Changing a Ryanair flight

abff · 28-06-2020 12:12pm #1

My wife and I are due to fly to Faro in two weeks time. At this stage, it looks as if the flight is going to go ahead, but we are unsure whether we should travel. If the government travel advisory remains in place (and, in particular, the 14 day quarantine on return), then we probably won't travel.

I decided to have a look at the Ryanair website today to see how much it would cost to change our flights to this time next year. I went into manage booking and I chose particular flights and then tried to see how much it would cost. I was asked to click on a button saying confirm change. I presume I would not be committed to the change until I press a payment button on the next screen, but I wanted to check this just to make sure.

Can anyone confirm (or otherwise) please?

Inquitus · 28-06-2020 4:06pm

abff wrote: »

My wife and I are due to fly to Faro in two weeks time. At this stage, it looks as if the flight is going to go ahead, but we are unsure whether we should travel. If the government travel advisory remains in place (and, in particular, the 14 day quarantine on return), then we probably won't travel.

I decided to have a look at the Ryanair website today to see how much it would cost to change our flights to this time next year. I went into manage booking and I chose particular flights and then tried to see how much it would cost. I was asked to click on a button saying confirm change. I presume I would not be committed to the change until I press a payment button on the next screen, but I wanted to check this just to make sure.

Can anyone confirm (or otherwise) please?

I can confirm you are not locked into a change until you charge the change fee to your debit card.

Eoinbmw · 28-06-2020 9:53pm

And the prices are extortionate be prepared!

abff · 06-07-2020 12:12pm

Given the latest announcement about the quarantine being extended until at least 20th July, I decided to have another look at changing our flights to next year. The difference in fares is only €94, but there is a further €180 in change fees, giving a total cost of €274.

The fact that Ryanair are charging this level of fees to change flights when there is a government advisory in place against non essential travel and a possible 14 day quarantine on return is totally deplorable, in my opinion. I wonder will the government put pressure on them to waive change fees? I'm going to wait a couple of days to see what happens in this regard.

flanzer · 06-07-2020 12:35pm

abff wrote: »

Given the latest announcement about the quarantine being extended until at least 20th July, I decided to have another look at changing our flights to next year. The difference in fares is only €94, but there is a further €180 in change fees, giving a total cost of €274.

The fact that Ryanair are charging this level of fees to change flights when there is a government advisory in place against non essential travel and a possible 14 day quarantine on return is totally deplorable, in my opinion. I wonder will the government put pressure on them to waive change fees? I'm going to wait a couple of days to see what happens in this regard.

I'm in the same boat. We're due to go to Alicante on the 19th July. My wife works in the front line in Beaumont, and has been treating Covid patients. She doesn't want to expose any potential virus to anyone, and has first hand experience of seeing what it does, and therefore is consciously minimising the risk to everyone she comes in contact with.

HSE have also informed staff to take mandatory 2 weeks leave for quarantine on return. I tweeted and DMed Ryanair this morning, but have yet to get a reply. To be honest, I'm not looking for a refund. A voucher will do, as I'll use it within the next year

abff · 06-07-2020 12:55pm

flanzer wrote: »

To be honest, I'm not looking for a refund. A voucher will do, as I'll use it within the next year

I’m also not looking for a voucher. I’m even prepared to pay them additional money right now in order to book flights next year that are more expensive than the flights I booked for this year. But I strongly object to having to pay an additional €180 on top.

stargazer 68 · 06-07-2020 12:58pm

flanzer wrote: »

HSE have also informed staff to take mandatory 2 weeks leave for quarantine on return.

Yep! Also been a whisper around that even if the 14 day is lifted the HSE will not lift it for their staff. Can't see that happening but the way things are going nothing would surprise me any more!

flanzer · 06-07-2020 2:09pm

stargazer 68 wrote: »

Yep! Also been a whisper around that even if the 14 day is lifted the HSE will not lift it for their staff. Can't see that happening but the way things are going nothing would surprise me any more!

Yeah I heard that too. I wonder if the government will issue guidelines to airlines to treat certain types of people differently regarding refunds/vouchers e.g front line, high risk etc, with proof obviously. It's a mess alright

Acosta · 06-07-2020 7:37pm

Use it or lose it with regards to Ryanair. These flights are all operating with barely any passengers so they don't have to refund anyone.

abff · 08-07-2020 2:48pm

abff wrote: »

Given the latest announcement about the quarantine being extended until at least 20th July, I decided to have another look at changing our flights to next year. The difference in fares is only €94, but there is a further €180 in change fees, giving a total cost of €274.

