Southwest Airlines Cancellation Policy

Southwest Cancellation Policy- How Does Cancellation Work On Southwest?

Cancellation can be difficult when passengers lack information on its policy. Are you willing to cancel your reservation? If yes,  you must be willing to know about Southwest Cancellation policy in detail. Southwest Airlines is one of the most reliable airlines, and people choose this airline for air travel. At times, due to certain situations, one has to cancel their reservations.

In case, you are one such passenger; you must be willing to know how cancellation-related things work at southwest airlines.

So, go through the information below and learn about the cancellation policy set by southwest airlines.

Overview of Southwest Cancellation policy

Southwest Airlines caters to the needs of all individuals. Therefore, they have set up a passenger-friendly Southwest Airlines flight cancellation policy.

The pointers below state the Southwest Cancellation Policy in detail.

• First and foremost, passengers can cancel the flight without paying any fees.

• Moreover, if the passenger cancels the refundable flight, they will get the refund amount automatically.

• As per the Southwest Airlines cancellation policy, passengers are eligible for canceling their tickets 10 minutes before the departure time.

• In addition, people can cancel the bookings only if they bought it with the airline directly.

• No matter what ticket one holds, one can cancel within 24 hours of risk-free hours. If one does so, one can get a full refund. In this case, the flyers should have bought the ticket at least seven days prior to the departure date.

• Be patient, as the refund amount may take up to 10 days to reflect in your account.

• Whether you booked the refundable fares or non-refundable fares, you can cancel both types of flights for free. However, if you reserve a refundable ticket, you will get the refund, and for the other ticket, you can get only the travel funds. Remember, one cannot ask for a refund if they hold this ticket.

• Lastly, these rules and regulations are applicable to Southwest Group bookings.

Southwest 24-hour cancellation policy- Charge-free cancellation

Southwest Airlines offer a 24-hour cancellation policy, which works in the favor of all passengers.

• According to the Southwest 24-hour cancellation policy, flyers of this airline can cancel during a risk-free period. When one does so, they do not have to pay any cancellation fee and even get the entire amount as a refund.

• Furthermore, in this case, one has to make sure that they made the reservation at least seven days before the flight’s departure.

• Individuals are eligible to cancel using online and offline methods.

• According to the Southwest Cancellation Policy, if you made the reservation via a third party, you need to contact them to proceed with the cancellation procedure.

Step-by-step cancellation procedure

Although the cases of Southwest Airlines flight cancellations are rare because the airline is incredible. But emergencies can occur anytime. To cancel your booking, check out the follwoing procedure.

The passengers of Southwest Airlines can cancel in various ways. As there are multiple ways to complete Southwest Airlines’ cancel flight process, one can choose the method that suits them the best.

Let us first find out about the cancellation procedure one needs to follow by visiting the airline’s official website.

Cancel via the official site

• Open the web browser of your choice.

• Visit Southwest Airlines’ official website or enter southwest.com.

• Once the site opens up, you have two options to proceed with-

1. Firstly, if you are a member of a rapid rewards program, go ahead to your credentials to log in to your account. Once the account opens up, you will find your booking and will be able to cancel it.

2. Secondly, if you do not have an account, you can continue as a guest and don’t have to log in anywhere on the official site.

• Furthermore, look for the “cancel/change” option on the site’s home page.

• Provide the booking-related information in this step to retrieve your reservation. Enter your six-digit confirmation number, which you received via mail when making the booking. Also, enter your full name.

• Now, click on the ” cancel ” option and press “search.”

• As soon as you do so, you will see your reservations with Southwest Airlines.

• Choose your flight and then scroll down the page. You will find various links like cancel, rebook, change, etc.

• Click on the option of ‘cancel”. Select it and proceed to apply for a refund.

Cancel via the phone number

In addition to making cancellations via the official website, people can cancel using their phone numbers.

• Firstly, open the official site and find the contact number of the airline.
• Use the customer service phone number of Southwest airlines and talk to a travel expert.
• Once you dial the number, you will listen to the on-call instructions.
• Go ahead and request to cancel the Southwest flight by providing the reservation details.
• In case, you have doubts related to the Southwest cancellation policy, you can clear all of them by asking the expert.

