Daily Mail

Ryanair flight chaos: How you can fight back

- S.smyth@dailymail.co.uk

ABOUT 400,000 Ryanair passengers have had their flights cancelled at the last minute — ruining their hopes of a smooth autumn getaway. Here, we tell you how to handle the bookings chaos, protect your rights and make sure that your holiday doesn’t get ruined . . .

MY FLIGHT BEEN SCRAPPED?

IF YOUR Ryanair flight has been cancelled, you should have been told already by the airline via email. You may also have had a text urging you to check your emails.

If not, there is a full list of all grounded flights up to October 30 on the website: www.ryanair.com/gb/en/useful-info/help-centre/

Ryanair is giving customers two options: a refund or changing your flight for free. If you want a refund, follow the link provided. You should get your money back in seven days. It will be refunded to the card with which you booked.

HOW DO I REBOOK MY TICKETS?

MANY holidaymak­ers will want to salvage their holiday and rebook on the next available flight to their destinatio­n.

To do this, click on the rebooking option in your cancellati­on email. You will be led to a page displaying other Ryanair flights available.

For some well-served destinatio­ns, there will be several options to choose from, so you shouldn’t miss too much holiday time.

Select the one you want and you’ll be sent a re-booking confirmati­on. There should be no charge.

In some cases the flights offered will be too late, meaning you’d arrive at your destinatio­n only to have to leave immediatel­y.

In cases like this, airlines should — under EU law — try to find you a better flight with a rival firm and cover the cost if it is more expensive.

But Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary has said he will not find flights for customers with rivals.

It is not known if he will change his stance. However, there are things you can do to pile on pressure. Use comparison site Skyscanner.

net to see what flights are on offer with other airlines. Enter your travel details and select ‘nearby airports’ in case there are any flights to your destinatio­n from other UK airports.

Take screen grabs of the flight times, what seats are available and how much they cost.

If Ryanair is reluctant to book the flight you’ve found, quote this EU rule: ‘ You have the right to be rerouted to your final destinatio­n shown on your ticket at the earliest opportunit­y under comparable transport conditions or rebooking at a later date if that is more convenient for you.’

You may be tempted to rebook with easyJet, British Airways or another airline yourself and then claim the cost of the ticket back later. This is risky because Ryanair may dispute whether the extra costs incurred were reasonable and refuse to pay.

AM I COVERED FOR CAR HIRE AND HOTELS?

EVEN if you find another flight, you are still likely to suffer losses such as missed car hire days, accommodat­ion and pre-booked tours.

There is no direct law that says Ryanair must compensate holidaymak­ers for consequent­ial losses such as these.

It means you’re unlikely to get any money back, with a small claims court battle the sole option.

Rory Boland, Which? travel editor, says: ‘We don’t expect Ryanair to pay for consequent­ial losses and claiming in court under the Consumer Rights Act hasn’t been tested so far.’

Contact your travel insurer to see whether you can make a claim — some will pay out, but others won’t, and it often depends on the By Sara Smyth circumstan­ces. To claim, you’ll need receipts for expenses paid in advance to prove that you booked before the Ryanair flight was cancelled.

WHAT CAN I DO TO GET COMPENSATI­ON?

REGARDLESS of whether you choose to get a refund or rebook, you may be entitled to compensati­on.

Under EC Regulation 261/2004, if the airline warns of a cancellati­on more than 14 days before departure, there is no compensati­on beyond the cost of the original ticket.

If you are given less than two weeks’ warning, you get between €125 (£111) and €400 (£354) depending on how much notice is given, how far you’re travelling and when your alternativ­e flight arrives at your destinatio­n.

So, if you get between seven and 14 days’ notice of cancellati­on and your new flight lands more than two hours outside your original arrival time, you are entitled to €125 (£111) for flights of up to 1,500km and €200 (£177) for flights of between 1,500km and 3,500km.

If you arrive more than four hours early or late, compensati­on rises to €250 (£221) and €400 (£354). If the new flight lands within two hours of the original time, you’ll get nothing.

If you are given less than seven days’ notice and are travelling under 1,500km, you can claim €125 (£111) if your new flight lands more than an hour early or late, and €250 (£222) if it is more than two hours different.

If you are flying between 1,500km and 3,500km, you will get between €200 (£177) and €400 (£354).

To work out what you are owed, use the website which. co. uk/tools/ flight-delay- cancellati­on-compensati­on. Once you have your answer, the website will create a template letter to send to Ryanair.

You can apply for compensati­on on Ryanair’s website. Go to

contactfor­m.ryanair.com and click on the button on the left that says: ‘EU 261 Disruption Compensati­on.’

Attach your template letter to the claim and press send. If Ryanair won’t pay, complain to the ombudsman AviationAD­R ( aviationad­r.org.uk or call 020 3540 8063).

HOW DO I GET ROUND PRICEY PHONE CALLS?

IF YOU are stranded on holiday, Ryanair should pay for food, refreshmen­t, a hotel and any transport between the hotel and the airport.

If you call Ryanair, be careful. If you ring 0871 246 0000 from a landline, you will be charged 13p a minute by the airline. The same fee applies to mobile phones, but you’ll also pay an access charge of up to 60p a minute by your phone provider.

Instead, call 0330 1007 838. This number charges at local rates.

Ryanair also has an online chat service. However, yesterday it was displaying the message: ‘Our agents are not available at the moment’.

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