Korean Job Discussion Forums

[gajackson1]

I threw this out in general, but am cross-posing due to the nature of the topic . . .

G.

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Christina & I have had such a wonderful summer, but sadly, that's not what I'm here to talk about now -

My coworker just had his dad pass away back in the States (heart attack, sudden, unexpected). He will be gone at least 1 week, and I've told him if he chooses not to come back, no one here will fault him, and we will be sure everything here with immigration, etc. is taken care of. We are trying to get him home ASAFP.

So, here is what we need: does anyone know about the fastest/easiest way to arrange a bereavement ticket these days???

It used to be common courtesy of the airlines, then they stopped due to budget cuts, then were brought back due to consumer outcry, but were buried/not advertised.

Since travel agents don't make any kind of commission, I don't expect much help on that end.

Has anyone dealt with one of these recently, and can throw out some help/advice/suggestions???

Sincerely,

Glen

[davai!]

Bereavement rates were never really all that accomodating. Usually you will pay for a full fare (read: one year non-restricted), then after you provide proof of the bereavement (letter from the funeral home, etc.) you will receive a refund of about a third back. It ends up being cheaper to get a ticket from expedia or the like and just take a trip home that way.

Sorry to hear about your (coworker's) loss.

[OiGirl]

I ended up getting an incredible rate for a last-minute ticket from Expedia. I have NEVER been sucessful in getting these talked-about "bereavement rates." I even talked to famil members about using the death certificate of a close relative of the dying (now dececeased) in order to get such a thing.

[dimnd]

my mom passed away 2 yrs ago across country and i could not get any better rates the night she passed...just had to have hubby search and search and call airlines...truly sucky...in my book..because i was pretty out of it due to that..

[HamuHamu]

I used Air Canada when I needed a bereavement ticket, there's no time to "shop around" when you get that phone call from home.

I had to pay full fare for the ticket, which came to $2800 Cdn. After travel is completed you have 90 days to send the death certificate and reimbursement form back to AirCan and they refund the difference back to your credit card.

On the phone when I booked the ticket I was told that after refund I would be paying $1730 for the ticket, and I realized that I should have shopped around. However, when the refund came through, they refunded me $1480, a smidgen more than half. Given that it was peak season for Koreans to be travelling to Canada, $1320 was actually a competitive rate at that time for the RT flight (I looked when I came home and the cheapest I could find was W1,200,000).

For the convenience of one phone call to the airline, booking a ticket, having an instant e-ticket to print out, and being on a plane 4 hours later, going direct with the airline was worth it. However, unless you are in a position to carry a balance on your cc for a couple of months, it can be tough to put out for at first.

[skindleshanks]

What are the relationship restrictions on such flights? Would grandparents be included in that? It seems that you can't really get a decent rate unless it's at least four days in advance.

[HamuHamu]

[lille]

Air Canada gives excellent rates for bereavement flights at the last minute. In July when my grandmother died, I called AC's 1-800 number and spoke with a representative about it. She asked for relationship, name of the deceased, name and contact info of the funeral home, and the date of the funeral. No proof was necessary since they had enough info to check into the validity of the claim, though the fact that I was a mess on the phone was likely an easy clue for them. I'm told that other airlines are also good like this if you book through them directly, but no proof on that.

If only my boss were so understanding! Three days before the end of my contract, she wouldn't give me a release letter early. I had to walk out.