England ( Common Wealth) _ The US government has fined British Airways about £1 million on charges that it did not provide refunds for canceled flights.
According to a legal statement from the US Transportation Department, the airline failed to “provide timely refunds to passengers” for cancelled or rescheduled flights to and from the country during the COVID -19 outbreak.
British Airways denied the allegations and said it had “acted lawfully at all times” after receiving the 1.1 million US dollar (£878,000) penalties on Thursday.
British Airways denied the allegations and said it had “acted lawfully at all times” after receiving the 1.1 million US dollar (£878,000) penalties on Thursday. “From March to November 2020, British Airways’ website directed customers to contact the carrier by phone to “explore refund alternatives,” including for flights the carrier cancelled or materially modified, according to a consent order from the government.
However, because British Airways neglected to keep its customer service phone lines functioning properly, customers were unable to reach customer service representatives while calling the airline for several months during this time. Additionally, during this time, there was no method to make a refund request on the carrier’s website.
“Also, from March to November 2020, British Airways’ website contained false information that caused customers to unintentionally request trip vouchers rather than refunds. “Since March 2020, the Department has received more than 1,200 complaints alleging that British Airways failed to promptly compensate customers whose flights to or from the United States were canceled or severely changed.
“British Airways has received thousands more direct customer complaints and refund requests. There were considerable difficulties and delays in thousands of customers collecting the necessary reimbursements because British Airways failed to develop, for several months, an easily accessible means for consumers to request refunds for flights the company cancelled or dramatically modified.
The amount “establishes a strong deterrent to future similar unlawful practices,” according to the agency. Because British Airways refunded more than 40 million US dollars to passengers with non-refundable tickets in 2020 and 2021, it is being given a credit of slightly under £500,000 against the fine.
The airline expressed regret that consumers had to wait a little longer to reach customer service teams at the height of the unprecedented pandemic, when it was necessary to close several call centers and cancel thousands of flights as a result of government regulations.
“Throughout this time, we always behaved legally and gave passengers the option to change their travel plans or get a refund if their flights were canceled. Since the start of the pandemic, we have so far granted more than five million refunds.
