A 16-Year-Old Got Her Dad a $1,500 Refund by Emailing the Airline — He Kept All of It and Commenters Are Questioning the Decision

A post to r/AmItheAsshole asks whether a father was wrong to keep a flight refund instead of giving it to his 16-year-old daughter, after he originally paid for the flight himself. The post had drawn more than 4,500 upvotes and 3,200 comments as of publication.

The father wrote that his daughter received a scholarship covering housing and food for a month-long trip abroad, though the flight cost had to come out of his pocket. He paid $1,500 for the flight himself. On the return trip, her connecting flight was canceled and she was stranded at Los Angeles International Airport for approximately 22 hours without the accommodations she had been promised — a situation her father described as "a mess."

Months later, after the daughter sent emails to the airline describing her experience, the airline agreed to refund the full cost of the flight. The refund landed in the father's account, since he had originally purchased the ticket.

He said he told her he was keeping the money because he had originally paid for the flight and the refund was tied to his purchase, not to her time spent stranded.

He wrote that he explained to her he was keeping the money because he was the one who paid for the flight in the first place, telling her that the refund was tied to his original purchase rather than her time spent stranded. He remains unsure whether that was the right call.

Commenters disagreed over whether the daughter's role in securing the refund gave her a claim to some or all of the money. One suggested a partial payment was reasonable given her role in the outcome. They wrote, "I agree, she isn't entitled to the money, but as she put in some work to get the refund, maybe some money could be given to her. Personally I wouldn't give her more than $250 though."

In an edit added to the post, he clarified that the flight had been canceled due to weather, but the airline agreed to the refund because of how inconvenienced his daughter was at the airport. He also wrote that it was his daughter, not him, who sent the emails that ultimately led to the refund being issued.

Another argued the decision could damage the relationship going forward, regardless of who was technically owed the money. They wrote, "I feel like this is spot on. What I would have taken from it: 'welp I won't inconvenience myself for him ever again'. I guess it's his money but geez that would sow resentment for me."

A different commenter sided fully with the father, arguing the daughter's efforts were something she owed him given his original payment. They wrote, "He paid for her so she should have tried to get his money back because he did such a nice thing for her. Lots of entitled kids in this thread."

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the events described in this post, including the identities of those involved or the specifics of the airline refund process. The details above reflect the original poster's account as shared on r/AmItheAsshole.