The fact that Ryanair are charging this level of fees to change flights when there is a government advisory in place against non essential travel and a possible 14 day quarantine on return is totally deplorable, in my opinion. I wonder will the government put pressure on them to waive change fees? I'm going to wait a couple of days to see what happens in this regard.

I spent over an hour online yesterday in order to make contact with a customer agent. Part of the delay was my own fault. After about 30 minutes of nothing happening, I refreshed the page and got kicked out and had to start all over again at the back of the queue. Something to be aware of if you're using their online chat service.

Anyway, I finally got through to somebody and he confirmed that I am not entitled to a refund and that they are not prepared to waive the change fee if I want to move to another flight. I asked him how do I go about cancelling a flight and he said that there is no option to cancel a flight and no need to notify them if you don't intend to travel. You just don't show up for the flight and you can submit a claim for the repayment of government taxes within 31 days of the flight.

Any such claim is subject to an administration charge of €20 per person so you will not receive anything if the taxes are less than the admin charge. He was unable (or unwilling) to tell me how much the taxes are on a return flight to Faro. I've tried searching online and I have been unable to find this information. Can anyone point me in the right direction, please?

Tenzor07 · 08-07-2020 2:52pm

Saw that a flight i'd booked was around €30 cheaper now than when I booked it, so I went on the Ryanair app and swapped it for another and booked the original cheaper, couldn't be easier!

abff · 08-07-2020 3:07pm

Tenzor07 wrote: »

Saw that a flight i'd booked was around €30 cheaper now than when I booked it, so I went on the Ryanair app and swapped it for another and booked the original cheaper, couldn't be easier!

I presume that was a flight booked since June that you were able to change without an admin charge? Mine was booked last October.

Tenzor07 · 08-07-2020 3:41pm

abff wrote: »

Mine was booked last October.

Yeap...

Well, that's the end of that so, there's nothing to say they will change or refund you.

abff · 08-07-2020 10:48pm

Getting back to my query in post #10, does anyone know where I can find out how much the taxes are on a return trip from Dublin to Faro? I've no desire to pay Ryanair's exorbitant flight change fees, but I would like to know how much I would be able to reclaim before I make a final decision.

Grueller Baby · 09-07-2020 1:12am

abff wrote: »

Getting back to my query in post #10, does anyone know where I can find out how much the taxes are on a return trip from Dublin to Faro? I've no desire to pay Ryanair's exorbitant flight change fees, but I would like to know how much I would be able to reclaim before I make a final decision.

It’ll show the price breakdown in your booking confirmation. You’ll be lucky to get 20 quid back after their admin fee in my experience.

abff · 09-07-2020 10:40am

Grueller Baby wrote: »

It’ll show the price breakdown in your booking confirmation. You’ll be lucky to get 20 quid back after their admin fee in my experience.

There's no split shown on the booking confirmation I received last October - just an overall total.

gazzaman22 · 13-07-2020 11:21am

abff wrote: »

Getting back to my query in post #10, does anyone know where I can find out how much the taxes are on a return trip from Dublin to Faro? I've no desire to pay Ryanair's exorbitant flight change fees, but I would like to know how much I would be able to reclaim before I make a final decision.

Any luck with this, also does anyone know if you can reclaim price paid for baggage if you dont go? £120 in baggage fees going to waste here

abff · 13-07-2020 11:47am

gazzaman22 wrote: »

Any luck with this, also does anyone know if you can reclaim price paid for baggage if you dont go? £120 in baggage fees going to waste here

No, unless you can claim it on your insurance. The only thing you can reclaim is any government taxes, minus €20 admin fee per person. At this stage, it looks like the only way I’ll get this information is when and if I submit a claim.

abff · 28-07-2020 2:23pm

I’ve been trying to get written confirmation from Ryanair that the flights I had booked to and from Faro on July 12th and 26th were not used. I need this for an insurance claim. After trying every option on their website, I got to a page offering a link to a request for a “no show” letter and the link brought me to an error message. I then found another page saying that I needed to contact an agent to get the letter and I should do this through their online chat service or by speaking to an agent at their call centre.

