A grieving UK woman is blaming Ryanair for charging her nearly $140 to change a booking in her sister’s name – even though she died before the trip.
“I just feel it’s absolutely disgusting to pay so much,” Anita Kozłowska, 36, told BPM Media.
The Coventry resident had reportedly booked a surprise holiday to Lanzarote, Spain, as a birthday present for her sister, who would have turned 30 in August. The trip was planned for September this year.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck just days before she was due to book her accommodation and flights through Ryanair. The woman’s mother, sister, three-year-old nephew and six-year-old niece died when the car they were driving was hit by a train in Masuria, Poland on November 3, 2024.
“It was a very traumatic time, especially because it was meant to be a gift for him and I never got to tell him,” Kozłowska said.
After the funeral in Poland, the deceased woman decided to change the reservation, which still had the name of her sister Ana.
“Obviously I had to change the passenger in the reservation because my sister is not here anymore,” said Kozłowska, who decided to take her little cousin.
On The Beach – the travel agency she booked the getaway with – was “absolutely and changed the booking of the hotel and lounge”, she said.
Unfortunately, Ryanair was far less accommodating, according to the shocked Briton. When Kozłowska contacted the budget carrier, she was told they had no policy on changing reservations, which she found absolutely “ridiculous.”
Instead, the airline offered her a full refund and claimed her Spanish holiday could be booked – an outcome she also found less than ideal.
“I never wanted that because I was still planning to go on vacation,” Kozlowska lamented. “The problem with the refund is that I’m not guaranteed to be able to get on the same flight and sit with my little cousin who is a minor and very anxious.”
She added, “Also, it might cost me more than I paid for it.”
However, after doing some research, the determined girl discovered that the booking could be changed through the Ryanair app – for a fee of $144.
“I just find it absolutely disgusting and I don’t know how they can get away with it!” Kozlowska was furious. “It’s just a crazy situation, because despite the circumstances I’m in now, how can this be justified?
She claimed she explained the situation to Ryanair, but they refused to budge. “Under our terms and conditions, which this passenger agreed to at the time of booking, we allow name changes on all bookings, which can be made online at the cost of a standard name change fee,” it said. an airline spokesman.
Kozlowska said she will probably capitulate and pay the fine, but noted that not everyone has the means to do so.
“There will be so many people in a very similar situation where they lose a loved one and they just won’t be able to pay that fee to change the name on the reservation,” she said.
Ryanair has often come under fire for seemingly excessive fares.
Many passengers have claimed that they have been charged extortionate baggage fees even though their suitcases fit the size.
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Image Source : nypost.com