ticket refunds - in particular the 'tax'
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Yorkshire
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The situation as far as I can see is very straightforward. If an airline chooses to impose an administration charge for handling returned tickets and this is stated in its terms and conditions then it is free to do so. If this happens to wipe out your tax refund then its tough. Unless the government chose to make it an illegal practice and put through legislation to this effect then I can't see that you can do anything about it except telling Watchdog!
Join Date: Apr 2001
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The issue is that even the departure tax isn't a tax payable by the passenger, but by the airline. Accordingly, it's an airline cost, like fuel (if you don't fly, the aircraft will use a little less fuel - but you don't get a refund - and they are a coffee or two better off , again, no refund).
UK Customs and Excise think the airline has a 'moral' duty to return the tax, which basically means there isn't a legal obligation to return it, or they would have said so (asked someone there once!)
Under UK consumer protection legislation at least, it is likely that if the airline is adding charges for things such as tax, or airport charges, and stating them as such, the airline would then have to return them to the passenger. (I'm not aware of this ever having been decided either way, but could be wrong). However, the airline is perfectly entitled to charge a handling fee, particularly as a refund will involve a cost to the airline - time and transactional charges - and while it might be frowned on were that handling fee completely out of the ballpark of what is reasonable, it doesn't sound like many of them are.
The airline can't mislead you about having such a charge though - if it says, for example, that a ticket is refundable, in its terms of carriage, or if the travel agent tells you that on the airline's behalf, it needs to be made clear at that time that it's not wholly refundable.
Ramble ramble - sorry, but I have been asked about this before!
UK Customs and Excise think the airline has a 'moral' duty to return the tax, which basically means there isn't a legal obligation to return it, or they would have said so (asked someone there once!)
Under UK consumer protection legislation at least, it is likely that if the airline is adding charges for things such as tax, or airport charges, and stating them as such, the airline would then have to return them to the passenger. (I'm not aware of this ever having been decided either way, but could be wrong). However, the airline is perfectly entitled to charge a handling fee, particularly as a refund will involve a cost to the airline - time and transactional charges - and while it might be frowned on were that handling fee completely out of the ballpark of what is reasonable, it doesn't sound like many of them are.
The airline can't mislead you about having such a charge though - if it says, for example, that a ticket is refundable, in its terms of carriage, or if the travel agent tells you that on the airline's behalf, it needs to be made clear at that time that it's not wholly refundable.
Ramble ramble - sorry, but I have been asked about this before!