I figured the online option would be quicker. It’s now an hour and 10 minutes since I submitted my details and I’m still waiting for an agent to come online. There’s a message saying “Please stay connected. You are in a queue for the next available Customer Care agent.” I’m afraid to type anything else, because the only previous time I used this service I pressed the refresh button and was kicked out and had to start all over again at the back of the queue.

I’m not sure how much longer I should hold on. I may not actually be in the queue any more, but how do I determine this without risking getting kicked out again? Help!

ba3 · 28-07-2020 2:30pm

abff wrote: »

I’m not sure how much longer I should hold on. I may not actually be in the queue any more, but how do I determine this without risking getting kicked out again? Help!

Best to try them around 9-10am from my experience,about 20 mins wait yesterday and this morning but was able to chat to an agent,tried afternoon yesterday also and nothing after few hours ...

abff · 28-07-2020 2:35pm

ba3 wrote: »

Best to try them around 9-10am from my experience,about 20 mins wait yesterday and this morning but was able to chat to an agent,tried afternoon yesterday also and nothing after few hours ...

Thanks. I’ll give it another 10 minutes or so. I’ve been reading a book while keeping an eye on the screen and I’m typing this on my iPad.

abff · 28-07-2020 3:30pm

Had to go out, so I gave up after an hour and 50 minutes. I’ll try again tomorrow morning.

mikekerry · 28-07-2020 3:49pm

Ryanair are certainly not making matters easier either.
Tried to change flights and it's charging me 500 euro ( for 4 people) so ryanair taking compete advantage of the situation.
The ordinary punter is being well and truly screwed by the government and ryanair.
At least aer lingus are waving flight fees ( for flights bought before june).
I for one won't be flying with ryanair again.

antix80 · 28-07-2020 4:06pm

mikekerry wrote: »

Tried to change flights and it's charging me 500 euro ( for 4 people) so ryanair taking compete advantage of the situation.

Not being funny but I assume you didn't book an atol-protected, all-inclusive, fully-insured holiday package with ryanair.. you booked a non-refundable flight and now you want to change it for whatever reason.

Why blame ryanair?
They have a fairly comprehensive policy that allows limited changes due to covid by only paying the fair difference.

mikekerry · 28-07-2020 4:10pm

antix80 wrote: »

Not being funny but I assume you didn't book an atol-protected, all-inclusive, fully-insured holiday package with ryanair.. you booked a non-refundable flight and now you want to change it for whatever reason.

Why blame ryanair?
They have a fairly comprehensive policy that allows limited changes due to covid by only paying the fair difference.

Because of the green list I am trying to rebook flights.
If Ryanair and the goverment had any decent policy there would be protection for customers who have to change their flights ( through no fault of their own) At least aer lingus are waving their fees.
Either have a policy of no flights and at least let people get a refund or a voucher but not the current policy of screwing people.
People would not be trying to rebook their flights only for this green list issue .

Eoinbmw · 28-07-2020 6:43pm

antix80 wrote: »

Not being funny but I assume you didn't book an atol-protected, all-inclusive, fully-insured holiday package with ryanair.. you booked a non-refundable flight and now you want to change it for whatever reason.

Why blame ryanair?
They have a fairly comprehensive policy that allows limited changes due to covid by only paying the fair difference.

You clearly dont know your facts its only flights booked from june onwards that can change flights for "free" any flights booked before that have a fee for each passenger each way and then on top of that whatever difference there is between fairs!

antix80 · 29-07-2020 7:49am

Eoinbmw wrote: »

You clearly dont know your facts its only flights booked from june onwards that can change flights for "free" any flights booked before that have a fee for each passenger each way and then on top of that whatever difference there is between fairs!

They have had that policy for flights booked since March.

mikekerry · 29-07-2020 8:55am

antix80 wrote: »

They have had that policy for flights booked since March.

Incorrect . I booked my flights in april and am asked to pay change fee

Roanmore · 29-07-2020 9:12am

I posted this in the refund thread but then just saw this one.

I had a flight booked for mid July, took the voucher and booked a flight to Spain for early Sept as I stupidly thought things may have quietened down in Spain.

We're looking at Malta for the same time but when I went in to change the flights it was costing 180 to change, it's supposed to be free isn't it?

