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NEWS


Abta backs agents in dispute over Ryanair refunds


Ben Ireland


Abta insists customers should be entitled to airline refunds “irrespective of how the booking was made” and has confirmed multiple complaints about Ryanair’s refusal to refund via third parties. The budget carrier has long


insisted it does not recognise travel agents and tour operators, and during the pandemic has said customers must claim refunds directly using forms on its website. Simpson Travel last week said


Ryanair owed it £46,000 in refunds


for cancelled flights that were part of package holidays that Simpson had sold as ‘organiser’ and for which Simpson was therefore liable to refund customers. But Ryanair argues it “has no


liability or debt to any third-party travel agent or tour operator” and said any such bookings were “unauthorised”. It insists “all refunds are due to passengers only”, under EU Regulation 261. An Abta spokesperson said:


“Throughout the pandemic, certain airlines have performed better than others in refunding customers for


Ryanair says it is liable for refunds only for passengers who book direct


cancelled bookings. We have received complaints from members in relation to bookings made with Ryanair, where refunds would only be made if the customer has completed a customer verification form.” Abta insisted customers are entitled


to a refund “irrespective of how the booking was made”, and within seven days, under EU Regulation 261. Last week, the Irish Travel Agents’


Association (ITAA) accused Ryanair of owing €20 million in refunds to its members’ customers – a combination of package and direct bookings made


for flights that were cancelled due to Covid-19. Ryanair claimed it had “no


backlog of consumer refunds” because it had repaid every customer who booked direct and requested a valid refund. It accused the trade of charging “excessive fees” and “failing to communicate” the process to clients. But the ITAA defended


members’ fees, described Ryanair as “disingenuous” for not recognising third parties as its fares are available via GDSs, and criticised the airline’s refunds policy as “cumbersome”.


OTAs face refunds probe by CMA Ian Taylor


Online travel agents are under fire for failing to pay cancellation refunds, with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announcing an investigation into Teletext Holidays and consumer group Which? accusing lastminute.com of breaching a refunds commitment to the CMA. At the same time, the UK’s biggest


OTA, On the Beach, claimed in a trading update to be “delivering best-in-class customer service by refunding customers whose holidays are cancelled in advance of receipt of refunds from airlines”. On the Beach quit Abta last September rather than stick to


travelweekly.co.uk


the association’s requirement that package customers be refunded in full when the Foreign Office advises against travel to a destination. However, Travel Weekly under-


stands On the Beach is paying full refunds in advance of receiving airline repayments only where the flight element of a package was cancelled and not where a flight operated despite government guidance. A source confirmed On the Beach


is making full refunds “in anticipation of receipt of refunds from an airline where a flight was cancelled, not where an airline operated a ‘ghost flight’”. The CMA announced its


investigation of Teletext last week, saying it had received “hundreds of complaints that people were


not receiving refunds for package holidays”. It noted: “In some instances, Teletext customers reported they were promised refunds by a certain date only to have that date pushed back.” CMA chief executive Andrea


Coscelli said: “We’ll be engaging with Teletext to establish whether the law has been broken.” The CMA has previously


secured refund commitments from Loveholidays, lastminute.com,


Virgin Holidays and Tui UK. A spokesperson for Teletext Holidays, trading name of Truly Travel, said: “The business will work closely with the CMA to reach a satisfactory outcome for customers.” Which? welcomed the


investigation and separately accused lastminute.com of breaching a promise to the CMA in December to pay refunds for cancellations up to December 2 by the end of January. The OTA told Travel Weekly sister


title Travolution: “We confirm our full commitment [to] meet the deadlines agreed with the CMA.” A CMA spokesperson said: “Should


it become clear [lastminute.com] has breached these undertakings, we’ll consider further action.”


11 FEBRUARY 2021 7


PICTURE: Shutterstock


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