Important information for future flights to Hawaii starts with Hawaiian Airlines lawsuit.
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246 thoughts on “Hawaiian Airlines Lawsuit + Fast-Paced Changes | What You Need to Know”
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Important information for future flights to Hawaii starts with Hawaiian Airlines lawsuit.
Get Breaking Hawaii Travel News
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Hawaiian Airlines is also charging more for fares when you use a credit. I found the fare online and called immediately to use my travel credit, They wanted more money and wouldn’t honor the fare published on their website so I paid them the 125. Difference. Couldn’t make that flight, and once again charged me more than the fare showing on their website. I got to a $948. credit, tried to book first class and they actually said my credit was only$556.! I have a receipt stating my credit is $948.! Something is really wrong with Hawaiian Air and their greed or poor ethics will ruin them.
Please help with this one… I had a direct flight from Hawaiian airlines that they cancelled and put me on a new route with a layover. This delays my original flight by just a bit more than 2 hours. They say I’m not entitled to a refund since the new flight is less than a 6 hour time difference. The thing is I bought my tickets in March BEFORE their new policy update in April and the DOT says they can’t retroactively enforce their new policy on me. Does anyone have their previous policy on flight cancellations? I can’t find it anywhere. Thank you in advance for any input!
Hi Kristen.
Try contacting the airline via “direct message” in social media. That is what people report as having worked best.
Aloha.
Thank you! It worked. Turns out they updated their policy very recently to being eligible for a refund if you had a two hour time difference. So I got my refund!
Hi Kristen.
Thanks for letting us and everyone else know.
Aloha.
I had a direct flight from Hawaiian airlines that they cancelled and put me on a new route with a layover. This delays my original flight by just a bit more than 2 hours. They say I’m not entitled to a refund since the new flight is less than a 6 hour time difference. The thing is I bought my tickets in March BEFORE their new policy update in April and the DOT says they can’t retroactively enforce their new policy on me. Does anyone have their previous policy on flight cancellations? I can’t find it anywhere.
They tried to pull that 6 hour stuff on me when they cancelled my direct flight from Lihue to LAX in May. Ask for a supervisor. If the supervisor won’t refund you, dispute it on your credit card and report them to the Department of Transportation. DOT regulations state that ANY cancelled flight BY THE AIRLINE (if any leg of your flight plan is cancelled, doesn’t have to be the whole trip) means that you get a refund, period. Point that out to the supervisor and threaten to report them to the DOT if you have to. I got a refund after hassling them. Good luck, you will need it when dealing with Hawaiian!
I had plans to go back and see my girlfriend, but the next day the put up a travel ban, and I tried to explain to hawaiian that they changed it all in a night. So I called and asked for a refund and they just kept refusing. So money down the drain.
The part that’s sad is they are making a lot of money on the fact people can’t refund. It is part of a statistic stat. That they are banking off of. Let people have there money back on a time of need. Stealing from people they need desperately.
HAL is basically acting like thugs through this whole process. They are willfully and deliberately refusing DOT rules and the subsequent DOT enforcement order to make refunds for cancelled flights. I would count on them for nothing. And that is exactly what they can count on from me in the future.
My family and I had plans to vacation in Hawaii from May 2 – May 11. Our tickets from Florida to Hawaii were through United. Of course those flights were cancelled due to C0VID but after several attempts, we did finally receive that refund.
However, we had purchased round trip tickets from Big Island to Honolulu on May 6 returning to Big Island on May 7. Hawaiian Airlines did not cancel the flights, but sent to us an email that if we came to Hawaii as planned (which we could not anyway since our flights were cancelled) we would have to quar antine for 14 days.
Now they are offering a voucher for our tickets. Who knows when/if we will try to plan another trip to Hawaii. We had purchased travel insurance through AIG Insurance, but they refused to honor our claim since Hawaiian Airlines offered vouchers. It just doesn’t seem right, but I am sure there are others in worse shape than we are.