Anybody have this issue?

mikekerry · 29-07-2020 9:32am

Roanmore wrote: »

I posted this in the refund thread but then just saw this one.

I had a flight booked for mid July, took the voucher and booked a flight to Spain for early Sept as I stupidly thought things may have quietened down in Spain.

We're looking at Malta for the same time but when I went in to change the flights it was costing 180 to change, it's supposed to be free isn't it?

Anybody have this issue?

It's only flights in june and july they are allowing people change for free

Markcheese · 29-07-2020 9:38am

mikekerry wrote: »

It's only flights in june and july they are allowing people change for free

Oh cool, I booked at the end of June to fly to the the canaries on Fri coming , I'd kinda given up on it ..I'll see now if I can change it ...

antix80 · 29-07-2020 9:38am

mikekerry wrote: »

Incorrect . I booked my flights in april and am asked to pay change fee

Is it a change fee or difference in fare?

Because flights booked in April can be changed providing the date of the flight is not within 7 days.

Also.. you booked an inflexible flight in April and now you want to change it for whatever reason. I'd chalk that down to experience.

Markcheese · 29-07-2020 9:43am

Balls ,I left it too late ,it has to be changed more than 7 days before the flight out ...
I had gone to change it 2 weeks ago but it showed up that it would cost almost the same as the flight so I didn't continue .,

Roanmore · 29-07-2020 9:49am

mikekerry wrote: »

It's only flights in june and july they are allowing people change for free

No, they have extended it to September.

abff · 29-07-2020 10:03am

abff wrote: »

Had to go out, so I gave up after an hour and 50 minutes. I’ll try again tomorrow morning.

Following ba3's advice in post #20, I tried again at 9:40 this morning and got through to someone in about 2 minutes. Problem now sorted and I will get an email confirming flight details, etc. in about a week or so.

Difference in waiting time compared to trying to contact them in the afternoon is certainly worth noting for future reference.

mikekerry · 29-07-2020 10:22am

antix80 wrote: »

Is it a change fee or difference in fare?

Because flights booked in April can be changed providing the date of the flight is not within 7 days.

Also.. you booked an inflexible flight in April and now you want to change it for whatever reason. I'd chalk that down to experience.

I've told you previously but you don't seem to get it.
Aer lingus are doing the decent thing and allowing people change flights for free.
Ryanair are not.
People are not changing flights because they want to. It's because they have to.
In the general course of things I would have no issue at all paying change flight fee but because these are exceptional circumstances and people are having to change flights because they don't have a choice, at least AL have recognised this.
Obviously you and ryanair haven't .

antix80 · 29-07-2020 11:34am

mikekerry wrote: »

I've told you previously but you don't seem to get it.

I get it! Some airlines are more flexible and have better customer service. Some tickets are more flexible and fully refundable.

But.. with Ryanair's terms and conditions at the time, if you booked in April and need to change it (once it's not within 7 days of the flight departing) - and I may be wrong - they allow a free change, subject to the fare difference. I don't know why this doesn't apply to you.

There's another option which is you can take the flight. It's still going, our country is allowing you to, the country you're travelling to is permitting the flight... just like it was your decision to book the flight in times of uncertainty, you can make the journey too.

Anyway, I'm not here to argue. By this time last year I had a trip to Mexico and one to Spain, with a 3rd weekend break planned for October. This year, I had no foreign travel - I didn't even book it because of the uncertainty with Covid. I know people are up the walls saying the government should do more and the airlines should do more.. People need to take a bit of responsibility.

abff · 29-07-2020 11:58am

antix80 wrote: »

But.. with Ryanair's terms and conditions at the time, if you booked in April and need to change it (once it's not within 7 days of the flight departing) - and I may be wrong - they allow a free change, subject to the fare difference. I don't know why this doesn't apply to you.

I've been trying unsuccessfully to find a definitive answer to this. I'm not sure exactly when they brought in the option to book flights that would not be subject to a change fee if subsequently amended, but I'm pretty sure that it only applies if the rebooked flight is before the end of 2020. This is probably not a lot of use to people who have booked a summer holiday destination and want to rebook for next year.

