By Coupons, sales and cost comparisons are some of the most popular ways to save money these days. But there are also lesser-known tricks to putting more dough back in your wallet—and all you must do is be proactive! You’d be surprised how often you can get money back on purchases, have fees waived or get discounts applied to a bill. Keep reading to find out more about the many unexpected refunds and credits that you can receive for common expenses.
Late packages can get you a refund
If you’re expecting or sending a package, you could get your money back if it did not arrive by the expected delivery date. For example, USPS may issue you a refund if a Priority Mail Express package arrives after the guaranteed delivery date and time. You can apply for a refund online, but it needs to be done within 30 days.
Amazon, UPS and FedEx also offer free money-back guarantees for certain shipments if they didn’t arrive by the promised delivery date. Each carrier service has its own rules about what is eligible, however, so be sure to visit the appropriate website.
Price drops with airline tickets
Traveling certainly isn’t cheap, and airline tickets are just one of the many expenses you’ll likely encounter when booking a getaway. If the airline fare changes within the 24 hours after you’ve purchased the ticket, you’re usually able to cancel the old ticket and receive a full refund. Then you can buy the new ticket—at the lower price—without a hassle.
After this 24-hour period is up, all hope is not lost. There are still ways to get a refund based on the policies of major airlines, shares ThePointsGuy.com.
- Alaska Airlines: You can receive a travel credit to rebook if the price drops (except for saver fares).
- American Airlines: There are no change or cancellation fees for business-class, first-class, premium economy or Main Cabin fares. They will therefore re-price your ticket for a less expensive fare.
- Delta Airlines: There’s no change fee for most domestic flights, so if your flight is eligible for a free change, contact the customer service to reprice your ticket.
- Frontier Airlines: There’s no fee to change your ticket for Basic and Standard fees as long as it’s at least 60 days before your flight. Economy, Premium and Business fares are always 100 percent refundable, so if your flight has a price drop, you can call and receive a full refund as a price credit.
- JetBlue: With any fare except Blue Basic, you can cancel your flight for free and rebook using the travel credit.
- Southwest: No change fees means you can switch your flight (for the lower price) to one you already booked online.
- Spirit Airlines: Bundled fares are exempt from change fees which makes it easy to book the flight at a lower cost.
- United Airlines: For any fare above a basic economy ticket, you can change your flight for free and see the credit you’ll receive. However, you may need to change to a different flight that day as the system usually doesn’t allow you to modify your trip to the exact same flight and fare when booking online.
Poor hotel experience
Few things can ruin a vacation more than an issue with lodging. In general, hotels want to appease their customers and will do what they can to make up for a stay that didn’t meet expectations.
“If you are unhappy with your stay due customer service experience, dirty hotel room etc. you can often request a partial refund or get credit towards a future stay,” says budgeting pro Andrea Woroch. Reach out to hotel management or the travel agency through which you booked.
Retail price drops
When you’ve recently purchased an item, the last thing you want to see is that the same product is now on sale for other customers. But you may be able to get the amount you would have saved back—it just takes a little extra effort. It’s also a good idea to make sure you have your receipt, as many retailers require it for a partial refund.
Start by checking the store’s return policy and reaching out to customer service. “In many cases, the retailer will refund the difference between what you paid and the sale price as long as your purchase was within a specified time—often 14 days,” write the experts at ConsumerReports.org. “If they can’t or won’t refund to the original form of payment, you may be issued a store credit.”
Some credit cards also offer benefits that allow you to file a claim and get a partial refund in the event of a price drop rather than getting the money back from the retailer.
Airline issues
A price drop in airfare isn’t the only way you could end up with a credit from an airline.
“If your flight is delayed or canceled and it’s the airline’s fault (not weather), you could get a credit, a meal voucher, or even money back,” says financial planner Nadia Vanderhall, founder of The Brands and Bands Strategy Group. “Don’t just sit there frustrated — go to the counter or reach out online and ask what they can offer.”
But even if your flight does happen, an unpleasant experience could allow you to receive some sort of refund.
“Similar to hotels, if you experienced any displeasure with your flight due to TV/entertainment system not working, poor customer service, uncomfortable chairs, major delays due to the flight crew or airline issues, filing a complaint could get you a credit towards a future flight,” says Woroch.
Product refunds that lead to freebies
While price drops can lead to partial refunds from some retailers, you may be lucky enough to get other goods for free! Many popular companies will completely reimburse you for the cost of their products (anything from coffee to clothes) via “freebate” offers. The hope is that by encouraging customers to try their products, they’ll like them enough to continue buying.
As part of these offers, you buy the item, upload your receipt and eventually receive a full refund via PayPal, Venmo or Visa gift cards. Find regular freebate at Freebie-Depot.com, HeyItsFree.net, MySavings.com and in the Ibotta cashback app.
Auto insurance discounts
For those who used to commute and now work from home or are retired, you’re likely overpaying on car insurance. But you might be able to get some money back if you reach out to the company.
“Your rate is based partly on how much you drive,” says Vanderhall. “So if your car is parked 90 percent of the time, call your insurer and update your mileage. Ask them if they offer a low-mileage discount or work-from-home pricing.”
Other credits and discounts your insurance company may offer:
- Having safety devices installed
- Getting your vehicle regularly inspected
- Taking defensive driving courses
Unnecessary medical bill charges
When dealing with large medical bills, there can be extra charges that really rack up the cost. For that reason, you should always ask for an itemized bill so you can get a better understanding of what exactly you need to be paying.
“You’d be surprised how many random charges show up or how much they’ll knock off just for asking,” comments Vanderhall. “And if the bill is too much all at once, see if they’ll set up a payment plan or give you a cash discount.”
Internet or TV outage
It can be frustrating when you need to access the Internet at home and can’t because of a blackout. If you’re dealing with an outage for more than 24 hours, you might be able to get a credit for discounted service.
Here are some major providers that may be willing to work with you:
- AT&T
- Century Link
- Cox
- Dish
- Frontier
- Spectrum
- Verizon Fios
- Xfinity
As their policies vary, it’s best to reach out to your individual provider’s customer service team to see if they can issue you a credit.
Inflated rent
Feel like the price of your rental unit is too high compared to others in the area? Try negotiating!
“If you’re a good tenant and the market rent around you has gone down, bring that up when it’s time to renew,” suggests Vanderhall. “You might not get a huge drop, but you could get a discount or some fees waived.”
Credit card fees
Late fees can be quite hefty for most credit cards, but staying on top of your payments can make it easy to get some of those nixed.
“If you got slapped with a late payment but you typically pay your card on time, you may be able to get this fee reversed on your account,” says Woroch. “I have had success with this and have even had a credit card company reverse the interest they charged when I realized I paid my account late.”
This can also help with bank fees (such as overdraft and checking account maintenance fees). Contact your credit card company or bank to see if they can cut you a little slack.
