Skiing in France (not) but flying to Geneva. easyJet won't refund

[microbean]

DS has booked an easyJet to Geneva for January skiing in France. Obviously he cannot go as France are not allowing tourists. EasyJet are refusing to give him money back as he is flying to Geneva which is in Switzerland. He was going with a group of friends and it is impossible to change all the accomodation etc to Switzerland. Has anyone else had this same problem? I imagine Switzerland will soon follow same rules as France but who knows.

We have this problem even though we're flying to France (Grenoble)! Ryanair are refusing to refund unless the flight is actually cancelled, which it hasn't been (yet). We're hanging on and hoping it will eventually be cancelled. If it isn't we'll have to claim on our travel insurance instead.

I am not surprised tbh. What he chooses to do when he gets off the plane is nothing to do with easy jet I am not sure why you think he would be refunded? Did he take out travel insurance he can claim on? That would be the only route that would likely be successful. As far as easy jet is concerned, they will be fulfilling their duty to transport him t Geneva where it is still legal to travel.

Of course they won’t refund if he’s flying to Switzerland? Not easyJet’s problem

Not EJs problem I'm afraid.

His contract with Easy Jet is for the journey to Geneva. There is no reason why he can’t go to Geneva, so why would Easy Jet give him his money back? He didn’t book a package so each part of the journey and holiday is separate. Travel insurance might pay out but it will depend on the policy.

But with Easyjet he can move the flights fee free to anywhere and anything he wants, so just do that and wait for 2023 ski season flights to be released.

If he’d broken his leg and couldn’t ski, would you expect EasyJet to refund him? If you’re taking a train to your in-laws for Christmas and one of you gets Covid, so can’t come, do you expect the rail company to refund your fares?

Of course EJ won’t refund - they will be providing the flight for which your husband has a ticket. It’s not their problem that he no longer wants to use it.

@MissLucyEyelesbarrow

If he’d broken his leg and couldn’t ski, would you expect EasyJet to refund him? If you’re taking a train to your in-laws for Christmas and one of you gets Covid, so can’t come, do you expect the rail company to refund your fares?

Of course EJ won’t refund - they will be providing the flight for which your husband has a ticket. It’s not their problem that he no longer wants to use it.

The train company would indeed in many cases refund fares for unused train tickets so probably not the best example to use.

Swiss rules atm are more restrictive than France, and have been for a while. We knew weeks ago that we wouldn’t be able to make our January trip. Things change so rapidly you need to keep a close eye on it. EJet are in the same position as the rest of us.

@SeasonFinale Both rail companies and airlines offer fully flexible and refundable fares, but most people choose a cheaper but less flexible option.

Train companies only refund flexible fares. Maybe you have money to burn, but most people book advanced tickets that tie them to a specific train. These are not refundable. You can change them to a different date, though usually only on the same route.

The OP’s DH could have chosen a fully flexible and refundable EJ ticket but, like most passengers- rail and air - he chose the cheaper and less flexible option.

We're the other way round. Booked for Switzerland but can't go as my son tested positive to covid. Our hotel tried to resell our rooms but couldn't, and looking at their website, there's good availability for the next two weeks.

Switzerland have also just made their entry rules less restrictive (can get a lateral flow instead of PCR). So it might be worth a look at Switzerland even though you're a group.

Are Switzerland letting UK passport holders in? How was he planning on getting to France after? I'm asking because to get on a train, all you need to do is show your pass sanitaire, and there aren't border checks on the autoroute. I can see why easyjet wouldn't refund. One of my kids has just flown from UK to France. The flight was half empty, but they're still going.

Will travel insurance cover this scenario as he can no longer do the holiday planned due to COVID restrictions?

Theres not reason why he can't fly to Geneva. What he does there isn't anything to do with the flight provider, unless it's part of a package in which case if one part fails all parts are treated the same.

He'll need to see if his insurance covers it, look for a different destination in Switzerland, or just chalk it up to hard-won experience

I am sorry you are in this situation. Like many others, I had optimistically booked a number of activities during the Christmas period that I am now not able to attend due to changes in the travel restrictions. Some are refundable, some are not. It's a miserable situation all round.

FWIW: Switzerland was one of the few places that kept it's ski resorts open last year. They did bring in a quarantine for travellers from the UK recently but that was lifted and they have also lifted the day 4-7 test requirement. Switzerland would be a possibility but I guess not if the rest of the group will be in France.

There have been a few things over the last two years where I have had to mentally write off the cost of the flight and figure that I was saving the amount of money I would have spent while on the trip and just write it off to just one more thing that COVID has brought.

Yes, you could have bought fully flexible and fully refundable tickets and if you look back over all of the flights that you could have done that for in the past 10 years, it would have cost you significantly more that the lost cost of this individual flight.

I think you need to accept it, feel a bit grumpy about it and have a small treat with the money you have saved by not having to test, pay for ski passes, transfers, expensive overpriced food etc etc.

[quote MissLucyEyelesbarrow]@SeasonFinale Both rail companies and airlines offer fully flexible and refundable fares, but most people choose a cheaper but less flexible option.

Train companies only refund flexible fares. Maybe you have money to burn, but most people book advanced tickets that tie them to a specific train. These are not refundable. You can change them to a different date, though usually only on the same route.

The OP’s DH could have chosen a fully flexible and refundable EJ ticket but, like most passengers- rail and air - he chose the cheaper and less flexible option.[/quote]
Which is why I said "many" ....

Most people but flexible tickets during a pandemic!!

Just go skiing in Switzerland if possible.

We live in France .If you have flight booked to france as a non resident they will still allow onto the plane , its once you land that the problems will start Several people on the Manchester to limoges flight the other day were refused entry and put on the returning flight .If your passport is stamped as refused entry it can cause issues .