In November of 2019, I purchased round trip flights to/from Maui for a stay of 14 days in early to mid-May 2020. In March 2020, my flight was changed from a non-stop to one with a layover and the 14-day quar antine was to be in effect. I contacted Hawaiian Airlines to request a refund due to these reasons (plus I’m in the high risk age group) and it was denied. I was informed that I needed to cancel my flights and I would receive a credit for flights to be taken by May 2022. I informed the HA customer service agent that this was not acceptable and I would file a complaint with the Department of Transportation. I received a reply from the DOT within two weeks and, within a week later, I received an email from HA stating my flight charges were being credited to my credit card account and they were. I will still fly with HA because they are my preferred airline for flights to Hawaii but I will wait until it’s safer to travel.
I purchased two first class tickets in March, the price of the same tickets have reduced by $800. I called to ask for the lower fare, but they will not allow it. She said prices can go up but not down. They use to fare match. Not anymore.
Hello. Can you please comment about what you may have heard about refunds for NON-canceled flights on Hawaiian? Specifically, I am on the routes between SFO/HNL that were not canceled. I have a OW flight SFO to HNL that I purchased 5/29, and my return was generously gifted from family for first class for 6/10 HNL to SFO, purchased with their insurance (where it sounds like insurance won’t matter). Despite all the changes in the allowances and rules, it sounds like I will only be able to ask for a voucher for both flights since my routes are not on the cancel list. I’d prefer a refund so I can take this off my mind, but will accept the voucher if that is really my only option. We haven’t contacted HA yet since our date isn’t until closer to the end of the month. Can you please offer your opinion on my situation? Thank you very much for your thoughts.
Hi Mabel.
Bad situation. It doesn’t seem the DOT refund rule applies unfortunately. So it is just whatever you can get the airline to do. Keep trying as others have said. Please let us know.
Aloha.
Hello,
We have been scheduled, since early last fall, to fly to Hawaii the first week of June. I understand the shelter-in-place and 14-day quar antine has been extended through the end of May. As of now, our flight is still scheduled, but we are concerned this could change. Does anyone know how much time, in advance, the airlines give if they do cancel flights? Also, would anyone know how much time, in advance, is given should Hawai’i extend their 14-day quar antine and shelter-in-place orders again? We feel we are in limbo, not knowing whether or trip will happen, or not. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!
I’m in a similar situation than you. I scheduled a flight to Maui for July 2, and I know the quarantine period will not be over then. I purchased a travel package through Costco, and have been able to cancel everything else except the plane tickets through Hawaiian Airlines. They refuse to give me a full refund. Instead, they want to force me to travel sometime between the date of my flight and March 2022. If in the future the airfare has gone up ( and I’m sure it will) they will charge me the extra amount, but if I decide to cancel they want to charge me $1,200. But if the airfare is lower within the next year or two, they won’t refund me any remainder of what I paid. Costco and the airline have been bouncing me back and forth blaming each other. At this point, I don’t know if I’ll be able to travel to Hawaii within the next year and a half. I also don’t know how much more the plane tickets will cost. I don’t think they should make anyone travel to Hawaii in the future, they should just give people their money back. This was going to be my first time traveling to Hawaii. It has left me with a really bad taste in my mouth for the airline.This is armed robbery disguised as some legal thing and I hope it comes to bite them in the butt.
This is us! first time travelling to Hawaii and there are 6 in our group…we are supposed to fly tomorrow. Hawaiian would not issue a refund and they won’t cancel their flights so they have a reason not to issue a refund, very bad customer service I think, and leaves a bad impression on me…I have loaned them $5K, how can you treat your customers like that. I’ll also add that the state is not opening up even though most of America is already slowly opening is very disappointing. I may never go to Hawaii if I have a choice but now I am hooked because I got a travel voucher.
I heard from the locals that they don’t really want the tourists there…I guess they only want our money.
