Trains Free Cancellation (ixigo Assured or Assured Flex)
Last Update : Sept 02,2024
Process Flow:
Introduction:
Free Cancellation or ixigo Assured entitles a user to a full refund of the ticket fare in case of voluntary cancellation, protecting them from IRCTC's cancellation penalties. Users can avail of Free Cancellation regardless of ticket availability at the time of booking. The full refund of ticket fare is instantly initiated upon voluntary cancellation and can be received within a couple of hours, depending on the original payment method and platform used (it may take longer for credit cards). The user can choose the refund source only when using the Trains app. No separate claim for free cancellation is required.
T&Cs: https://www.ixigo.com/ixigo-assured-trains-policy
Free Cancellation Important Points:
- Only full ticket fare will be refunded under Free Cancellation.
- ixigo fee, IRCTC convenience fee, IRCTC insurance, PG charges and Free Cancellation premium paid is non-refundable.
- The premium for free cancellation may change if the fare or ticket status (AVL/WL/RAC) changes before the final payment.
- To avail refund under free cancellation, the booking must be cancelled at least 4 hours prior to the scheduled train departure or before the chart preparation (whichever is earlier).
- Under free cancellation refund is processed automatically and credited to the refund medium selected. The user can choose his refund source only in case of using the trains app
- In case of Train cancellation full refund of the ticket fare is automatically processed by IRCTC.
- Users can avail Free Cancellation on Tatkal tickets and Current Availability tickets as well.
- For Current availability ticket FC benefit will be provided if the user cancels the ticket at least 30 minutes prior to scheduled departure of the train.
- Users are eligible for full refund of ticket fare under free cancellation in case a full waitlisted or a Tatkal full waitlisted ticket is auto cancelled.
Work instructions:
Full Refund not received:
Step No. | Process Steps | Action | Ownership |
1.0 | Customer contact received stating he/she didn’t receive full refund despite having Free cancellation, |
| Customer |
1.1 | Collect below details from the customer - Trip ID or PNR (either) to check the cancellation timing of the shared booking | Enter the details provided by the customer in OneView. Once details are fetched, confirm the booking id and amount, the customer is referring to and check the cancellation window | L1 |
1.2 | Ticket Cancelled before chart preparation or 4 hours of the schedule departure of the train (whichever is earlier) | Advisor to inform the customer to wait for 7 days for getting the remaining amount processed and raise to L2. | L1 |
1.3 | L2 to fetch the case from Freshdesk | L2 will raise a Jira and assign it to the Rostered tech agent for getting the remaining amount processed. PO Team to inform the user about the final resolution via call/email and resolve the ticket. | L2 |
1.4 | Ticket not cancelled before chart preparation or 4 hours of the schedule departure of the train (whichever is earlier) |
| Customer |
1.5 |
| Advisor to inform the customer accordingly and deny for the full refund of the ticket fare citing reasons and close the case. | L1 |
FaQs:
- Question - Will I receive a refund under the Assured policy if I cancel a waitlisted ticket after the chart has been prepared? Answer - No, if a customer cancels a waitlisted ticket after the chart preparation, they will not receive the benefits of the Assured policy. According to the Assured policy, tickets must be canceled before the chart is prepared or at least 4 hours in advance, whichever comes first.
- Question - Can I cancel all the passengers in a PNR individually and still receive the benefits of the Assured policy? Answer : Yes, you can cancel the passengers in a PNR one by one and still be eligible for the benefits of the Assured policy.
- Question : I didn’t opt for the Assured policy, but it was still applied? Answer - We would like to inform you that the Assured policy is only added to the booking if the user selects it at the time of booking.
- Question : Customer looking for refund of Assured premium in case of Train? Answer - We apologise for the inconvenience caused to you. However, as the Free cancellation feature (ixigo Assured) protects you from the penalty imposed by IRCTC upon voluntary cancellation, the premium paid for it is non-refundable.Also, charges paid for the IRCTC Convenience Fee, Agent Service Charge are non refundable too.For more information about ixigo Assured, please visit this link: https://www.ixigo.com/ixigo-assured-trains-policy
- Question : Customer disputing the Free Cancellation/Assured-Benefits? Answer - We understand that cancelling your ticket may not result in a favourable refund, given that your Free Cancellation premium exceeds the IRCTC penalty. However, if the tickets get confirmed, and you decide to cancel them before chart preparation (within 4-12 hours of the train's scheduled departure), IRCTC will apply a 50% cancellation charge on the ticket fare. But with ixigo Assured, you can avoid this penalty. For additional details on cancellation and refund regulations, please refer to the IRCTC rules at https://contents.irctc.co.in/en/REFUND%20RULES%20 wef%2012-Nov-15.pdf.
- Question - Can I avail assured benefit for tickets booked under current availability? Answer - Current Availability' bookings must be cancelled at least 30 minutes prior to the scheduled train departure to avail free cancellation benefits.
- Question - Can the Assured benefit be applied to Tatkal confirmed or waitlisted bookings? Answer - Yes, it can be applied to any Tatkal booking. However, the condition is that tickets must be canceled before the chart is prepared or at least 4 hours in advance, whichever comes first.
- Question - Why am I not getting a refund for the Assured premium even though my train was canceled? Answer - The Assured premium cannot be refunded because it is designed to protect customers from any monetary loss in case of voluntary cancellation. Since a train cancellation is considered an involuntary cancellation, and you will receive a full refund of the ticket fare regardless (which the Assured policy also guarantees), the Assured premium cannot be refunded.
- Question - Why was a higher amount taken as the Assured premium when my waitlist penalty is only INR 60 or INR 65? Answer - We understand that in this case, the Assured policy didn't result in a favorable refund or outcome since your Free Cancellation premium exceeds the IRCTC penalty. However, if your tickets had been confirmed and you chose to cancel them before chart preparation (within 4-12 hours of the train's scheduled departure), IRCTC would apply a 50% cancellation charge on the ticket fare. With ixigo Assured, you could have avoided this penalty.
- Question - I opted for ixigo Assured but didn’t receive any policy document. Why is that? Answer - We would like to inform you that no additional documentation is required to avail of the Assured service. Your ticket copy serves as proof of availing its benefits.
- Question : What is the benefit of having Flex my premium is double the penalty I paid? Answer - We understand that cancelling your ticket may not result in a favourable refund, given that your Free Cancellation premium exceeds the IRCTC penalty. However, if the tickets get confirmed, and you decide to cancel them before chart preparation (within 4-12 hours of the train's scheduled departure), IRCTC will apply a 50% cancellation charge on the ticket fare. But with ixigo Assured, you can avoid this penalty. For additional details on cancellation and refund regulations, please refer to the IRCTC rules at https://contents.irctc.co.in/en/REFUND%20RULES%20 wef%2012-Nov-15.pdf