Important Claim Info

A question about : Important Claim Info

Just had some success with refunds after I got stuck in Spain last week and some info that might help others to claim.

I had tickets with Ryanair and Monarch. The Ryanair refund system would not work for me. i just got an ok to submit message but i received no confirmation of submission after various attempts.

Try calling Ryanair (I know its 10p per min, but I was on the phone for only 5 mins) and ask for a refund on your card. I'm expecting mine to go through tomorrow according to the customer service rep.

I also checked the fax number for EU261 expenses claims (for my hotel and food costs whilst I was delayed) the customer service rep told me to fax the form (which you can download from ryanair website) to 00353 1812 1676. This number is different to the one on the form. The rep said it was better to fax the form to the number she supplied.

Same system with Monarch. They ask you to send an email to volcanic ash claims department. I got email confirmations but no one replies, so I just called and they have done a refund of my flight over the telephone. However, they were uncertain about my claim for alternative transportation and suggested I wait until a form arrives from the claims department which might take 28 days.

I'm going to try a Section 75 credit card claim if I get no joy from either Ryanair or Monarch for the alternative travel and expenses that eventually got me home.

My travel insurance company (Fortis) which I got free with A&L online account are honouring volcanic ash cancellations and I'm now waiting for the airlines to send written confirmation of cancellations so that I can put in a delay claim.

The message is do not be put off by the airlines web info that states you must send email, etc. Make the call, because it worked out cheaper than the interest rates on my credit card for all the bills I racked up whilst I was stuck.

My advice is not to travel at the moment, if you can cancel and get yer money back.

Best answers:

