Turkish Airlines Canceled My Barcelona Flight Due to Covid Without Offering Rebooking
On 02.07.2019, I purchased a ticket from Turkish Airlines for Barcelona with my wife for departure on 25.03.2020 and return on 31.03.2020. One day before departure, we received an email stating that the flight time had changed due to Covid-19. Later, we learned from the news that the flights were completely canceled as Spain had closed its borders. Turkish Airlines never communicated directly with us regarding this cancellation. Despite trying to reach Turkish Airlines' call center multiple times, we couldn’t get through. Months later, when we finally reached customer service, we were told that we could get an open ticket for the canceled flight. However, due to the ongoing pandemic restrictions, we couldn’t utilize this option.
Throughout this period, Turkish Airlines never provided any information about deadlines for rebooking the ticket. When I contacted Turkish Airlines in October 2023 to rebook the open ticket, I was informed that my ticket had expired. I was advised to leave feedback through the Turkish Airlines website, where I was informed that passengers were granted certain rights during the pandemic and were expected to act within a set timeframe. According to the airline, tickets had a 1-year usage period and a 2-year refund window, and my ticket had expired without me knowing about any such deadlines.
At no point did Turkish Airlines communicate when the pandemic process would end or when we needed to act. There were no warnings or reminders about rebooking deadlines via email, phone, or SMS, nor was this information made clear in the media. How was I supposed to know when the pandemic period ended or when my rights to rebook expired without this information being made available? Due to this lack of communication, I request that Turkish Airlines issue a new ticket for my canceled flight.
