Airline bosses could be forced to green-light automatic refunds for travellers who have suffered disruption
- Calls for automatic flight refunds intensify amidst half term travel chaos
- Customers currently have to apply individually to flight operators
- A government report has recommended forcing operators to pay compensation
Airlines could be forced to give holidaymakers automatic refunds for travel disruption under plans being considered by ministers.
At present, travellers must apply for a refund manually and some who struggle to get them are forced to hire claims management companies.
Some operators have claimed cancellations or delays are not their fault, and so they are not liable to pay a refund.
However, automatic refunds will not be in place this summer because it will take months for legislation to pass through Parliament.
UK consumers currently have to apply manually to their airline for compensation if their flight is delayed or cancelled
Whitehall sources said officials were looking at how automatic refunds could be brought in to bring aviation into line with the rail industry
It comes as thousands of half-term travellers have endured chaos at airports, with hundreds of flights cancelled or delayed in recent days.
There are also fears of chaos this summer if travel bosses don’t get to grips with a staff shortage crisis within the next six weeks. This is when the peak summer season begins.
Whitehall sources said officials were looking at how automatic refunds could be brought in to bring aviation into line with the rail industry.
Travellers in recent weeks have complained that some operators are claiming cancellations or delays weren’t their fault, and are therefore not liable to pay a refund.
They have reported waiting weeks for refunds after some operators became swamped with requests. A new system would aim to override this.
Last month a report by the Commons transport committee recommended forcing operators to pay automatic compensation.
The report said: ‘Even when airline passengers are entitled to a refund, they can struggle to secure the refunds that they are owed.
EasyJet is just one of multiple airlines which has cancelled swathed of flights this week
‘Those challenges apply to both individual passengers and travellers who book flights through third parties.
‘Accessing refunds from airlines has been a long-standing challenge for consumers, pre-dating the coronavirus pandemic.
‘Therefore, consumers sometimes hire claims management companies (CMCs) to secure refunds that they are entitled to.
‘The Government must introduce a mechanism to ensure that when entitled to a refund by law, airline passengers are granted automatic compensation, eliminating the need for customers manually to apply for a refund.’
Rocio Concha, policy director at consumer champion Which?, said: ‘Poor treatment of passengers by some airlines has become routine – as we saw with carriers ignoring their legal obligations on refunds, rerouting and passenger rights during the pandemic and recent chaos at our airports.
‘There is much work to be done to restore consumer trust and the government must deliver reforms that work for passengers.’
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