Can refund replace unusable vouchers? [...] the doctor says he will be unable to fly for the rest of his life. When the Southwest agent rescheduled our flight, she marked some of our payment as vouchers. [...] last week, we got a portion back, but we’re still missing $312. If you cancel them, you can get a ticket credit valid for a year from the date of the initial reservation. Strictly speaking, your method of payment didn’t matter. [...] airlines sometimes bend their own rules when a passenger can show a hardship, in the interest of good customer service. Southwest appeared willing to offer a refund as a gesture of goodwill. [...] as you note, a clerical error caused the airline to believe that you had paid for part of your ticket with a voucher. Remember, paper trails work better than making phone calls.