Ryanair refund left me out of pocket

QOn August 9 this year, I booked two return seats with Ryanair from Bristol to Knock in Ireland, through online agent Lastminute, in order to attend a family wedding next month. They cost a total of £221.59.

However, the flights were cancelled by Ryanair on August 30. We requested a refund via Lastminute’s website, only to be told we must go through Ryanair’s “verification process” first. I set this in motion and £153.44 was deposited in my wallet on Ryanair’s website.

I told Lastminute about the wallet refund and asked to be repaid in full for the tickets. In October I was told they were “working on it”; in November I was asked for my Ryanair password to access the wallet. Then, in December, Lastminute updated its web guidance to show that my refund request had been cancelled.

Please can you find out what is going on and help me get my money back?

– Mary Kitchen

ARyanair refuses to work with online travel agents which do not have commercial agreements to sell its flights and products. Agents that don’t, such as Lastminute, can still book Ryanair tickets on behalf of customers but, not surprisingly, the airline likes to put up hurdles to encourage customers to book direct (this allows it to capture the customer’s data and try to sell them other arrangements such as accommodation and car hire).

Agents often use their own email address and payment cards to make reservations with airlines, which can cause problems when the airline wants to deal with customers directly. This is why Ryanair insists that customers booking through third parties “verify” their bookings with the airline before they travel, or when they have a customer service issue.

Ryanair will not refund travel agents for cancelled flights, but once the customer has completed the verification process, the refund is placed in an online wallet. Customers can either withdraw the money using the original payment method, or use it to book a new flight on Ryanair’s website.

I asked Lastminute to look into your case. It says the cost of the flights was refunded directly to you via the wallet. I pointed out that this still left £68.15 outstanding. Lastminute says this amount is non-refundable. It covers the agency’s commission and fees for “supplementary services” such as its so-called Flexible fares, which allow for certain date and time changes.

Even though the cancellation of the flights was outside your control, you are significantly out of pocket. This is why it is always better to book direct with low-cost airlines. That way, you pay less in the first place and the airline has your full details, including an email address and telephone number so you can be contacted directly about cancellations, schedule changes or flight delays.