I finally did get a person on my messenger from Hawaiian Airlines. I ask about my refund and they said my flight from Las Vegas to HNL May 10-24/2020 has not been canceled. I said “So we fly there and stay in quar antine our whole 14 days?” He said since I wrote and canceled my trip in April when I read that the quar antine was in effect unto May 31 I can’t get a refund!! Finally he said I will send this matter to our Consumer Affairs & to just be patient. He said when they review it they will get ahold of me. The article that talked about the quar antine said if you don’t stay in your condo, hotel, or wherever it will be a $5000.00 fine & possible 1 year in prison!! Who in their right mind would want to waste all the money they spent to go there and stay in their rental? Thank for listening. Linda
Hi Linda.
Sorry to hear about this. Hopefully it will be resolved soon. Don’t hesitate to continue to reach out to them and not wait, as others have reported it taking multiple attempts to achieve resolution.
Aloha.
What else do airlines need to do in order to get us back on planes?
As the airlines adjust the seats to provide protective barriers between the seats (some designers are suggesting using plexiglass and reversed middle seat for example), they need to do away with the crazy upgrade seating in economy and bring back better seating. Some of the seating is like riding on a hard, wooden park bench in a vise (12 hours!). Any alterations with the current seats will feel absolutely claustrophobic. One airline I flew first class back from Hawaii had seats that barely reclined and were, again, like sitting on a park bench, just a bit wider in the seat. They need to bring back passengers are people, not dollars.
Aloha! I recently discovered your website when researching Hawaiian Airlines (HA) flight cancellations related to the coronavirus. You have some very informative articles. Mahalo!
I thought I would share our experience with HA and our canceled flights, or as they’re calling it, “changes to our flight schedule.”
My family had tickets for direct flights from LAX to OGG on 5/6/20 and returning from OGG to LAX on 5/13/20. Three of our tickets were booked using HA miles and mine was booked with cash. We had pretty much decided in March that we weren’t going to go this year because of this, but after reading your articles on the subject and some reader comments, we decided to wait for formal notice from HA that our flights had been canceled. Then, we could request refunds based on the DOT guidelines regarding canceled flights.
On 4/23/20, we received emails from HA informing us that our reservations had “been modified as a result of changes to our flight schedule.” They changed our itinerary so we would be flying from LAX to HNL and then connecting from HNL to OGG. Clearly, the direct flight from LAX to OGG had been canceled, yet they didn’t acknowledge that in the emails. I messaged HA on Twitter to request refunds and included a reference to the DOT guidelines. They responded and said they would redeposit the miles for my wife and boys’ tickets, but that my tickets purchased with cash do “not fall under a travel waiver for a refund”. Instead, they offered me the two options you have described (i.e., rebook with no fare difference for travel by 12/16/20 or receive a credit to be used within two years).
We have travel insurance, so I am debating either pushing back on HA for a refund or just filing a claim with the insurance company. I may also reach out to the plaintiff’s attorneys on that class action lawsuit since it sounds like I might be in that Class.
I would appreciate any feedback/suggestions you might have for me. Mahalo!
Hi Neil.
Thank you. Based on our read from hundreds of comments on this, perhaps keep reaching out to HA in direct social media messages and see if they will refund. The other options you mentioned are good too, as is your credit card company, but just based on what others are saying, hopefully it can more easily be resolved. When you pay for a nonstop flight, it seems that the airline offering an alternative connecting flight would not fulfill your agreement associated with that purchase. Frustrating to say the least.
Aloha.
Aloha Neil,
Did you ask to talk to a supervisor? I also received one of those “changes” emails after my direct flight from Lihue to LAX was cancelled. I insisted on a refund per the DOT regulations since my flight was cancelled. While I never spoke to a supervisor (after being on hold for 20 minutes) because they were all “busy”, the operator finally relented and refunded my tickets. Also, I think you said you paid cash (not good) but if you actually put them on a credit card work with the issuing company. Hawaiian refunded my main ticket but not my seat upgrade so I challenged that charge with my credit card company and I just received a credit for the seat upgrade fee too. Good luck!!
