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United Airlines Cancellation Policy
Where from?
Where to?
Dates
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Passengers & Class
1 Adult, Economy/Coach
What is United Airlines' Cancellation Policy?
Want to cancel your United Airlines booking but not sure if you're eligible for a refund? Here at Alternative Airlines, we can help!
With United Airlines, you can receive a refund if you cancel your flight within 24 hours of when you first made your booking. It must also be at least 7 days prior to the departure date. This is known as United's 24-hour flexible booking policy.
If you've booked your United Airlines ticket through us at Alternative Airlines and cancel your booking in the 24-hour cancellation policy window, you can receive a full refund, however, there are a few important factors to consider first.
If you attempt to contact us outside of our operating hours to cancel your United Airlines booking and the 24-hour period has already expired by the time we've received your refund request, we may not be able to honour the 24-hour cancellation policy as United Airlines won't issue the refund to us.
Please contact us between 9am - 8pm UK time (GMT) if you wish to cancel your United Airlines booking within the 24-hour cancellation window and receive a refund.
Can I get a refund for my United Airlines cancellation?
Of course, but only if you cancel your United flight within the 24-hour cancellation window which starts from when you first made your booking.
If you booked your United Airlines flight(s) through Alternative Airlines and wish to cancel/receive a refund, please note that you will need to contact us during our operating hours (9am - 8pm GMT) and within the 24-hour window so that we have time to receive your refund request and send your refund to you shortly after.
If you contact us outside of our opening hours to make a cancellation request and the 24-hour window has already elapsed by the time we receive your request, we won't be able to issue you your refund.
Cancellation Protection with United Airlines
At Alternative Airlines, we offer Cancellation Protection - a service that lets you become eligible for a full refund should you need to cancel your United Airlines flight due to emergency circumstances.
Some of these emergency circumstances include the death of an immediate family member, government travel bans, illness or injury to yourself or an immediate family member and home emergencies, among several others. When you request to use Cancellation Protection, you'll need to provide proof that you couldn't board your flight due to these emergency reasons.
If you'd like to add Cancellation Protection to your United Airlines flight, all you need to do is pay a small percentage of the cost of your flight as an additional fee. You can have peace of mind knowing your money will be protected should any of these emergency reasons disrupt your flight.
Take a look at our full terms and conditions on Cancellation Protection for more information.
How to add Cancellation Protection to a United Airlines booking
Search for flights
First, using our search form at the top of the page, fill in your departure and arrival airports, the days you plan to fly, how many passengers will be travelling and the cabin class you'd like to fly in. Press 'Search Flights' when you're ready to proceed.
How to add Cancellation Protection to a United Airlines booking
Select your preferred airline
Once the search results have loaded, you can apply filters to narrow down your search. To only see flights operated by a specific airline (e.g., United Airlines), you can use the Airline filter. Select the flights that work best for you and confirm your selection.
How to add Cancellation Protection to a United Airlines booking
Apply Cancellation Protection
Enter all of the necessary passenger details and scroll down until you reach the Cancellation Protection section. To apply Cancellation Protection to your United booking, tick 'Yes, protect my booking'.
How to add Cancellation Protection to a United Airlines booking
Pay your way
Complete your booking by choosing any of the payment methods we offer at checkout. If you request a refund within the 24-hour cancellation window or through Cancellation Protection, we'll issue the refund back to the same payment method you used when you initially made your booking.
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United Airlines Cancellation Policy FAQs
What is United's cancellation policy?
United Airlines' cancellation policy states that you can receive a full refund as long as you cancel your booking inside the 24-hour window which is when you first made your booking. After the 24-hour period has elapsed, you won't be able to receive a full refund.
You can follow the 24-hour flexible booking policy even if you made your United Airlines booking through Alternative Airlines. However, if you wish to cancel your booking and receive a full refund, please do so during our operating hours of 9am - 8pm GMT and make sure this is done as soon as possible before the 24-hour window expires.
If you contact us outside of our operating hours to cancel your United booking and the 24-hour period has already elapsed by the time we have received your refund request, we won't be able to honour the 24-hour refund/cancellation policy.
I've cancelled my United Airlines booking - why haven't I received a refund?
Unfortunately, you won't receive a refund if you choose to cancel your United Airlines flight after the 24-hour window has expired. This is because the airline will not issue us your refund to be processed and sent back to you as we are following the airline's own cancellation policies that state customers won't be eligible for a refund after the 24-hour cancellation window has expired.
Alternative Airlines is open from 9am - 8pm UK time (GMT). If the 24-hour cancellation window for your United Airlines flight has expired whilst we are closed and you attempt to contact us during this time, you won't be entitled to a refund. It's important that you contact us within our operating hours to allow us time to process your cancellation/refund request and issue you your refund.
Can I buy refundable United Airlines flights?
Absolutely! With Alternative Airlines, you can easily search for and book refundable United Airlines flights.
We've created a guide that shows you how to identify if your United Airlines booking is refundable or not. Refundable tickets give you more flexibility for your trip and are ideal for those who are not sure whether they will be able to travel or not.
Read our guide on refundable flights with United Airlines for more information.
How late can you cancel a United flight?
You can cancel United flights at any time however if you want a full refund, you need to cancel within 24 hours of booking your United flights. You won't be eligible for a refund if your United flight departs in less than a week.
Can you cancel United flights?
Yes, you can cancel United flights. If you booked your United Airlines flights with Alternative Airlines, you can cancel your flights in the Manage My Booking portal.