SWISS has completed by the end of September its processing of the ticket refund requests which it had received from Swiss tour operators up to the end of July, thereby complying with a corresponding requirement from the Swiss Confederation. The refund requests from direct customers dating from the same time period have also been processed and settled. More recent ticket refund requests continue to be processed on a rolling basis, and October will see the processing times involved shorten further to their usual pre-pandemic levels. SWISS has now processed over 1.1 million ticket refund requests in 2020 and issued refunds totalling more than CHF 585 million.

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has now processed the ticket refund requests which it had received up to the end of July from Swiss-based tour operators who are subject to the Swiss Federal Package Travel Act. In doing so, SWISS has fulfilled a corresponding requirement from the Swiss Confederation. A handful of such requests which require more extensive processing remain pending, but these should also be concluded in the near future. “I am very pleased that we have been able to eliminate the previous backlog with these ticket refund requests and fulfil the Swiss Confederation’s requirement as planned,” says SWISS Chief Commercial Officer Tamur Goudarzi Pour. “Travel agents and tour operators have also been able to use the automated refund function in our GDS again since the end of July, which has also helped to normalize the refund payment process for our distribution partners.”

SWISS has also settled by the end of September the ticket refund requests which it had received from its direct customers up to the end of July. Here, too, a few complex cases remain open; but these should also be resolved in the very near future. “We have kept our promise,” Tamur Goudarzi Pour confirms. “But I would still like to offer our sincere apologies once again to all the customers concerned for the inconveniences they have incurred.”

SWISS has now processed over 1.1 million ticket refund requests worldwide in 2020 to date and issued refunds totalling more than CHF 585 million to the customers concerned.

Refund processing times back to pre-pandemic levels

SWISS will continue to process more recent ticket refund requests on a rolling basis. These are constantly being received as flights have to be cancelled owing to new travel warnings or customers simply find themselves unable to travel. In view of this, the numbers of pending refund requests will continue to evolve and gradually decline, but will not be eliminated entirely. The waiting times for such refunds will, however, diminish as early as October to the usual levels experienced before the present coronavirus pandemic.

Customers can continue to plan their travels with maximum flexibility. All SWISS tickets in all fare categories are rebookable free of charge as many times as the customer wishes or needs. The option applies to all new bookings worldwide, be they for short-, medium- or long-haul travel.