They have taken a less flexible approach than Aer Lingus and I think they would earn a lot of goodwill by waiving change fees for all COVID related changes or, at the very least, reducing the change fees for such cases.

antix80 wrote: »

People need to take a bit of responsibility.

I think that's a bit uncalled for. It's not unreasonable for people to expect some flexibility because of the current exceptional circumstances. It's not as if they are changing their flights on a whim.

Eoinbmw · 29-07-2020 11:59am

antix80 wrote: »

I get it! Some airlines are more flexible and have better customer service. Some tickets are more flexible and fully refundable.

But.. with Ryanair's terms and conditions at the time, if you booked in April and need to change it (once it's not within 7 days of the flight departing) - and I may be wrong - they allow a free change, subject to the fare difference. I don't know why this doesn't apply to you.

There's another option which is you can take the flight. It's still going, our country is allowing you to, the country you're travelling to is permitting the flight... just like it was your decision to book the flight in times of uncertainty, you can make the journey too.

Anyway, I'm not here to argue. By this time last year I had a trip to Mexico and one to Spain, with a 3rd weekend break planned for October. This year, I had no foreign travel - I didn't even book it because of the uncertainty with Covid. I know people are up the walls saying the government should do more and the airlines should do more.. People need to take a bit of responsibility.

Well I booked last November tough **** to me then obviously no covid back then flight is going in 2 hours! Bye bye 1400 euro

abff · 29-07-2020 12:04pm

Eoinbmw wrote: »

Well I booked last November tough **** to me then obviously no covid back then flight is going in 2 hours! Bye bye 1400 euro

Do you have an annual travel insurance policy? If so, check the policy conditions as it's quite possible you may be covered for any unrecoverable accommodation and travel costs if your intended destination is subject to an "avoid unnecessary travel" advisory.

abff · 29-07-2020 12:14pm

abff wrote: »

I've been trying unsuccessfully to find a definitive answer to this. I'm not sure exactly when they brought in the option to book flights that would not be subject to a change fee if subsequently amended, but I'm pretty sure that it only applies if the rebooked flight is before the end of 2020. This is probably not a lot of use to people who have booked a summer holiday destination and want to rebook for next year.

The following travel update on the Ryanair website confirms the bit in bold above.

Ryanair Extends The Removal Of Its Flight Change Fee To All New September Bookings

29 Jul 2020 • 10:48

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (Friday 17 July) announced it will extend the waiving of its flight change fee for all customers who book to travel in Sept – already in place for new July & Aug bookings – allowing them to book their extended summer holidays with peace of mind in case their travel plans change.

From 17 July, customers who book to travel in Sept will be able to move their flights with zero change fee to travel until the 31 Dec 2020.

Ryanair’s Director of Marketing & Digital, Dara Brady said:

“In order to provide as much flexibility and confidence as possible for our customers this summer, we have extended the waiving of our flight change fee to new Sept bookings.

As the holiday season will be prolonged this year, customers can now plan a well-deserved break knowing that flights in July, Aug and now Sept can be moved without any flight change fee if their travel plans change”.

mikekerry · 29-07-2020 3:25pm

abff wrote: »

The following travel update on the Ryanair website confirms the bit in bold above.

Ryanair Extends The Removal Of Its Flight Change Fee To All New September Bookings

29 Jul 2020 • 10:48

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (Friday 17 July) announced it will extend the waiving of its flight change fee for all customers who book to travel in Sept – already in place for new July & Aug bookings – allowing them to book their extended summer holidays with peace of mind in case their travel plans change.

From 17 July, customers who book to travel in Sept will be able to move their flights with zero change fee to travel until the 31 Dec 2020.

Ryanair’s Director of Marketing & Digital, Dara Brady said:

“In order to provide as much flexibility and confidence as possible for our customers this summer, we have extended the waiving of our flight change fee to new Sept bookings.

As the holiday season will be prolonged this year, customers can now plan a well-deserved break knowing that flights in July, Aug and now Sept can be moved without any flight change fee if their travel plans change”.

Yeah my flights were booked for september and I tried rebooking them ( to a country on the green list) but it's still looking for the flight change fee so not sure. Seems to only apply for people who only booked flights from june/july this year ( not earlier than that)

Roanmore · 30-07-2020 10:29am

Roanmore wrote: »

I posted this in the refund thread but then just saw this one.

