American AAdvantage Awards Online Cancellation Not Working

BACKGROUND:

So last week American apparently simplified the refund process to cancel American AAdvantage award tickets. Instead of having to call, they made it easier stating that miles will automatically be reinstated within 48 hours of cancelling your trip online.

Currently, this is valid for tickets purchases through May 31, 2020, and for travel through September 30, 2020.

American Airlines says it only works for these circumstances:

• The reservation is for a single passenger
• American Airlines flights only
• The traveler and the AAdvantage member whose miles were redeemed are the same
• The ticket was purchased directly with American in the US or via the US website
• Travel for any portion of the trip has not begun
• No changes have been made to the itinerary since the ticket was issued

NOT WORKING?

So my parents and I had flights to Budapest in July booked with AAdvantage miles, and each of us had our own reservation. I went last weekend to cancel each of our individual bookings as we all met the criteria for doing online cancellations.

I did mine first, and received the miles to my account in about an hour and got a confirmation email that stated the refund processed. Nice!

But then I helped my parents with theirs. Unfortunately, none of them got the miles even after the 48 hour stated timeframe. So I made a quick call to AA…

A QUICK CALL TO AMERICAN AIRLINES…WITH A VERY NICE REPRESENTATIVE!

So, I made a quick call to AA, and I was surprised to be picked up within 5 minutes. A very friendly representative answered and helped process the refund for both my parents. Apparently, the online system didn’t request a refund for my parents’ tickets, but just cancelled the itinerary? (AA’s technology issues) But, no problem, the rep manually processed the refund for us. I checked and the miles posted back instantly.

Calling Tip: Call wait times are much shorter after 9 PM Eastern according to the representative I was talking with.

TL; DR:

So in short, I just wanted to share my experience to cancel American AAdvantage awards online during the coronavirus. You may run into a snag, and have to call customer service up anyway. But rest assured, they fixed it for me at least!

Have you tried to cancel American AAdvantage awards online? Did you receive your miles back?

Stay safe,

Ty

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