way for you to accept the new flight so you can change the whole reservation as normal. 

if you remember what you paid and the cost is lower you could call southwest 800-435-9792 and ask them to reprice the cheaper flight