Martin Lewis' experts issues one week EasyJet warning that'll save travellers millions
Martin Lewis' team over at Money Saving Expert have issued a warning to EasyJet passengers that could save travellers a combined £58 million.
The whopping saving has been stressed by Lewis' MSE experts, with the deadline to cash in being at the end of this month (31 January).
If you don't take advantage by then, you miss out. It's as simple as that.
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Cast your mind back to the Covid pandemic. Sure, I don't want to either, but for the sake of saving the pennies, it's essential.
Countless flights were cancelled by airlines across the globe, with the industry essentially shut down for a temporary period.
Sadly, some airlines wound up and their planes never flew again, while others survived and with that came compensation to those whose plans had been impacted.
EasyJet was one such airline that issued vouchers to customers impacted by the global pandemic.
The airline, which is based at London Luton Airport, gave out vouchers to those who had flights delayed or cancelled.
The vouchers were at one time set to expire last year on July 31.
But this was extended and there are no only days left to take advantage.
MSE says: "During the disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic, Easyjet passengers whose flights were delayed or cancelled were able to claim their refund in the form a voucher to redeem with the firm at a later date.
"These were previously set to expire on 31 July 2023, but last year Easyjet extended the deadline to 31 January 2024. This is the date you need to book your flights by – there is no deadline to travel.
"Vouchers CAN'T be swapped for a cash refund, though customers had this option when the vouchers were issued."
There's another catch too, in that they can't be used with EasyJet Holidays and can only be used on flights alone. Frustrating, but them's the rules.
At the end of 2023, some £58 million of Covid vouchers issued by EasyJet remained unclaimed.
British Airways is another airline that extended its Covid voucher deadline. The airline extended its deadline to 30 September this year after originally setting a use by date of 30 April 2022. The scheme has already been extended twice before the current expiry date.
Compensation rules if your flight is cancelled
ABTA - the Travel Association - has issued advice on your rights if your flight is cancelled.
It says: "It depends on what caused the cancellation – if it wasn’t the airline’s fault, you won’t be entitled to receive any compensation.
"Cancellations caused by things like extreme weather, airport or air traffic control strikes or other ‘extraordinary circumstances’ are not eligible for compensation.
"If the airline gave you more than 14 days’ notice of the cancellation, they are not obliged to pay you compensation.
If you received less than 14 days notice of the cancellation, you are generally due compensation, awarded in pounds or euros depending on where your flight was due to depart from, according to the following scale:
- £220 / €250 for all flights of 1,500km or less (e.g. Glasgow to Amsterdam);
- £350 / €400 for all flights between 1,500km and 3,500km (e.g. East Midlands to Marrakech);
- £520 / €600 for all other flights (e.g. London to New York).
"Compensation will be reduced by 50% if the arrival time of the replacement flight doesn’t exceed the arrival time of the original flight by:
- two hours for flights of 1,500km or less;
- three hours for flights between 1,500km and 3,500km;
- four hours for all other flights."
For more information on redeeming your voucher, and to check its balance, see the Easyjet website. Or for more details on your rights and how to make a claim, see MSE's Flight delays and Flight cancellations guides.
Topics: Easyjet, Travel, Money, Martin Lewis
Tom Earnshaw