• I hate to reply to my own thread but I wanted to post this update and let other people know.
  I got an emaiil from Ryanair this evening stating:
  Ryanair sincerely apologise for the cancellation of your recent flight which was caused by the closure of European airspace following the volcanic eruption in Iceland. As you will be aware this disruption was completely outside the control of any airline.
  We wish to confirm that your refund has been processed back to the original form of payment used when making your original flight reservation and this refund should be reflected on your account within 7 working days.
  The amount refunded to your credit/debit card is GBP54.49.
  As you requested a refund please be advised that in accordance with EU Regulation 261 you do not have any further claim against the airline.
  Due to the mass disruption and to ensure that we can promptly process all valid claims we cannot enter into further correspondence with customers regarding claims not covered under Regulation EU261/04. If you have submitted a claim for expenses in addition to your refund request, I regret that no response can be provided. Ryanair strongly recommend that all claims for expenses not covered under Regulation EU261 should be claimed directly from your travel insurer.
  Is this legal? I'm still making my expenses claim as both my original and re-booked flight were both cancelled by Ryanair and I had to stay in Spain for longer than expected.
  I also notice on Ryanairs website has now updated to "clearly" state the options open to passengers affected by the ash cloud:
  What I am entitled to under EU Regulation 261?
  If your flight is cancelled the EU261 Regulation provides that you are entitled to choose between either of the following:
  (a) Full Refund - The airline will provide a full refund on your unused airfare. (If you chose to make alternative transport arrangements i.e. car hire, trains, ferries etc. these costs are not covered under EU261 and therefore no claims should be submitted), or
  (b) *re-routing, on the next available flight to your final destination, or
  (c) re-routing, on a future flight, to your final destination at a later date at your convenience.
  *If, you select option (b) - the EU261 Regulation requires an airline to provide:
  (i) meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the waiting time;
  (ii) two telephone calls, telex or fax messages or e-mails;
  (iii) reasonable hotel accommodation in cases of a stay of one or more nights;
  (iv) reasonable transport between the airport and place of accommodation (hotel or other).
  I'm faxing over my expenses claim and a letter of complaint tomorrow, regardless of the email from Ryanair. I should be entitled to a refund of my flight anyway and I shouldnt have to choose between the refund and claiming expenses. I've made it clear in the letter of complaint I did choose option b but was offered no assistance with accomodation or meals. I had to book my own accom to stay on for the re-booked flight. Eventually, I made my own way home by alternative means after the re-booked flight was cancelled. Therefore, how can I choose option b again??? Confusing or what?
  Does anyone else agree and find themselves in a similar position with Ryanair?
• You didn't choose option B, as you wanted a refund of your flight instead.
  Unfortunately, Ryanair's right with this one.
  What you needed to do was not get a refund and simply be re-routed/booked on another flight. By asking for and accepting a refund, you've lost your rights to any further compensation.
• Hi Smartbear1 - if it helps I am in the same situation and this is the info I can provide:
  I was stranded overseas too, with Ryanair cancelling and rescheduling my flight several times. With no way of contacting them and hearing in the press that they would not reimburse any expenses I simply could not afford to stay any longer eventually returned under my own steam. On getting back I phoned the Air Transport Users Council for advice as Ryanair had finally agreed that it would reimburse. As I was back before the rescheduled flight was due, I asked them what I should do to ensure I did not jeopardise my claim for expenses – i.e. cancel the flight or simply let it lapse? Their advice was clear – that I should cancel the flight and accept a refund as the issue of expenses was entirely separate under the EU regulations and Ryanair was liable.
  I too got Ryanair’s recent email telling me that having cancelled I was not eligible for expenses so I rang ATUC again. They reiterated their earlier advice and advised me to continue with the claim, and to send copies of all correspondence to them. I have done this (recorded delivery to Ryanair as well as by fax).
  Below is an earlier post I made on another site, in case any of it applies to you also.
  Hi All
  Has anyone any idea of the position if receipts for expenses can't be provided? Ryanair insisted at the airport and in the media that passengers would get nothing at all, so in the melee to get home that ensued, keeping receipts seemed the least of our problems. We were stuck overseas nearly a week and have receipts for hotels but not for any other expenses. Reading the EU regs it seems clear that not only should Ryanair have helped, but they should also have advised passengers of their rights. Had I known what my rights were I would have kept receipts for everything. Having failed in their duty, indeed, having actively misled customers, can they use this to get out of paying out? On their website they certainly say they won't pay out without receipts.
  Ryanair also failed everyone by the lack of information and by providing no real means of contact - closed their airport desk and gave only a recorded message costing a fortune. After having successive flights cancelled and offered nothing but a possible flight the following week, we finally travelled overland. If they had been contactable, passengers could have made an informed decision and may have chosen to avoid the huge expense incurred in overland travel. Their website says they have no responsibility for this either. If anyone has any thoughts on either of the above it would be gratefully received.
  On a bright note, never thought I'd say this but British Rail deserve praise. Having been ripped off by everyone cashing in on the crisis, it was truly wonderful to finally arrive in London for our onward train and be told that our expired tickets would be honoured free of charge. It almost brought tears to the eyes.
• Just wanted to add my bit:
  I was delayed by 15 hours - overnight - so took taxi into Torremolinos (Hell!) - managed to find a hotel room after much searching - went for dinner - taxi back to Malaga next day - caught flight home. I have sent my receipts for taxis, hotel and dinner to Ryanair in Dublin and expect to get my money back. Am I right?
• Thanks to everyone who posted.
  Sorry to hear that others share similar problems. The confusion caused by Ryanairs claims system and how it doesn't allow for reschulding and further cancellations seems to be a real problem. I had a similar problem with their form to request written confirmation of delays for insurers. It doesn't provide space for multiple cancellations (so I wrote them all on) and I ticked both the accepted refund and made alternative arrangements. Nightmare!!!
  The AUC and ATUC information is incredibly helpful and I plan to get in touch with them about my claim. I faxed my expense claim off to Ryanair today and I plan to use registered post tomorrow - thanks for the tip on that one! I will post again to let everyone know how things are progressing.
• We were originally going to try to redeem our travelling expenses for our return journey from Ryanair (as we made our way home 6 days later than our original flight date and on the day M O'L made his announcement that they wouldn't be responsible for our expenses at all)but from reading their website thought they at the most would only pay expenses for our hotel stay and meals and that was what we eventually faxed to them (no reponse as yet )
