Aer Lingus promised me a full refund after a threatened strike. Where is it?

Illustration by Dustin Elliott

When a strike threatens Martha Rhine’s trip to Dublin, Aer Lingus offers her a full refund for her business class ticket. But she gets only a portion of her ticket back. What’s going on, and how can she get the rest back?

Question

I paid $7,155 for a business-class ticket from Hartford, Conn., to Dublin on Aer Lingus. When a pilot strike threatened my trip, the airline emailed me three options, including a full refund, which I selected.

Aer Lingus refunded me $6,096 but withheld $1,058, claiming business-class tickets only qualify for an 85 percent refund. I filed multiple claims, called repeatedly, and even sent a registered letter to the CEO. No one responded. How can I get back my money? — Martha Rhine, West Hartford, Conn.

Answer

Aer Lingus owes you the full refund it promised. Period.

Under EU Regulation 261, passengers are entitled to a full refund if their flight is canceled because of a strike. Airlines can’t impose arbitrary refund caps based on fare class in that situation.

Aer Lingus’s 85 percent policy appears to violate EU 261. Worse, the airline ignored your documented requests for months, and that’s a blatant violation of consumer trust.