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Comment by adrianb | Hacker News Reader

> She was entitled to a refund or vouchers.

Is this true? Many (most?) airlines offered vouchers en masse when they had to cancel most flights during COVID, with no option for full refunds.

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In the US, airline-canceled or "significantly delayed" flights (as opposed to passenger-canceled) are entitled to a full refund. The airline will not tend to tell you this, and they'll resist quite a bit, but you're legally entitled to one, even on a non-refundable ticket.

https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer...

UK seems to be the same: https://www.caa.co.uk/passengers/resolving-travel-problems/d...

> If your cancelled is covered by UK law, your airline must let you choose between two options:

> 1. Receive a refund

> 2. Choose an alternative flight

Under EU law (this was before Brexit) you are entitled to a full refund if the flight is cancelled by the airline. If the flight is cancelled less than two weeks before departure you are also entitled to compensation of a few hundred Euro.

I actually got a cash refund from Ryanair, although it took a long time and at every stage they recommended I take vouchers that would have expired after 12 months instead.

It's still British law for now. I've not heard that it's planned to be cut in the mass-cut of EU laws, but given that it's pro-consumer it may well be.

Keep in mind UK law. The airline cancelled so the customer can insist on cash refund.

I spent a week or two messaging with BA via Twitter DMs to ensure I got a cash refund, rather than dealing with their website which was steering everyone to vouchers.

Yes, the UK has good consumer protections for this.

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