New illness. Do I need to call easyjet to cancel?

[maccymac]

I developed a new condition last week (currently undergoing investigation) that has me off my feet. I was hoping it would get better by now but I am still off my feet.

I have decided not to fly (holiday would be futile as can’t walk anywhere) but cannot get through to easyjet to inform them I am not flying tomorrow. I understand I would lose my fare but may get taxes back? Not a huge amount so probably won’t bother. Their website is unhelpful despite being a ‘digital airline’ and their call centre robot does not give me a relevant option. I have messaged them on twitter but no response.

Can I leave it like this? Or do I have to still try contact and inform them? Will there be any extra charges for me just not showing up for my flight above the fare that I will lose?

[NorthernLass]

Can you do anything via your booking? There should be cancellation/change options but there have been mixed reports about whether this function is working at the moment. I managed to change some flights last month without any issues. There’s a charge to do this though, so it depends whether it’s worth it.
Travel insurance should also cover you for anything you can’t get refunded.

[Rui N.]

You should be able to cancel online for £40-something. Unless flights were very cheap, it’s probably worth it.

[davefl]

You’ve evidence that you tried to contact them, and you can get your taxes back. Their twitter team is very helpful and I got mine back that way but they are busy and it may take 2-3 days between responses.

You won’t incurr any other charges for a no show.

Have you got travel insurance that may pay out? They do’t cover disinclination to fly but if you can get medical evidence that you’re not fit they may do.

[maccymac]

Hi thanks for your prompt replies and advice. It was an open jaw LGW-BCN-VLC-LGW that I booked on a whim in the winter because it was so cheap (£42 all in). I do have travel insurance, but I don’t have a diagnosis (waiting for blood tests/scans) yet. I am sure I can get a medical certificate if required as I was advised to stay off my feet by the GP, however for such a low amount I am not sure it is worth the hassle.

My main concern was if there were any penalty charges for a no show which you have kindly informed me about.

[ChrisC]

£42 is likely well below the limit for an insurance claim – unless perhaps there are non refundable car hire or hotels involved that you could roll up into a single claim.

Insurance would also expect you to try and get as much back from those as possible so keep copes of emails etc as these will help a claim.

Refund of the flight taxes (£13 APD for instance) and airport fees likely to result in minimal refund due to admin fees.

[Rui N.]

Yes, probably so cheap that it’s worth the trouble. But check the website and try to cancel, you might get a few quid back.
No issues at all with no shows, they won’t try to charge you anything for that.

• This reply was modified 54 years, 4 months ago by .

[davefl]

ChrisC wrote:

£42 is likely well below the limit for an insurance claim – unless perhaps there are non refundable car hire or hotels involved that you could roll up into a single claim.

Insurance would also expect you to try and get as much back from those as possible so keep copes of emails etc as these will help a claim.

Refund of the flight taxes (£13 APD for instance) and airport fees likely to result in minimal refund due to admin fees.

Easyjet didn’t levy an admin fee when I requested a refund of taxes last time for an unflown outbound leg

Jet2 on the other hand refuse to refund them.

[Lady London]

davefl wrote:

ChrisC wrote:

£42 is likely well below the limit for an insurance claim – unless perhaps there are non refundable car hire or hotels involved that you could roll up into a single claim.

Insurance would also expect you to try and get as much back from those as possible so keep copes of emails etc as these will help a claim.

Refund of the flight taxes (£13 APD for instance) and airport fees likely to result in minimal refund due to admin fees.

Easyjet didn’t levy an admin fee when I requested a refund of taxes last time for an unflown outbound leg

Jet2 on the other hand refuse to refund them.

IME Easyjet will happily refund your taxes….If you ask them. Otherwise, mysteriously not. Even though legally any flight not taken you are entitled to a full refund of true government taxes.

IMV Ryanair’s stance of loading tax refunds customers are entitled to have returned to them by law for any flight not taken for any reason, should be challenged in court. As the admin charge they impose should hopefully be found illegal as deliberate policy by Ryanair to frustrate the legally required return of taxes. The amount Ryanair charges for this so-called admin fee is surely far beyond the marginal cost to return this money to passengers – in fact it could be done automatically at close to zero cost.

If Jet2 is refusing to refund govt taxes then they haven’t got a legal leg to stand on. But they seem to be nice people so perhaps they’re doing what they know is wrong for a while because for now, they really really need the cashflow.

[davefl]

Lady London wrote:

davefl wrote:

ChrisC wrote:

£42 is likely well below the limit for an insurance claim – unless perhaps there are non refundable car hire or hotels involved that you could roll up into a single claim.

Insurance would also expect you to try and get as much back from those as possible so keep copes of emails etc as these will help a claim.

Refund of the flight taxes (£13 APD for instance) and airport fees likely to result in minimal refund due to admin fees.

Easyjet didn’t levy an admin fee when I requested a refund of taxes last time for an unflown outbound leg

Jet2 on the other hand refuse to refund them.

If Jet2 is refusing to refund govt taxes then they haven’t got a legal leg to stand on. But they seem to be nice people so perhaps they’re doing what they know is wrong for a while because for now, they really really need the cashflow.

I knew that 🙂 and actually since they’re one of the few airlines to come out of this pandemic with any kind of reputation intact I decided to let them keep it as it was my disinclination to fly because I extended my holiday into Montenegro as Boris took it off the red list

They are generally really nice people to fly with and I’ll usually pick them 1st of the budget alternatives if they fly the route I need.

[maccymac]

Thank you all for your help. Much appreciated.