Southwest Travel Funds Expiring
 

I have a lot of travel funds with Southwest. Most of the SW flights I booked for travel last year during the pandemic have expiration dates for the travel funds September 7, 2022. Won't be a problem.

However, I have a prior canceled flight and those funds . . . $239 . . . expire May 29th. While I'm fully vaxed, I'm super busy in April, and am having cataract surgery in May, and obviously due to cabin air pressure, should not be flying during this period of time.

I'd hate to lose those funds. I looked on the Southwest website and it has a snooze, you lose. Has anyone, perhaps by calling them, been able to get that expiration date extended?

This is so depressing!

I'd just give them a call and explain you can't use the voucher due to medical reasons and ask for an extension. No harm in asking. But my question is if the flight was cancelled why didn't you get a cash refund - I'm assuming WN cancelled and not you

Thanks, Janis.

I'm pretty sure it was my cancellation . . . the timing of the expiration pin-points it to my mother passing while we were in Key West. So our trip that continued on Southwest along the east coast didn't happen as I booked a flight home immediately.

This was during the days where you had to go hunting for your confirmation tickets to see if you had travel funds. This pot was found now that those travel funds are nicely packaged in a separate folder you can access when you log in to your account.

Do you have to use the cash before the expiration, or just book the flight?

If you were to book something, and then cancel it again, would the funds get a new lease on life?

MLGB - I had checked that out on Southwest, I actually have to book AND use it before expiration. I thought of booking, then canceling to extend, but no, Southwest figured that one out so that's a no go.

kybourbon - no, I just thought it might be an issue. My doctor said it was ok to fly "if you have to" right after. That said, you're supposed to relax, no heavy lifting, and might want to be close to home if there's an issue. So, as I'm the queen of lifting heavy luggage, whether up a staircase or into the luggage compartment above the seat, I know I'd forget that I have to leave the heavy lifting to others!

That's the rule for everyone, and has been for many years for Southwest. At least as long as I remember. Travel credits always expire in a year, I've done that a lot as Southwest is the most generous airline I know where you can cancel and rebook with no penalty. You just have to use them in a year. Actually, since I fly them a lot, often I have points and if you cancel then, there isn't really any penalty at all, you just get the points back.

I don't really see any reason you would get a special extension versus anyone else because you are busy and don't want to use it.

Christina, true, and I, like you, appreciate how generous Southwest is. And I agree that if you use points, they just go back to points and you lose nothing. But because Southwest has, in the past, given extensions for specific issues (medical, health, COVID, etc), I was hoping for some insight or comments from from those who have made such a request, to see whether a call might have a positive result.

In the end, I booked a quick mini-break to Santa Fe this weekend, pre-surgery, as my husband has never been, and even though I haven't been for over 50 years, I still remember the lovely sunsets! So all is good!