“Don’t Do What Donny Don’t Does” — Help my friend untangle a mess of a reservation.

I’ve got this friend, let’s call him Joey Jojo Jr. Shabadoo. Joey had a trip to Europe scheduled for him and his girlfriend, but then he broke his leg and had to cancel the entire trip. Joey also eschews the points and miles game, as he considers it an obscene waste of time, which means he paid for the trip with actual money. To make matters less straightforward, the flight was marketed by Delta, operated by Air France, and sold by Expedia.

Now that he canceled the trip, Joey has an email from Expedia letting him know that he has two credits (one for him and one for his girlfriend) that can be used toward future travel, although the credits are non-transferrable and can only be used to book travel in the same name as the original ticket.

Joey came to me with some questions, since I present myself like some sort of travel guru, although in this case I have no idea. I avoid using online travel agencies, since I find it easier to deal with airlines and hotels directly, so I don’t really know what happens when you unwind a ticket purchased through Expedia. That’s why I’m posing the question to my legions of readers, in hopes that you all can be like little Rory Calhouns and help me answer Joey’s multi-part question.

First: does Joey have to use Expedia to re-book the ticket, or is the credit with Delta (meaning he would be able to call Delta and rebook directly)?

Second: Although the credit is in Joey’s name, can he use it to book a future Delta ticket in his name and then pay a change fee to change the name to someone else?

I know you usually come here for answers rather than questions, although this is an area where I know almost nothing, and it adds an interesting wrinkle to the whole flight booking process. I’m hoping there are a few Expedia experts out there who can offer some insight. Anyone who responds will get a complimentary six-month subscription to Windbag Premium.