KLM Fare Basis - Anyone Understand?

[mg12]

I am after some advice on KLM fare basis and what it means - YLPX3M.
The story is a long one so I will try and cut to the chase.

I tried to rebook a return leg of my family's journey from UK to Korea, approx 3 weeks later than the originally booked travel date. This was due to my son's hospitalisation. KLM confirmed this was no problem and I subsequently rebooked through the travel agent who originally booked the ticket. Then 1 week after rebooking the return date (and 2 days before the travel) the travel agent informed me via e-mail that my 3 month ticket was actually only valid for 2 months and I could not use it - not quite sure I understand that one!
By this time all economy was sold out for the next 4 days and due to pressing business issues I had to fly my family back on the only 3 available seats on the flight in Business - as you would expect this was extremly expensive. Whilst booking these business class seats myself I asked the KLM agent about what had happened. She explained that she could see from the KLM system that the travel agent had booked the tickets, but not confirmed. As she did not confirm the booking lapsed and someone else took the seats.
I spoke with 3 different KLM reps over a 3 week period and they all said that I could still use the ticket for the return flights and that I would only have to pay a date change fee.
I am trying to get compensation for this from the travel agent who are at present very quiet about my complaints. Does anyone understand what YLPX3M fare basis means and what restrictions there might be?

[zed3]

YLPX3M looks like a PNR , passenger name reference and not a fare type , to me .

[Hartington]

YLPX3M could be a PNR locator but it makes perfect sense as a fare basis code. As a fare basis my interpretation would be:
Y = Prime Code - Economy/Coach Class
L = Seasonal Code - L is always the basic (lowest) season
P = Not sure but probably indicating some form of advance purchase requirement
X = Could be part of the advance purchase indicator (PX) or a weekday fare (if it was a weekend fare it would be a W)
3M = Maximum validity (3 months)
But life is not that simple! Just because the fare basis says the ticket has a 3 month validity doesn't mean it actually does. There will be a box on the ticket somewhere called tour code. If that has anything in it the chances are that the terms of the fare have been modified. Another clue that the terms might not be what the fare basis says are that the fare and total boxes contain the letters IT or BT. Another is that the amount that appears in the fare and total boxes is NOT the amount you actually paid. If any of these caveats apply to your ticket it may not be valid for the 3 months that the fare basis suggests.
There are also boxes called not valid before and not valid after - those dates may be relevant and then there are the endorsements.....

[RevMan2]

Here's a link (http://www.oag.com/oag/website/com/en/Home/Travel+Magazine/Executive+Travel/Travel+Tips/7++Apex+and+Pex+Fares/Pex+and+Superpex+Fares) that might explain it

[mg12]

Thanks for the help.

The ticket does not appear to have any of the letters mentioned or endorsements - maybe because it is an e-ticket.

Still waiting for the travel agent to reply to my complaint. Hopefully this will be a positive answer with compensation.

[Kittycat]

Hi there, I just checked and I cannot find ANY fare basis with that spesific code! I agree that it might be a PNR.
What will really help, is if you can find out in what booking class the ticket was originally booked, then you can pick up the rules of the ticket easier.
(for example V-class, Y-class, etc, a single letter)
If you can post the booking class, I can give you all the rules of the booking class.
Regards, KC.

[mg12]

After checking back on the original booking the class is stated as T. However when I checked the ticket it states that the class is H.
I am more confused! Appreciate any help you can give. Thanks.

[Globaliser]

On the receipt, there should be a single letter after each flight number. It may not be the same letter for the outbound and return sectors. (For example, BA123/M, BA456/L.) That letter will usually be the booking class for that sector.

Do you have a fare calculation line or a column on your ticket receipt? You're looking for something that has the cities between which you're flying, interspersed with a lot of numbers and other codes. You may see the letters NUC and ROE attached to some of the numbers. (These codes stand for something like "Notional Units of Calculation" and "Rate Of Exchange", the former being the virtual currency in which the fare is constructed, and the latter being the exchange rate into real money.) If you can see a fare calculation, you may have the fare basis of the fare charged for each sector.

For example, have a look at this example:-

http://i5.tinypic.com/44kl6cj.jpg

In the upper receipt, you can see on the right hand side that the booking class for each sector was B (JL084/B, JL083/B). But the fare basis was YQGVZ in both directions. You can also see this repeated in the fare calculation line where it says "NGO JL HNL 616.80YQGVZ JL NGO 616.80YQGVZ", with the NUC total and the ROE applied then stated.

Other than that, I'm afraid I'm fresh out of ideas.

[Hartington]

I'm going to post a warning first. The rules I'm about to try and post may not apply in your case. They refer to a YLPX3M KLM fare London/Seoul but they say book Y class. You say your ticket refers to H and T classes. That says to me that this is a deal ticket and is why I was asking about the appearance of IT or BT or a tour code on your ticket. Any one of those three is a sure fire indicator of a deal ticket and the rules WILL be different.

