Our first promise is to offer you the lowest possible fare available for the time, date and class of service you wish to travel in (at the time you make your booking directly with us). We will disclose on our website, at the ticket counter, or when you call our Contact Centre to inquire about a fare or make a reservation that the lowest fare we offer may be available elsewhere, if that is the case.
Customer service plan
This page helps you understand the level of service you can expect from us at all times.
Customer service and commitment to our passengers has been the driving force behind our brand. We strive to get it right first time, every time.
Occasionally, things do not go as planned. We believe that you have the right to know what level of service you can expect from us, even in those rare moments when we fall short of the very high standards we have set ourselves.
1. Offering the lowest fare available
2. Notifying customers of known delays, cancellations and diversions
Delays and disruptions are a frustrating but sometimes inevitable part of air travel. In the event of a flight cancellation, delay, or diversion, we will notify you within 30 minutes of us knowing about it when the change is made within a week of departure. We will provide you with the best available information via:
Email or SMS (where contact details are available)
Flight status on our website
Airport information boards (where they are under our direct control)
Our ground staff and cabin crew
Via the Contact Centre upon inquiry
Via subscriber services
3. Delivering baggage on time
We handle hundreds of bags per flight, and due to the sheer volume, checked in baggage can very occasionally go astray. We will make every reasonable effort to return mishandled baggage to you within 15 or 30 hours pursuant to 14 CFR Part 260.5. We will compensate for reasonable expenses that result due to the delay in the delivery as required by applicable international treaties. We will provide a prompt refund, in the original form of payment, of any fee charged to transport a bag, in the event that a bag is significantly delayed or lost in line with 14 CFR Part 260.5.
4. Allowing reservations to be held or cancelled without penalty for 24 hours
In order to give you some thinking time, if you call our Contact Centre directly or make a booking on our own website www.virginatlantic.com we will allow you:
To hold a telephone reservation at the quoted fare without payment for 24 hours
Cancel a website booking within 24 hours without penalty
These apply for a maximum of 24 hours after the reservation is made as long as that reservation is made one week or more prior to a flight's scheduled departure.
5. Ticket and Ancillary Service Refunds
We will provide prompt refunds in the original form of payment when ticket or ancillary service fee refunds, including checked bag fee refunds, are due pursuant to 14 CFR Part 260 unless you agree to receive the refunds in a different form of payment that is a cash equivalent payment in line with 14 CFR 260.2.
6. Refund eligibility
We will disclose to you that you are entitled to a refund if that is the case when offering alternative transportation, travel credits, vouchers, or other compensation in lieu of refunds in line with 14 CFR 260.7. We will disclose any material restrictions, conditions, or limitations on travel credits, vouchers, or other compensation offered, regardless of whether you are entitled to a refund, in line with 14 CFR 260.8.
7. Assisting and enabling customers with disabilities
We are committed to meeting the needs of all our customers with disabilities. Over the last 20 years, our dedicated team of Accessibility co-ordinators have helped and assisted millions of customers travel independently with ease and comfort. We will properly accommodate individuals with disabilities as required by 14 CFR Part 382 and as set forth in our policies and procedures. We will properly refund an individual with a disability upon notification by the individual with a disability should he/she/they not want to continue to travel because his/her/their flight has been significantly delayed or changed or cancelled as described in 14 CFR 260.6. We will also provide a prompt refund to any individual travelling on the same reservation as the individual with a disability who does not want to continue to travel without the individual with the disability because of a significantly delayed or changed or cancelled flight in line with 14 CFR 260.6(c).
8. Meeting customers essential needs during lengthy tarmac delays
On very rare occasions unforeseen events may cause a lengthy onboard delay either before take off or after landing. These events are usually outside our direct control; however, we will take all reasonable measures to ensure passengers are kept up to date with the latest information available and to meet your essential needs, as described in our Contingency Plan for Lengthy Tarmac Delays.
9. Handling flight oversales
In common with most airlines, we may sometimes overbook flights to allow as many people as possible to travel. Often passengers holding confirmed reservations and flexible tickets change their plans or don't turn up. To address this, and to ensure popular flights do not leave with empty seats, we use historical data to take a small number of additional reservations. On rare occasions, however, all the confirmed passengers will check in for a flight and in this instance we will handle affected passengers with fairness and consistency for flights departing from US airports in line with 14 CFR Part 250 and will determine boarding priority as described in our overbooking policies.
10. Disclosing refund policies, cancellation policies, Flying Club rules, aircraft seating configuration, and lavatory availability
One of our aims is to provide you with a seamless journey from the time you make your booking right through to when you touch down and collect your baggage. In order to do this, we try to provide you with as much information as possible about the policies and procedures that may affect your travel including our:
Where to find the rules of our frequent flyer programme, Flying Club
The aircraft type scheduled to be operated on the route, its seating configuration and lavatory availability. Meet our fleet here.
11. Notifying customers in a timely manner of changes to travel itineraries
Very occasionally, operational situations along with unforeseen or extraordinary circumstances require us to change your itinerary after a booking has been made. In this event we will contact passengers in a timely manner to notify them of such changes.
12. Ensuring responsiveness to customer complaints
We want you to enjoy your experience with us. However, sometimes things do not go according to plan. If you feel that we have not lived up to your expectations, or that we could improve our service in some way, please let us know. We will acknowledge a complaint within 48 hours of receipt and will provide you with a substantive written response to your complaint not later than 14 days from receipt of your complaint.
Follow the link for details on how to send us your feedback
13. Minimising inconvenience resulting from flight cancellations / misconnections
Flight cancellations are rare, and we will try to minimise the inconvenience they cause by posting them on our website under the flight status page.
Passengers who have purchased a 'through ticket' and miss an onward connecting flight because the Virgin Atlantic flight was cancelled or delayed and led to your misconnection will be rebooked on the next available flight, subject to availability in the same ticket class, without penalty. Where necessary and appropriate overnight accommodation and meals will be provided until the next available flight departs.
Read more about your choices when a flight is disrupted
