I'll start off with the tl'dr version.
I doubt anyone will stop using Fandango from this, but when ordering multiple tickets at a time I encourage you all to make separate and individual transactions for each to avoid issues like below.
Backstory.
A week ago I made a bulk purchase of 4 tickets to see Captain America on 5/5 with reserved seating. My cousin texts me yesterday to tell me he's sick and can't make it. I couldn't find anyone else to take the ticket instead so I went to get a refund on his ticket.
I contacted Fandango's customer service department because the only option I found was to cancel the entire order, which obviously I didn't want to. I still wanted 3 of the tickets, I had reserved seating that I wanted to keep, and there was a $1.50 convenience fee I paid on each ticket at purchase ($6) that is non-refundable (I understand losing the $1.50 on the one ticket I wanted to cancel). The agent told me that their system did not allow for partial refunds. I could only cancel the entire order (4 separate non-refundable charges of $1.50 for each ticket) and then re-purchase the 3 I wanted to keep (another $1.50 convenience fee for each ticket, $4.50). I found this unacceptable and after a period of what felt like pulling teeth I finally got them to escalate the issue.
*Full disclosure: I will note that I was informed of the option to receive a "fandango credit" where for the full amount including fees. Doing so would void my reserved seats so there was still a change (albeit small) that I could lose the premium seats I had selected for a major movie premiere, and at some point the principle of the matter has to come into play.
I followed up with their customer service today, and was told that my claim was denied. The agent today re-iterated the company policy and eventually hung up on me. Admittedly I was very pissed off, but I only used one profane word at the beginning and never made any disparaging remark towards him personally.
So basically Fandango's logic is.
-Our system is smart enough to charge a convenience fee on every individual ticket you order in a transaction, even if it's multiple in a single transaction. But the system doesn't do a partial refund, and we can't go against company policy to refund the entire amount to your credit card.
-To get a refund on 1 ticket in a 4 ticket purchase forces you have to lose the convenience fee's on all 4...then if you still want to do business with Fandango on the remaining 3 they are going to re-charge the convenience fee for those tickets for a grand total of 7 fee's to cancel 1 ticket...oh and someone could theoretically swipe up the seats you originally selected while you are doing all of this maneuvering.
-Fandango would rather consumers buy multiple tickets individually in separate transactions, which of course causes them to incur a cc fee on each transaction #logic
-Fandango "Company Policy" is the holy grail, and can not be altered in any way even when it makes financial sense for them to do so.
I doubt anyone will stop using Fandango from this, but when ordering multiple tickets at a time I encourage you all to make separate and individual transactions for each to avoid issues like below.
Backstory.
A week ago I made a bulk purchase of 4 tickets to see Captain America on 5/5 with reserved seating. My cousin texts me yesterday to tell me he's sick and can't make it. I couldn't find anyone else to take the ticket instead so I went to get a refund on his ticket.
I contacted Fandango's customer service department because the only option I found was to cancel the entire order, which obviously I didn't want to. I still wanted 3 of the tickets, I had reserved seating that I wanted to keep, and there was a $1.50 convenience fee I paid on each ticket at purchase ($6) that is non-refundable (I understand losing the $1.50 on the one ticket I wanted to cancel). The agent told me that their system did not allow for partial refunds. I could only cancel the entire order (4 separate non-refundable charges of $1.50 for each ticket) and then re-purchase the 3 I wanted to keep (another $1.50 convenience fee for each ticket, $4.50). I found this unacceptable and after a period of what felt like pulling teeth I finally got them to escalate the issue.
*Full disclosure: I will note that I was informed of the option to receive a "fandango credit" where for the full amount including fees. Doing so would void my reserved seats so there was still a change (albeit small) that I could lose the premium seats I had selected for a major movie premiere, and at some point the principle of the matter has to come into play.
I followed up with their customer service today, and was told that my claim was denied. The agent today re-iterated the company policy and eventually hung up on me. Admittedly I was very pissed off, but I only used one profane word at the beginning and never made any disparaging remark towards him personally.
So basically Fandango's logic is.
-Our system is smart enough to charge a convenience fee on every individual ticket you order in a transaction, even if it's multiple in a single transaction. But the system doesn't do a partial refund, and we can't go against company policy to refund the entire amount to your credit card.
-To get a refund on 1 ticket in a 4 ticket purchase forces you have to lose the convenience fee's on all 4...then if you still want to do business with Fandango on the remaining 3 they are going to re-charge the convenience fee for those tickets for a grand total of 7 fee's to cancel 1 ticket...oh and someone could theoretically swipe up the seats you originally selected while you are doing all of this maneuvering.
-Fandango would rather consumers buy multiple tickets individually in separate transactions, which of course causes them to incur a cc fee on each transaction #logic
-Fandango "Company Policy" is the holy grail, and can not be altered in any way even when it makes financial sense for them to do so.
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