Aloha Doug,
No, I didn’t ask for a supervisor. My stepfather just had knee surgery and he was supposed to travel with us, so I’ve got a solid reason to file a travel insurance claim for canceling my flights that has nothing to do with the virus. That’s why I didn’t push back too hard.
I actually used a Hawaiian Airlines Miles credit card to purchase my tickets. I meant “cash”, as opposed to miles, not cash in a literal sense. I should have been more clear.
Mahalo for your input!
So is there any word on when people can fly to Hawaii and not be under any quar antine?
Here is the latest from our local paper. Quar antine law extended through May 31st at this point and may be extended again. They haven’t even opened up the islands to locals yet (which is the first step in the process) so I would assume that at the end of May it will be extended again. The plan as I understand it is to open to locals in order to fine tune the social distancing and then to tourists, but only if there is some kind of test that they can administer at the airport to prove that arrivals are Covid free. Other wise the quar antine stays. The plan is to market Hawaii as a “safe destination”, where you can be sure you won’t get sick.
Trying to get throught to Hawaiian Air to get my flight/rental car pkg refunded (has to be via phone not online) and have beeen on hold for over 4hrs, cant do air credit for life has changed now and unable to afford anything anytime soon….i am callling from Utah…Any advice out there?
Try and call later in the evening Hawai’i time. Everybody and their mother calls during the day. It MIGHT work because that’s what I did and I’m currently in Tucson Arizona 🤙🌺
Please help me find out if my case is an exception, or the rule, when a condo owner cancels a reservation made via VRBO, and does not provide a refund. I made a fully paid reservation for a unit at Mahana in Maui for April 19-26. Booked in December ‘19. Owner emailed me, via VRBO on March 30, alerting me that their cleaning and management company had closed, and Hawaiian law prevented them from renting. Owner told me to cancel, through VRBO. I asked owner to just cancel, process my refund. VRBO emailed they would refund their fee. Owner said if I cancelled they would provide “full refund” in form of credit for future apbooking at same unit, within 12 months, but with all sorts of new strings attached including phantom $850 security deposit, etc.
I kept asking for refund and for owner to just process cancellation. Finally on April 17 owner emailed a cancellation, provides partial refund, way less than half. I still haven’t received a dime. I then got email from VRBO telling me I did not qualify for refund of their fees. I travel, a lot. I am lifetime Hilton Diamond and Alaska’s Airlines multiple decade MVP Gold. I have never been treated like this on a refund request for a cancellation I didn’t request or cause. Can you please help? Thanks
Hi Mark.
We are not aware of the situation in relation to refunds for their accommodations. I think you’ll need to reach out to VRBO, and, assuming you paid by credit card, you might want to reach out to that company as well.
Aloha.
Just FYI, while Delta did offer a refund on a cancelled flight, they still imposed a $200 change fee on our $250 ticket.
Thanks.
What else do airlines need to do to get us back on planes? Probably nothing. Planes will fly, and passengers will book, as soon as the islands open up. But, having said that, airlines will be competing for customers once that happens, and great customer service experience now will mean increased bookings for them in the future. So, in the meantime, airlines should be competing to see who can provide the best customer service experience. No change or cancellation charges? No problem. And when planes begin to fly again……. free movies and WiFi, etc for the next year.
Keep up the great work BOH. You are a Go To source for everything Hawaiian.
Hi Bob.
Mahalo nui loa!
Aloha.
Aloha. We had a flight to Maui mid-May. We took the advice of this site to wait to see what happened instead of rushing to cancel. We knew the flight would be cancelled. Yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised to have American Airlines reach out to me about it. When I reached them, a nice agent walked me through options. It was so unexpected and less stressful than I was anticipating. Thanks for your help!
Hi Jill.
Great. Thanks for letting us know.
Aloha.