Cancel via phone application

Nowadays, people are on their mobile phones, so it becomes easy to cancel bookings using them. 

Passengers are eligible for complete Southwest airlines flight cancellation in no time by simply using their phone. Find out the steps you need to follow for canceling via this method.

• Start by downloading the Southwest Airlines mobile application.

• Once the application is on your phone, you can either select “continue as a guest” or use the rapid rewards account option. Use your email and password to log in successfully.
• Now, click on the option of “sign in”.

• Select the “cancel/change.” tab here. Go ahead to choose the flight you want to cancel.

• As soon as you follow these steps, you will get the confirmation for cancellation via phone, text, or registered email.

Cancelation fee structure of Southwest

Once the passenger knows the Southwest cancellation policy, they also want to know about the cancellation fee structure.

One must have detailed information on the cancellation fee structure. The airline understands the budget of the flyer. Therefore, they have laid down the charges keeping them in mind.

Get to know about it from the table given below-

Note- Flyers should contact the travel representatives to know the exact charges as they vary according to the fare and final destination.

Get details on Southwest Refund policy

After knowing about the Southwest Flight cancellation policy, the next thing one needs to know is the refund policy.

Rely on the points below and find detailed information on the Southwest Refund policy.

• Firstly, passengers who have an “anytime travel ticket” or “business select ticket” are eligible for getting a refund.

• When one reaches the airport ten minutes prior to the departure time of the flight, they are eligible for getting a refund.

• If you hold “Wanna get away fare”, then you are not eligible for getting a refund. However, one can get travel credits and use them for booking flights in the future.

Complete the cancellation process in a hassle-free manner by knowing about the Southwest cancellation Policy in detail through the guide above.

What is the Southwest Airlines no-show policy?

Do you know about the Southwest no-show policy? It is necessary to cancel your booking in advance to avoid a no-show situation. To know more about this policy, read below.

• If any passenger doesn’t cancel their reservation at least 10 minutes prior to the flight departure, their booking will be canceled by the airline.
• However, Anytime and Business Select tickets will get their refund in the form of travel credits. Moreover, these travel credits are transferable, and you can use them for future reservations with Southwest Airlines.
• Wanna Get Away Plus, and Wanna Get Away funds will be forfeited. Passengers will not get any refund if they don’t cancel their booking before the flight departure.
• Moreover, all your points will be forfeited if you have used any points for making a booking with the airline. Additionally, all the fees and taxes associated with your award travel will not be refunded. This applies to Wanna Get Away Plus, and Wanna Get Away award travel bookings.
• For Business Select and Anytime award travel bookings, you will get your points back in your Rapid Rewards account if you don’t cancel your booking. Any associated fees or taxes with the award travel will be converted into flight credits. These flight credits are for future use. Moreover, these credits are transferable.
• You can use the flight credit within 1 year of the date of issuance.

What to do if Southwest cancels my flight?

Does Southwest cancel your flight? Fret not because the airline has a way of getting you back on track. However, Southwest is an incredible airline, and cases of delay and cancelation are very rare. But incidents can happen anytime, becoming a hurdle in your travel plan. If your Southwest flight is canceled by the airline, it will book your tickets on another flight. If you are not comfortable with the new schedule, you must ask for a refund. For Southwest Airlines flight cancellations by the airline, one is entitled to a refund.

However, the airline will rebook you, but you can claim a refund. If you don’t want to travel on another flight, you have the right to request a refund from the airline. Southwest Airlines will initiate your refund as soon as possible, and you will receive it within a few days only. Moreover, you can rebook yourself as per your requirements on another day and at another time.

How to rebook with Southwest Airlines?

Do you want to rebook yourself with Southwest Airlines? You have various ways, like the official site, mobile app, or the official number of the airline. However, the official website is the recommended way to avail the rebook facility. Make sure to cancel your booking in advance to rebook on another flight.

• Firstly, go to Southwest Airlines official site.
• Secondly, find “Change or Cancel” on the top of the homepage.
• After that, input your requested details, such as confirmation number, last name, and first name.
• Choose “Cancel,” and click on the “Search” option, and it will open up your booking details.
• Choose the “Rebook” option, and enter your new flight priorities.
• Follow the instructions prompted on the screen to confirm your flight booking in the snap of a finger.

Frequently Asked Questions