[Hartington]

And here are the actual rules IF, repeat IF, yours is NOT a deal ticket.
013 LONSEL 01MAR07 YY GBP 1379.00 YLPX3MEP STAY-06/3M BK-Y
0. APPLICATION AND OTHER CONDITIONS
RULE - 044/2820
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
TC23 PEX FARES FROM EUROPE TO JAPAN/KOREA -DEM. REP.
OF-/KOREA- REP. OF- //074I//
APPLICATION
AREA
THESE FARES APPLY
FROM EUROPE TO JAPAN/KOREA, REPUBLIC OF/
KOREA,DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF.
CLASS OF SERVICE
THESE FARES APPLY FOR ECONOMY CLASS SERVICE.
TYPES OF TRANSPORTATION
FARES GOVERNED BY THIS RULE CAN BE USED TO CREATE
ROUND-TRIP/CIRCLE-TRIP/OPEN-JAW JOURNEYS.
ORIGIN OPEN JAW - OPEN JAW MUST BE IN THE COUNTRY
OF ORIGIN.
---
FARES ONLY APPLY IF PURCHASED BEFORE DEPARTURE.
EXCEPTION-
MAY BE USED FOR EN-ROUTE UPGRADING FROM A LOWER
FARE PROVIDED ALL CONDITIONS OF THESE FARES ARE
MET.
OTHER CONDITIONS
PASSENGERS EXPENSES NOT PERMITTED
1. ELIGIBILITY
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
NOTE -
EXCEPTION - UNACCOMPANIED INFANT NOT ELIGIBLE.
3. SEASONALITY
BETWEEN UNITED KINGDOM AND AREA 3 FOR BASIC SEASON FARES
PERMITTED 01FEB THROUGH 30APR OR 16MAY THROUGH 30JUN OR
01OCT THROUGH 30NOV ON THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL SECTOR.
5. ADVANCE RES/TICKETING
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR ALL SECTORS.
TICKETING MUST BE COMPLETED WITHIN 72 HOURS AFTER
RESERVATIONS ARE MADE.
6. MINIMUM STAY
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
TRAVEL FROM LAST INTERNATIONAL STOPOVER MUST COMMENCE NO
EARLIER THAN 6 DAYS AFTER DEPARTURE OF THE FIRST
INTERNATIONAL SECTOR.
NOTE -
WAIVER OF MINIMUM STAY - AFTER TICKET ISSUANCE
PERMITTED ONLY IN THE EVENT OF DEATH OF AN
IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER OR AN ACCOMPANYING
PASSENGER.
7. MAXIMUM STAY
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
TRAVEL FROM LAST STOPOVER MUST COMMENCE NO LATER THAN 3
MONTHS AFTER DEPARTURE FROM FARE ORIGIN.
8. STOPOVERS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
NO STOPOVERS PERMITTED.
9. TRANSFERS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
2 TRANSFERS PERMITTED - 1 IN EACH DIRECTION
AT THE DEPARTURE GATEWAY
AT THE ARRIVAL GATEWAY.
NOTE -
SCANDINAVIA IS CONSIDERED AS ONE COUNTRY.
AND - 4 TRANSFERS PERMITTED - 2 IN EACH DIRECTION.
NOTE -
SCANDINAVIA IS CONSIDERED AS ONE COUNTRY.
10. PERMITTED COMBINATIONS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
ADD-ONS PERMITTED.
END-ON-END
END-ON-END COMBINATIONS PERMITTED WITH FARES WITHIN
SCANDINAVIA. VALIDATE ALL FARE COMPONENTS. FARES MUST BE
SHOWN SEPARATELY ON THE TICKET. TRAVEL MUST BE VIA THE
POINT OF COMBINATION.
END-ON-END COMBINATIONS PERMITTED WITH DOMESTIC FARES.
VALIDATE ALL FARE COMPONENTS. FARES MUST BE SHOWN
SEPARATELY ON THE TICKET. TRAVEL MUST BE VIA THE POINT
OF COMBINATION.
END-ON-END NOTE -
END-ON AND SIDE-TRIP COMBINATIONS PERMITTED
WITH DOMESTIC FARES AND FARES WITHIN SCANDINAVIA.
OPEN JAWS/ROUND TRIPS/CIRCLE TRIPS
FARES MAY BE COMBINED ON A HALF ROUND TRIP BASIS
-TO FORM SINGLE OR DOUBLE OPEN JAWS.
A MAXIMUM OF TWO INTERNATIONAL FARE COMPONENTS
PERMITTED.
OPEN JAWS NOTE -
WHEN ORIGIN OPEN JAW - OPEN JAW MUST BE IN
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.
-TO FORM ROUND TRIPS