I’m distressed to read this article regarding our lawsuit-happy culture. During the early days of this awful virus, Beat of Hawaii mentioned that Hawaiian Airlines is one of the biggest employers in Hawaii and the citizens of Hawaii are very dependent on the pay and benefits from Hawaiian. I took this into consideration after my May flight to Kauai was canceled. If too many people asked for refunds, I think it increased the chances of the airline going belly up. Hawaiian and its employees have been very good to us on our flights to the islands, so I took a credit for a flight in early October. I understand that not everybody feels the way I do, but consider that for your future plans. Hawaiian is taking a big hit thru no fault of their own. Mahalo to you guys and your great website.
Hi Curtis.
Thanks for this and all of your comments over the past few years.
Aloha.
Hello, I just thought I would share my experience, in case it helps someone else. We had six tickets on Hawaiian Air for travel in May. Just like everyone else, although our flights were no longer on the schedule, when we called customer service, they were never officially “canceled”. Here on Beat of Hawaii, you recommended that it had worked for someone else to reach out to Hawaiian Air via Facebook Messanger. I tried it, and within 48 hours, they agreed to refund our tickets. It took about three to four weeks for all of the points and money to be refunded, but they did. Thank you Beat of Hawaii and Hawaiian Air.
Hi Shelli.
Thanks for letting us know. Much appreciated.
Aloha.
What’s on everyone’s mind is when will the Feds require carriers to junk the old “community air/share” system that makes many customers ill? A forward thinking airline company like Hawaiian Air should focus on what’s going to be required, invent something, patient it and sell license agreements to competitors. That’s the Big Picture. Credits?…I’ll bet they wish they’d given the Plaintiff her rightful refund.
I’d first like to say that I’ve been following BOH since your inception. I very much enjoy all the valuable information you provide. Also, I’ve so far visited 3 of the islands many times, enjoying Kauai and Maui the most. My family and I have always found the people of Hawaii to be amazing kind people. Currently, my family and I have a trip booked to Kauai 7/02/20. Although I’m not a big facebook fan, I’ve been following the covid19 situation and the state quarantine through Facebook. I am very saddened by the negativity of the local people’s comments. I even saw a picture of a foot with a ankle bracelet on it. A local was highly suggesting that the state put ankle bracelets on all of us visitors so they know where we are. Another comment suggested that Hawaii be closed to visitors for the next 5 years. Yet another contributing local told of her feelings about visitors using more expletives than I’ve heard in quite awhile. Here is my question … are visitors really hated by most locals? Is the majority of visitors as horrible and rude as I’m reading on Facebook? There were so many locals making so many claims of how much they hate visitors. I’ve lived on the mainland all my life. I live in Arizona, also a tourist state. We have thousands of winter visitors here every September through June which we kindly refer to as “Snow Birds”. But, they contribute a lot of money to our state economy. I believe that most Arizona residents know that. I don’t think we hold the kind of hate in our hearts for them, that I’m reading about on Facebook that Hawaiian locals hold for their visitors.
Are visitors to Hawaii truly as terrible as I’m reading? I really hope that is not the case. There are always a few bad apples no matter where you go. I just hope it’s not the majority of visitors to Hawaii.
Thank you so much for your email publication. I really enjoy it, as I’m sure thousands of other people do.
Wishing you health and happiness!
Aloha and Mahalo
Hi TJ.
Thanks so much for your comment! It gave us the idea to write a post on the topic.
Aloha.
Aloha
Paying the difference in fares has been mentioned upon rebooking however if the rebooked fare is less than the original fare does the customer receive the difference? Thank you for your patience.
Mahalo
Hi again Marilyn.
Thanks for your comment. That is definitely our understanding. If you paid $149 and that was your credit and your next flight was $99, you should still have $50 credit.
Aloha.
Please, I could use some advice on a recent issue with southwest airlines? My sister and family were scheduled to fly here from LA on June 16th for my mother’s 80th Birthday and received an email canceling their flight with no explanation. Could you please give me some advice or direction?
Hi Dana.
As we saw on their schedule, they had removed most flights in June. We don’t know yet the status of the 14 day isolation beyond May 31. But other than that, you should be able to purchase on another airline that has not removed flights. See https://beatofhawaii.com/southwest-hawaii-airline-update/.
