My partner and I are planning to cancel flights we booked to Japan in early July due to life circumstances changing and no longer being able to accomodate the trip into our lives.
Having spoken to Jetstar support, they have told us we aren't eligible for a refund or credit, as it was a "Starter" fare. We have paid $2700 total, and this seems kinda outrageous. They have told us we can reschedule the flights, however we aren't particularly interested in this, and it will cost us $500+ in change fees.
Do we have any options or are we screwed?
Edit: I should also mention that we have pending changes to our flight that require confirmation, however it's nothing substantial - basically just removing a layover on the way there.
Edit 2 : Flights were purchased using a 28 degrees cc, which I think has some travel cover, but I'm not sure what it includes.
If they have made a change to your itinerary, you may be able to say it no longer suits you and request a refund. I recall doing this a few years ago with Tiger after the flight time changed by 15 minutes.
You could also consider reselling the tickets to somebody (FB Marketplace). It looks like the name change fee $80 (unsure if per passenger or per booking). You might recover 50%-75% of your fare but is a bit risky.
Last option - are you "life circumstances" something that could be covered by Insurance, either through your credit card/airline/independent insurance that you smartly took out at the time of booking the flights? Something like a family bereavement may be in scope for an insurance claim?
Good luck