Wings clipped by Wow f iasco? You may still have refund options
THE collapse of Wow Air this week leaving thousands of passengers stranded is just the beginning of a massive shake-out in European aviation, according to Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary.
In an interview with the MoS (opposite), Mr O’Leary forecast a raft of rival budget airlines would go bust – before Wow Air did just that, leaving thousands of passengers stranded this week.
Mr O’Leary had earlier infuriated his rivals in the interview by predicting a series of takeovers that he believes will soon leave just five main airlines operating in Europe.
He said many other firms would be forced out of business as they contend with steep fuel prices, Brexit uncertainty and another summer of delays and cancellations caused by strikes.
An industry source last night described Mr O’Leary to the MoS as ‘Machiavellian’ and a ‘troublemaker’.
A Norwegian Air spokesman said his comments had ‘no root in reality’, adding: ‘Norwegian has been through a period of significant growth and, as has been previously announced, the airline will change its strategic focus from expansion and growth to profitability.’
Willie Walsh, chief executive of IAG, this week declined to rule out a future bid for Norwegian, telling reporters: ‘Never say never, but I think it’s unlikely.’
However, the Ryanair boss’s predictions proved prescient as the Icelandic budget airline Wow Air collapsed on Thursday, cancelling flights all over the world.
The closure sparked fury as it was still selling flights hours before it ceased operations.
Hundreds of Irish people are thought to have been caught up in the chaos, which has left passengers clamouring for refunds.
Several customers took to Twitter to slam the airline and reveal that they were stranded.
One furious passenger wrote: ‘Wow Air cancels flight to Dublin from Detroit at the last minute, looks like the company has gone bust.
‘Any chance you can accommodate a family of four on @AerLingus out of Chicago or Tornado tomorrow the 28th? You would make this little girl Maeve very happy to see her cousins.’
Rory Boland, travel editor of Which?, said: ‘Passengers will, quite rightly, be appalled that Wow Air was still selling tickets right up to the moment it collapsed, knowing full well that any tickets sold would likely not be worth the paper they are printed on.’
He added on Twitter: ‘A family of four travelling over the bank holiday could have paid over a thousand pounds this morning to book flights the airline knew would never take off (or refund). It went out of business just two hours later. Complete and utter irresponsibility.’
The now-collapsed airline wrote on its website: ‘Passengers whose ticket was paid with a credit card are advised to contact their credit card company to check whether a refund of the ticket cost will be issued.
‘Passengers may also be entitled to compensation from WOW AIR, including in accordance with European regulation on Air Passenger Rights.’
According to Multitrip.com, unlike package holidays, airlines are not bonded in Ireland, but there are recourse options available to passengers.
If you have booked through an Irish or UK travel agent as a part of a package tour which includes flights and accommodation or other services, you are protected by the Package Travel Directive.
Those passengers are entitled to an alternative flight and should contact their travel agent.
Passengers who booked directly with the airline and whose ticket was paid with a credit card including debit card, should contact their credit card company/ bank to claim a refund of the ticket cost.
Once the above two options have been exhausted, those passengers with travel insurance may
have further options.
They include ‘Scheduled Airline Failure’ as standard on all multitrip.com policies and will pay you, up to the amount shown on your policy type, for:
Irrecoverable sums paid that does not form part of an inclusive holiday prior to departure, or
After your departure, additional pro rata costs incurred by you in replacing part of the flight arrangements to a similar standard to that originally booked, or,
If curtailment of the holiday is unavoidable, the cost of return flights to Ireland or the United Kingdom to a similar standard to that originally booked. If passengers availed of optional ‘Travel Disruption Cover’ as part of their policy, they would have additional cover up to €1,000 for accommodation and travel expenses, including booking an alternative flight. The Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) has also advised that ‘if you booked through a code share partner of the airline (or booking agent)’ to contact them directly. If you did not purchase your ticket as part of a package, then CAR advises that you ‘selfrepatriate by booking directly with other airlines’ as some airlines ‘offer rescue fares in certain circumstances’.