-TO FORM CIRCLE TRIPS
A MAXIMUM OF TWO INTERNATIONAL FARE COMPONENTS
PERMITTED.
PROVIDED -
COMBINATIONS ARE WITH ANY FARE FOR ANY CARRIER IN THIS
RULE AND TARIFF.
14. TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
VALID FOR TRAVEL COMMENCING ON/AFTER 01APR 06.
15. SALES RESTRICTIONS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
NOTE -
EXTENSION OF VALIDITY NOT PERMITTED FOR
MEDICAL REASONS.
16. PENALTIES
BETWEEN UNITED KINGDOM AND AREA 3
CANCELLATIONS
BEFORE DEPARTURE
CHARGE GBP 75.00 FOR CANCEL/NO-SHOW/REFUND.
CHILD/INFANT DISCOUNTS APPLY.
WAIVED FOR UPGRADE TO HIGHER FARE/DEATH OF PASSENGER
OR FAMILY MEMBER.
NOTE -
CHARGE DOES NOT APPLY TO INFANTS PAYING
10 PCT. OF THE ADULT FARE.
----
UPGRADING - THE NONREFUNDABLE AMOUNT MAY BE USED
AS CREDIT TOWARDS PAYMENT OF ANY HIGHER APPLICABLE
FARE RECALCULATED FROM THE POINT OF UNIT ORIGIN.
THE ORIGINAL NON-REFUNDABLE AMOUNT REMAINS NON-
REFUNDABLE. THE NEW TICKET AND ANY SUBSEQUENT
REISSUES MUST BE ANNOTATED -NONREF/PEX-.
---
IN CASE OF DEATH OF THE PASSENGER OR AN IMMEDIATE
FAMILY MEMBER/AS EVIDENCED BY A DEATH CERTIFICATE/
THE PENALTIES SPECIFIED ABOVE WILL NOT APPLY.
AFTER DEPARTURE
TICKET IS NON-REFUNDABLE.
WAIVED FOR UPGRADE TO HIGHER FARE/DEATH OF PASSENGER
OR FAMILY MEMBER.
NOTE -
UPGRADING - THE NONREFUNDABLE AMOUNT MAY BE USED
AS CREDIT TOWARDS PAYMENT OF ANY HIGHER APPLICABLE
FARE RECALCULATED FROM THE POINT OF UNIT ORIGIN.
THE ORIGINAL NON-REFUNDABLE AMOUNT REMAINS NON-
REFUNDABLE. THE NEW TICKET AND ANY SUBSEQUENT
REISSUES MUST BE ANNOTATED -NONREF/PEX-.
---
IN CASE OF DEATH OF THE PASSENGER OR AN IMMEDIATE
FAMILY MEMBER/AS EVIDENCED BY A DEATH CERTIFICATE/
THE PENALTIES SPECIFIED ABOVE WILL NOT APPLY.
OUTBOUND -
CHANGES
ANY TIME
CHANGES NOT PERMITTED.
INBOUND -
CHANGES
ANY TIME
CHARGE GBP 75.00 FOR REISSUE/REVALIDATION.
CHILD/INFANT DISCOUNTS APPLY.
NOTE -
PERMITTED ONCE AT CHARGE.
---
SUCH TRANSACTION MUST BE MADE NOT LATER THAN THE
DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE FLIGHT BEING CHANGED.
---
INFANT PAYING 10 PCT OF THE ADULT FARE -
NO PENALTY APPLIES.
18. TICKET ENDORSEMENT
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
THE ORIGINAL AND THE REISSUED TICKET MUST BE ANNOTATED -
NONREF/PEX - IN THE FORM OF PAYMENT BOX.
NOTE -
TICKETS MUST SHOW BY THE USE OF AN INSERT OR
STICKER THAT TRAVEL IS AT A SPECIAL FARE AND
SUBJECT TO SPECIAL CONDITIONS.
AND - THE ORIGINAL AND THE REISSUED TICKET MUST BE
ANNOTATED - VOLUNTARY CHNGS RESTRICTED - IN THE
ENDORSEMENT BOX.
19. CHILDREN DISCOUNTS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED NOTE - GENERAL RULE DOES NOT
APPLY
ACCOMPANIED CHILD 2-11 - CHARGE 75 PERCENT OF THE FARE.
TICKET DESIGNATOR - CH AND PERCENT OF DISCOUNT
OR - INFANT UNDER 2 WITH A SEAT - CHARGE 75 PERCENT OF THE
FARE.
TICKET DESIGNATOR - CH AND PERCENT OF DISCOUNT.
NOTE -
UNACCOMPANIED INFANT - NOT PERMITTED
OR - UNACCOMPANIED CHILD 2-7 - CHARGE 100 PERCENT OF THE
FARE
OR - UNACCOMPANIED CHILD 8-11 - CHARGE 100 PERCENT OF THE
FARE
OR - 1ST INFANT UNDER 2 WITHOUT A SEAT - CHARGE 10 PERCENT
OF THE FARE.
TICKET DESIGNATOR - IN AND PERCENT OF DISCOUNT.
NOTE -
UNACCOMPANIED INFANT - NOT PERMITTED
23. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED
NOTE -
FARES TO BE USED FOR FARE CONSTRUCTION CHECK
PURPOSES ONLY