Ryanair, the low-end airline, is reportedly demanding that customers return money refunded to them during the pandemic for booked flights they could not take due to lockdowns and other covid restrictions.
The airline refused to refund affected passengers unable to travel, leading many to successfully seek chargebacks from their credit card company, in particular American Express.
Three of those passengers, who went on to make new bookings with Ryanair to travel this year, have been told they can only fly Ryanair again if they return the sum reclaimed. One passenger was given this ultimatum just hours before they were due to fly.
MSE said in at least two instances Ryanair's fraud department had demanded the refunds of between £400 and £630.
You may have agreed to Ryanair's "no refunds" policy, but sadly for Ryanair it agreed to the banks' "yes refunds" policy. This is perhaps why the airline publicly denied it would blacklist customers who get refunds through credit card companies—because that would break the contractual obligations that come with accepting credit cards in the first place. But the airline's essential nature is why it blacklisted them anyway. Book travel with Ryanair, get treated worse than cattle.
Just a few days ago UK's toothless regulators dropped their investigation into Ryanair and British Airways' ripping off customers during the pandemic, claiming they simply didn't have the resources to investigate.
The regulator said on Thursday the protracted time a court battle would take, coupled with the uncertainty of winning, meant it could no longer justify the expense of pursuing the case.
The same spineless rationale that UK prosecutors often offer for declining to prosecute rape cases there.