  Should we have attempted to get the cost of the journey back too ?
• Hi Smartbear1, I am in exactly the same position as you and reflector1.
  I have submitted my claim to Ryanair on 10th May by 'Signed for International' post and received the same email as you on 18th May.
  Just wondering if you have made any further progress with your claim ?
  I guess there are literally thousands of others in our position wondering what the next step should be.
  JJ
• So very pleased to hear that others have found support from AUC too - it seems clear we need all the help we can get, taking on Ryanair. Hope you agree that the main thing is not to give up. Given all the strategies they have used so far to try to confuse and put people off I have become cynical enough to think that this is what they are now hoping for.
• Ryanair's Michael O'Leary has just been on BBC Breakfast News and said that all refunds for cancelled flights should be processed by the end of this week but that expenses claims might be another 4 to 6 weeks.
• Cityboy - think you are right about the AUC - they told me they can only exert pressure, but if the legal avenue is necessary the hope is that it will be a class action as so many people are affected. Thanks also to fifeken for the update.
• I sent a claim form for accomodation costs to Ryanair for our 4 extra nights in hotel before we gave up and returned by other means (absorbing the costs involved)
  I've received an email from them today sayIng they are refunding my return flight as requested and they have no other obligation under the EU regulation
  "As you requested a refund please be advised that in accordance with EU Regulation 261 you do not have any further claim against the airline"
  " If you have submitted a claim for expenses in addition to your refund request, I regret that no response can be provided"
  I at NO point requested a refund I made a claim only for expenses .Are they allowed to do this because we did not take our new flight back ? (we could only get one 10 days after the original date which was way too long to wait) I'm thinking that they have done this as it is cheaper than the accomodation costs.
  Any advice gratefully rec'd
  I cannot reply to email but they have given a fax number I can respond to. Which I will be
• Hi everyone,
  my first booking with Ryanair (to come back from Venice to London Stansted) was re-routed to Venice-Bari with the hope of getting a flight back from Bari to Stansted later. We flew to Bari alright but the flight back to Stansted was then also cancelled. There was then no other flight back for another week. We attempted to get re-routed to Northern Europe in a different manner, with a flight from Bari or Brindisi to Brussels Charleroi but were told this was not possible due to different origin and destination. Instead of re-routing we WERE ADVISED by airport personnel to cancel the first flight and then book another flight which we did. However even the flight from Brindisi to Charleroi was cancelled and we decided to make our way home by hiring a car, driving thru Italy, Switzerland and France and then took the ferry back to the UK.
  We have submitted a claim for expenses but in the meantime, had already cancelled the flights onine as well, as we were told that Michael O'Leary would not refund anything else.
  All claims were submitted at the end of April (online for flights, by mail and fax for expenses).
  At the end of May, I got a partial refund for the Brindisi to Charleroi flight (but no email acknowledgment or explanation).
  On May 26, my husband received 2 emails with 2 different reference numbers. The first reference number does not apply to any of the flights we booked for that holiday and the email says that as we requested a refund for the flight we are not entitled to anything else.
  The second reference number applies to the original booking Stansted-Venice and back, and the email says that it may take up to 28 working days to process our claim.
  I hope that means we will finally see our money back for hotel nights, restaurants etc. I hope Ryanair also realizes that we ended up even further south due to their re-routing and that it then took us an extra day to drive back thru no fault of our own.
  If we do not hear from them anymore we will contact the AUC as a last resort.
  Good luck to everyone in the same situation!
• I think it is worth pointing out that the staff at the Airports are not Ryanair Staff but sub contractors, we found this out at Malaga.
  They tried to get us to cancel & take the refund, but as we pointed out at the time, complete waste of time & flew back 3 days later with Ryanair, our claim is in for our extended 3 days
  As has previously been mentioned on the board if you cancelled / took the refund then there appears to be very little chance of a refund of the expenses.
  I completely agree that the boss of Ryanair said he wasn't going to pay a penny despite the EU Regs, which would then have informed your decision about getting back to the UK.
  There are probably far wiser people on this board who can advise if you can take action against Ryanair based on what was publically said by O'leary
• I'm finally filling in the expense form and have a few doubts about it. I want to make sure it's perfect because I'm sure if there is anything wrong they won't refund the money!
  1 - Where is says specify currency I have put what I paid in Ј in Ј (i.e the air fair paid and public transport expenses in UK because of being re-routed to Liverpool instead of Stansted) and everything else in Euros (hotel expenses and breakfast and dinner expenses). Am I right to do this, or should everything be converted into Ј (since I'm assuming they will pay us by way of transfer or cheque and my account is British), as in the Total (specify currency) part I'm sure they are looking for one figure in one currency? If so, which exchange rate would I use, or would they decide that? either way, how do I come to one figure if I can't add them up as they are in different currencies? (Sorry if I'm over complicating this? lol)
  2 - Air Fare Paid... well I paid in total Ј59.95 for the return flight including 1 bag (Ј30). What exactly consistutes the "Air Fair Paid"?? The actual fair (which was exactly 0.02p) or the taxes, online check in and bag? Plus, are they refunding just the return flight, afterall the outbound flight was fine... Basically what should I write in that box?
  3 - As regards to the Breakfast and Dinner expenses, if I have a receipt between 3 people for 40 euros, for example, am I meant to claim all of it, although the bill was divided between 3 people?
  Out of interest, has anyone seen any sight of a refund for their expenses? It says we aren't supposed to send receipts, will they ask for these in due course?
  Thank you for your patience
• Again, thanks to all that posting on this thread. Ryanair are a complete shambles. Recorded letters sent re. my claims (see earlier posts), no response at all. ATUC have sent me a standard it will take 6 weeks for us to reply letter, but have heard nothiing since.
  Was feeling irritated but gave in to calling Ryanair at their awful phone line charges for 20 mins and got standard reply of "a manager will contact you shortly about your letter". It's not looking good getting those hotel expenses back.
  To top it all off, my insurance company is desperate to give me a Ј100 as a gesture towards flight cancellation, but Ryanair haven't even sent back the cancellation confrimation form... so I can't even claim that back, which would help pay off the credit card.
  Does anyone think a solicitors letter to Ryanair might help with a threat of small claims court?
• This thread hopefuly might help
  https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/....php?t=2552467