I had a flight booked for mid July, took the voucher and booked a flight to Spain for early Sept as I stupidly thought things may have quietened down in Spain.

We're looking at Malta for the same time but when I went in to change the flights it was costing 180 to change, it's supposed to be free isn't it?

Anybody have this issue?

Alright, got an update of this, got on to the Chat Person.

In Jan I booked my flight for Spain for July. This got cancelled and I took the voucher instead of a refund (a mistake).
I booked new flights to Spain for Sept which now looks like it won't happen, due to the Green List, etc. so I changed this to Malta.

I'm not entitled to free flight change because the original booking was made in January which I think is rubbish as Ryanair cancelled the July flight, it was outside my control.

vicwatson · 30-07-2020 10:35am

Acosta wrote: »

Use it or lose it with regards to Ryanair. These flights are all operating with barely any passengers so they don't have to refund anyone.

Unless they change departure times beyond 2 hours. Is that a refund situation then?

mikekerry · 30-07-2020 11:03am

Roanmore wrote: »

Alright, got an update of this, got on to the Chat Person.

In Jan I booked my flight for Spain for July. This got cancelled and I took the voucher instead of a refund (a mistake).
I booked new flights to Spain for Sept which now looks like it won't happen, due to the Green List, etc. so I changed this to Malta.

I'm not entitled to free flight change because the original booking was made in January which I think is rubbish as Ryanair cancelled the July flight, it was outside my control.

But you should be safe enough to fly to malta in september ?
It's on the green list

Roanmore · 30-07-2020 11:32am

mikekerry wrote: »

But you should be safe enough to fly to malta in september ?
It's on the green list

Yeah, but they are charging me 180 euro to change, I'm saying they cancelled the original flight and I chose the voucher option. I then booked another flight with that voucher, that should be the date they use, not the original January date.

mikekerry · 30-07-2020 11:45am

Roanmore wrote: »

Yeah, but they are charging me 180 euro to change, I'm saying they cancelled the original flight and I chose the voucher option. I then booked another flight with that voucher, that should be the date they use, not the original January date.

yeah that's very unfair.

antix80 · 30-07-2020 12:32pm

Roanmore wrote: »

Yeah, but they are charging me 180 euro to change, I'm saying they cancelled the original flight and I chose the voucher option. I then booked another flight with that voucher, that should be the date they use, not the original January date.

It probably should. i don't know the T&Cs of the voucher, but if you accepted a voucher that was as good as cash, and booked a new flights using that voucher, the T&Cs should be the ones for that booking .. which at the time of your booking probably said something along the lines of "for flights booked in March you can change the date.."

abff · 30-07-2020 12:46pm

Roanmore wrote: »

Yeah, but they are charging me 180 euro to change, I'm saying they cancelled the original flight and I chose the voucher option. I then booked another flight with that voucher, that should be the date they use, not the original January date.

They’re definitely being very stingy about it, but I think they’re probably charging the fee because your booking was for September and the extension of the no fee offer to September flights only came into place on July 17th. Horrible way to deal with customers, but they’re probably technically within their rights to do so.

If I was you, I wouldn’t pay the €180 and I’d wait until closer to the date to see whether things have settled back down in Spain.

mikekerry · 30-07-2020 12:53pm

abff wrote: »

They’re definitely being very stingy about it, but I think they’re probably charging the fee because your booking was for September and the extension of the no fee offer to September flights only came into place on July 17th. Horrible way to deal with customers, but they’re probably technically within their rights to do so.

If I was you, I wouldn’t pay the €180 and I’d wait until closer to the date to see whether things have settled back down in Spain.

Agreed just wait a bit closer to the time.
Maybe by end of august things might change with that silly green list

abff · 16-09-2020 11:04am

abff wrote: »

No, unless you can claim it on your insurance. The only thing you can reclaim is any government taxes, minus €20 admin fee per person. At this stage, it looks like the only way I’ll get this information is when and if I submit a claim.

I decided not to travel and applied for a refund of government taxes (subject to €20 admin charge). This was back in mid July.

I haven’t even received an acknowledgement from them. I realise that I may not be due anything if the total taxes were less than €20 a head, but I would have thought they should at least send an email confirming this.

Not that big a deal, given everything that’s going on, but yet another example of Ryanair’s deplorable customer service.

Changing a Ryanair flight

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