They aimed for a memorable holiday to uncover one of the jewels of the Mediterranean. They, along with Sea Vegas and a friend, became captivated by Tunisia. Then the nightmare started at the airport on the last day of July: they arrived in Nice, where they paused, and EasyJet canceled their flight. The worst part was zero customer service. Online they had to file a request, search for a new flight (the next available option was a week away), and pay for the ticket, hotel, airport transfer, and meals—only to wait for a refund.
It was Friday. The conclusion was clear: Palm See would not greet them until Monday. Their budget for a weeklong vacation never exceeded a thousand euros. Over the weekend, desperation grew as two more flights were canceled after they had already paid online to depart Nice. They ended up spending 1,800 euros en route to Mallorca, hoping someday to recover all expenditures. One point of reference in their case is Ryanair, which had not refunded 600 euros from canceled flights. The pandemic, two years earlier, loomed in the background.
Incoming auto-reply from EasyJet read: “We are sorry for your recent experience. Our team has been handling record volumes of requests recently. Please do not contact us again until at least 28 days have passed, as our teams will not be able to offer further guidance.”
“We are bracing for a flood of complaints after Eid,” commented Alfonso Rodriguez. Consbal’s chairman criticized the airline industry for being dismissive of consumer rights, noting that many inquiries arrived about how to respond to delays and cancellations. He questioned why complaints against airlines take so long to resolve and cited small compensation amounts paid when rules are breached.
These concerns persisted even as Xisco John recounted a personal struggle: despite winning a lawsuit against Iberia, he had not been compensated for a flight canceled four years earlier. “I filed the claim, and Aesa’s decision favored me.” Even with this judgment, Majorca residents lamented that the remedy was nonbinding, and Iberia refused to comply. He had also approached the General Directorate of Consumer Affairs, only to be told they could not assist because it involved legal action. The passenger lamented, “I won the case against Iberia, yet I still haven’t been paid.”
Ferran Small from Campanet planned to travel to Barcelona on June 25 for a meeting with his partner and a Tom Jones concert. He described a canceled Ryanair flight at the airport. A month after filing the claim, the ticket was refunded, but the 250 euros in compensation remained unpaid. He also faced a 208-euro charge for two concert tickets. He fears never seeing Tom Jones again, in part due to the singer’s age. The family joined OCU and observed that paying for tickets could be difficult. If Ryanair cited force majeure, for example due to a strike, it complicated matters further.
footprintga | Not accepted as force majeure
Aesa explains that a strike is not force majeure. Passengers are entitled to maintenance, reimbursement for tickets, or alternative transportation to the final destination, alongside financial compensation. Passenger rights are defined by European Regulation 261/2004 for delays, cancellations, and denied boarding. The strike does not relieve airlines of compensation obligations; it is often preplanned, or foreseeable, by the airline. One must always file a claim, and only when force majeure is proven can an airline be exempt from payment.
Compensation rights | Concert tickets or lost hotel nights
Tickets for concerts or events that cannot be attended due to a canceled flight, along with unused hotel nights, must be pursued. Compensation rights align with the cancellation timing. If the notification arrives fifteen days before, a simple refund may suffice; if the disruption happens on the same day, the airline covers the cost. The typical compensation scales are 250 euros for journeys up to 1,500 kilometers, 400 euros for longer routes, and 600 euros for journeys up to 3,500 kilometers.
to the election | Refund of ticket or alternative transportation
In the event of a cancellation, the passenger holds the right to a refund or to alternative transportation to the final destination. If the delay exceeds five hours, the passenger may cancel and request a ticket refund within seven days; in this case, the right to financial compensation is forfeited. Conversely, arranging alternative transportation should be done as soon as possible through other carriers. One attorney, Aina Diaz, recently shared a case where a Madrid trip for 24 hours was arranged to avoid a strike. The final flight was canceled after gate changes. The passenger discovered the cancellation on the Ryanair app, with no prior notice from the airline. There was no flight for four days, and a large crowd gathered at the counter, prompting concern that Ryanair would ruin people’s holidays. In that instance, relocation on another airline was possible, with a residency discount of 80 euros instead of 400.
Cancellation cases continue this summer. Joan Llobera missed work after a flight from A Coruña to Barcelona was canceled and he ended up sleeping at the Barcelona airport. There are many more summers ahead; patience is necessary, but rights should not be abandoned.