VALIDITY VEXATION

I purchased a return ticket with Hainan Airlines from Beijing to Toronto. The flight was taken on June 29 and the return leg was on November 29. However, due to my schedule, I had to change it to December 7, so I called Hainan Airlines customer support line for assistance. I was told my ticket is only valid until December 1, so I changed my return flight to November 4.

As this ticket is an award ticket using Hainan Airline miles, I reviewed the terms and conditions and saw that it is valid for one year. Also, pursuant to their international condition of carriage, Article 3, Clause 3.5.1, a ticket is valid for carriage for one year from the date of commencement of travel, meaning my ticket should be valid until June 29, 2014.

On November 2, I called their service hotline again. The customer service agent insisted the ticket is only valid until December 1, but said she would ask her helpdesk to check. On November 4, Hainan Airlines called me back and said this ticket is only valid until November 7 – one year from the date of issuing the ticket. According to the aforementioned clause, this validity calculating method is only used when the ticket is not used in any way. I’m not able to book any flights now, as there are no flights available. My request is simply to change my return flight from Toronto to Beijing to December 7.

HAINAN AIRLINES REPLIES:

Tickets are valid for one year from the date of travelling, or one year from the date of issuance if wholly unused, in light of regulations of the civil aviation industry and those of Hainan Airlines International General Conditions of Carriage for Passenger Baggage. This term is stipulated on the Hainan Airlines website. Since Mr Yuan’s round-trip award tickets were altered to open ones, the validity for both segments was calculated as of the issuing day – namely November 7 – being the expiry date.

This issue has been appropriately addressed and an agreement with Mr Yuan was reached. We would like to thank Mr Yuan for his support and understanding.