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A British Airways plane in flight in the sky.
(Photo Credit: Teng Wang/Shutterstock)

Update:

  • A New York federal judge approved a class action settlement that will see British Airways refunding passengers for canceled pandemic flights.
  • A passenger sued the airline after it offered only a voucher after it canceled his flight due to COVID-19. 
  • U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman gave final signoff on the settlement Nov. 14. 
  • The settlement will benefit 26,066 passengers who bought a British Airways flight ticket that was canceled between March 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2021, and gives each class member the option of a full refund. 
  • The deal will also cover customers who didn’t cancel their flights or didn’t show up, as well as customers who didn’t receive a refund or a rebooking from the airline and customers who received vouchers they didn’t use.

(May 13, 2020)

British Airways faces a class action lawsuit by a passenger claiming the airline has not refunded his money after they canceled his flight due to COVID-19.  

Plaintiff Stephen Ide says he purchased a ticket from British Airways for $706.46. He planned to fly from Boston to London, depart on March 25, 2020 and return on April 5, 2020. 

On March 18, Ide claims he received an email from British Airways notifying him that his flight had been canceled. Ide says he contacted customer service in order to obtain a refund for his ticket, but was unable to connect with a representative to inquire about the British Airways cancelation policy.

On March 26, 2020, the plaintiff was reportedly told that he would receive a voucher which would be used as a partial payment towards a future booking.

Ide maintains that he was told that the voucher must be used for travel on flights taken within 12 months from the date of the first flight in his original booking.

Did you have a flight scheduled that was canceled due to the coronavirus? Get legal help by clicking here.

Ide says he disagrees with the British Airways cancelation policy and that he is contractually entitled to a refund. He alleges that he does not want a travel voucher because he does not know when he will be able to use it.

The plaintiff states that he contacted British Airways again on April 21, 2020 and was told that under the British Airways cancelation policy he was not entitled to a refund.

Ide alleges that he was told to contact British Airways customer relations to file a complaint. He says he attempted to do so, but the website would not allow him to file a complaint.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, British Airways has canceled flights to reduce supply in conformity to reduced demand. Ide says that British Airways cancelation policy unambiguously states that they will pay for refunds if they cancel a flight.

“Despite DOT’s guidance and in breach of its Conditions of Carriage, BA has engaged in a pattern and practice of denying refunds to its passengers for flights that BA canceled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the British Airways canceled flights class action lawsuit goes on to say.

The plaintiff maintains that instead of providing refunds required by its contract, British Airways directs individuals who would like to apply for a refund for a canceled flight to apply for future travel vouchers.

The BA class action explains that after British Airways started to cancel flights after the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the Department of Transportation (DOT) issued an “Enforcement Notice Regarding Refunds by Carriers Given the Unprecedented Impact of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on Air Travel,” whereby it told airlines that they must issue refunds to passengers if they cancel flights.

The DOT states that airlines have long provided such refunds and puts forth examples such as after the Sept. 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks as well as Hurricane Katrina, the plaintiff points out.

Ide goes on to say that although COVID-19 has had an unprecedented impact on air travel, the airlines obligations to provide refunds for canceled flights remains unchanged. 

The British Airways class action lawsuit states that while the exact number of British Airways canceled flights is unknown, in late March, airlines were cancelling more than one-third of their scheduled flights each day in the United States.

He claims that British Airways has a financial incentive to try to stop a passenger’s ability to obtain refunds that they are contractually obligated to provide.

In order to limit the amount of refunds that it would be providing to passengers, British Airways allegedly changed its website to mislead customers into accepting vouchers instead of the refunds that it was contractually obligated to make available to passengers.

“There is no consistently usable way to request a refund on the BA website despite BA’s contractual obligation to make available a refund option,” the British Airways class action states.

Ide says that the only way to get a refund from British Airways is to call them, but this option is also not available for many consumers as the airline disconnects a large percentage of calls due to high volume.

The plaintiff states that there is no automated way to receive a full refund over the telephone. He claims that very few customers have been able to receive refunds for which they are entitled.

Prospective Class Members include: “All persons or entities in the United States who purchased at least one ticket for a British Airways flight that was canceled between Jan. 1, 2020, and the present and who did not receive a refund.”

The plaintiff is represented by E. Michelle Drake, John G. Albanese, and Shanon J. Carson of Berger Montague PC and Adam E. Polk and Tom Watts of Girard Sharp LLP.

The British Airways Cancelation Policy Class Action Lawsuit is Stephen Ide v. British Airways PLC (UK), Case No. 1:20-cv-03542, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

UPDATE: On July 24, 2020, British Airways pushed back against several passengers who filed a class action lawsuit alleging that the airline failed to properly refund their tickets for canceled flights due to COVID-19.


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3 thoughts onBritish Airways settlement over COVID-19 ticket refunds gets final approval

  1. cary oconnor says:

    I am currently dealing with the same thing. BA cancelled our flights in March 2020 and provided me with a voucher number. When I just called to use the voucher I was told it does not exist, nor does my original booking reference number. I have all the emails from them with these numbers so how do they not exist??? I was instructed to file for a refund but the system doesn’t recognize the booking reference number and wants me to give flight numbers. Well, we never had flight numbers because we booked so far out and then the flights were cancelled. Given all the above comments Im very discouraged and feel very misled and ripped off. Its a couple hundred pounds and just plain wrong to steal from people. They placated me with a web of false promises and voucher numbers that they do not honor. Such corporate greed.

  2. KEVIN says:

    Kristy,
    I had the same thing happen. I contacted BA on 12/27/22 to use my flight credits for my trip this summer to London. At the time of booking, the agent said she could not confirm the value of the vouchers and I’d need to book new flights, out of pocket, and then she would start the process to request a refund for the credits. They said 7-14 business days to process the refund. Well, we’re long past that and after contracting BA several times, their latest is that since I booked the flight originally though American Express, they can not issue the refund directly to me, but rather only to American Express. They gave me a phone number for American Express to contact them, this call was on 2/6/2023. Now American Express is getting the run around from BA and doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere. At this point, I honestly can not recommend BA to anyone and would advise anyone to pick another airline if possible.

    I’m not sure there is anything we can due. Best of luck!

  3. KIRSTY north says:

    I was scammed by BA also. They hold $2k+ AUD of flight credit from pandemic cancelled flights in 2020. They initially refused to refund, offering a voucher instead. Upon trying to book with said voucher recently, I’ve been informed that I need to book new flights with them first out of pocket at double the original cost, wait 12+ weeks for a refund and even then I’d unlikely to be the full amount. Seriously, if they wanna keep customers, this is the wrong way to go about it!! What can I do?

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