Aloha.
No one is planning to go to Hawaii in the future even if airfares are dropped to $1.00 per person round-trip!
Hi Bill,
With all due respect, I will agree to disagree with you based on the fact that I will be headed there for a job once everything settles. There are also several military families who will be flying to a from the Mainland. So unless you were posting your comment sarcastically… I will beg to differ with your opinion.
I actually feel bad for Hawaiian Airlines. My husband and I have flown to and from Hawaii for over 20 years on Hawaiian Airlines. The last couple of years have been rough and on 2 seperate occasions they totally refunded our roundtrip tickets due to serious health issues. I was scheduled to fly to Kauai on April 15th but my flight was canceled. I was given the option to reschedule the flight with no price change or fees or take electronic credit or i could have a full refund because the flights were canceled. I know this has been a hard hit on the airline so I decided to reschedule my flight for the end of October. I thought it was the least I could do given how kind they were to me last year. This is a difficult situation and hard times for all of us. Please stay safe and let’s hope this nightmare end soon!
God Bless! Nani
Hi Nani.
Thanks for your comment.
Aloha.
This mess is all due to deregulation. They should bring back standard pricing and much more flexibility. (Not to mention bigger seats.) Back in the day, they sold tickets by geographical zones. You could get off, do whatever, and continue on with no additional fee, as long as you didn’t do the same airport twice. On a flight to Rio, I was able to get off in Jamaica, Curacao and Caracas, and return with stopovers and stays and visits of various lengths in Buenos Aires, La Paz (Bolivia), Quito, Lima, and Mexico City. The return took weeks! No extra charge since Rio was in the South America zone. How about deals like that for Hawai’i: multiple destinations in transit. Buy, say LAX-HNL and allow for going through, and getting off at, say, Kona. Visit friends, whatever.
Also, in the good old days you could buy a ticket, change it, transfer it to another airline, or cancel it. All at no charge, provided you gave some notice. I was once caught in Taipei in the path of a typhoon. Flights being cancelled left and right, including mine. They quickly put me on another airline (going to Seoul, not to my destination of Tokyo, but better than nothing). No charge, no worries. And as a bonus, that’s how I met my wife!
…
Totally off topic, but who takes all the gorgeous photos of the Islands that you have on your site? They are enough to make people want to visit!
Hi Dave.
First thanks for this and all your other comments. The photos are almost exclusively taken by the two of us, with rare exception. Blush.
Aloha.
Aloha! Very nice! Yes we all love the photos and your site.
Hi Mark
Thank you!
Aloha.
I had my flights cancelled by United, called and they issued a full refund with ZERO fight. I got all my money returned in 3 days.
Mahalo nui for this info. I know I feel like I will never travel again…but do have a baby luau in Cali in November.
Hi Mer.
Hope our paths cross again soon. Thank you.
Aloha. R/J.
We have a flight in June and now not going due to Co vid 19 if I have insurance on our tickets can I get a refund from Hawaiian Air?
I had tickets for Hawaii in June too. I requested to keep my money in the Hawaiian account I will buy tickets for next June or July I had global insurance I only paid $100 thank goodness they absolutely refused to refund any insurance money unless you actually had the corona virus that is what they told me. I will never get insurance again. It is good for nothing.
We have tickets to Hawaii the end of August for our 50th wedding anniversary. I sincerely hope that we are able to still go as this will probably be our last trip there. Due to illness and getting older. I read on your site that they’re not charging for change fees but could charge for rate increases. I disagree with that. If Hawaiian Airlines cancels our flights and we are not requesting refunds they should accommodate whatever flights we get. We have hotel reservations to consider changing as well as our flights through no fault of our own.
Thank you
Aloha Ann!
I recently rescheduled my April trip to the end of October. I knew my dates so handled everything with one transaction. There were no extra fees it was an even exchange.
Have a Happy Anniversary!
Aloha! Nani