Travel Funds Expired During COVID

[ebarr226]

I just spent the good part of this afternoon on hold to find out what happened to my Travel Funds.  There are posts that explain that Travel funds were extended to 2022 but read the details only for funds expiring during a 4 month window March 2020 to June 2020.  I do not get the logic!! I canceled my flights right after COVID hit the US in Jan of 2020, so my funds just expired in January 2021.  Did you think I was going to be able to use these funds during the height of the pandemic.  Wake up and smell the coffee Southwest ..... the pandemic was raging through January 2021.  I am over 65 and you expected me to travel during the height of the pandemic???? 

Right now I am at my wits end!! I have been caring for my elderly father throughout the pandemic and who just died last week.  Maybe I could finally travel in the coming months but now you have taken my travel dollars away!!  This is not what I needed right now!

Funny I listened to your on-hold garbage for 90 minutes about how much you value your customers only to be told your not getting your travel funds back!! Thanks, and by the way I am a Southwest Premier Business Card holder paying $199 annual fee, I think that's going to be cancelled!!!!!  

[TheMiddleSeat]

Unfortunately you cancelled your flights too early to receive the expiration date extension.  While there were ways to extend those funds, it's too late now so I won't get into all of the details.  Within 6 months after expiration you can convert the expired travel funds to vouchers that will be good for 6 months from the conversion date.  You need to call to do this and the value of each travel fund is reduced by $100.

BTW, only Chase is impacted by your not paying the credit card annual fee.

--TheMiddleSeat

[Zsalinas]

i have a question ,  i had previously cancelled my January 2021  flights due to covid i now have a credit, that needs to be used by oct 5, 2021 . I was requesting an extension till the end of the yr as per the rep extensions are no longer being offered. is this correct ?

[dfwskier]

To the best of my knowledge extensions were only offered between 3/1/20 and 9/7/20 - and the new expiration date is 9/7/22

[jksobonya]

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@Zsalinas wrote:

i have a question ,  i had previously cancelled my January 2021  flights due to covid i now have a credit, that needs to be used by oct 5, 2021 . I was requesting an extension till the end of the yr as per the rep extensions are no longer being offered. is this correct ?

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Your travel fund expiration is based on when you booked your flight, not when you travel. It sounds like you booked in October 2020, so it would expire in October 2021. You still have plenty of time to use it. I have 3 more trips planned by October, my next one in a few weeks. 

--Jessica

[jksobonya]

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@ebarr226 wrote:

Did you think I was going to be able to use these funds during the height of the pandemic.  Wake up and smell the coffee Southwest ..... the pandemic was raging through January 2021. 

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You could have. I flew in August, October, and December 2020. No issues. Flights were not even close to full. I felt very safe, and I never contracted COVID, either.

But as others have said, you cancelled your flight too early; had you cancelled between March-Sept 7, 2020, your resulting travel funds would have had an expiration date of September 7, 2022. You could have taken your January travel funds, booked a flight anywhere in March/April/etc. of 2020, cancelled it, and your funds would have had a new expiration of 2022. 

--Jessica 

[bwallet]

I flew every month last year except April and May. Nothing bad happened to me. Not flying last year was a personal choice (and not one available to me).